Originally Posted by
frankvb
So it seems they've already acknowledged it was not due to "extraordinary circumstances".
Like the other advice - I'd go for the EU compensation, and (separate from that) for the actual amount of money you had to spend due to your luggage not arriving.
Many airlines would include technical problems in their definition of "operational reasons" and these are counted as extraordinary circumstances under the Regulation. So don't bank on this succeeding.
just to be clear, I'm not defending BA, just reporting what standard practice amongst European airlines is. In my experience BA's customer service is awful, except when it's clear that you will sue and you have a strong legal case - in which case they pay up almost instantly!