European carriers to receive harsher penalties for lost luggage

Europe's consumer watchdog has recommended that European airlines should be subject to higher penalties for losing luggage after complaints against carriers almost doubled this year. 

The European Consumer Centre, which covers the European Union, Iceland and Norway, has recently conducted a report which reveals lost luggage as the number one complaint made against airlines.  Ryanair and Aer Lingus were found to be the biggest offenders. 

"The total of complaints made rose to 2,979 in 2006 from 1,521 a year earlier," the report said, adding that problems with luggage accounted for 33 percent of claims, while 26 percent of complaints concerned cancellations and 16 percent were due to delays.

The ECC has called for greater penalties for lost luggage and for an automatic mandatory payment for passengers to purchase emergency items when their luggage is lost.  It said it had yet to determine how much this payment should be.

"Most of the complaints in 2006 are against the same airline companies as in 2005... from Ireland, Spain, United Kingdom, Italy, Germany and France. It is also shown that consumers from Ireland, Sweden, Germany, Spain, Italy and Belgium make the most complaints," the report said.

"In the first six months of 2007... some 1,500 complaints and disputes relating to air travel have been received. This is on par with the number of complaints received in 2006 and it remains to be seen whether an increase will be recorded, once complaints received after the busy summer period have been counted."