Buying guide

Flying with luxury luggage and a designer handbag: the airline’s liability limit, the Montreal Convention, declaring a higher value, and the claim deadlines

Updated November 3, 2026 · Written by the House of Biz & Company Editorial Team · General information, not legal or financial advice

The trunk, the weekender, and the handbag that goes everywhere deserve better than a guess about what the airline owes you. Here is how the discerning traveler reads the domestic liability floor, the Montreal Convention, the items airlines exclude, the declaration that raises the limit, and the deadlines that end claims, from the regulations, the treaty, and an airline’s own contract.

We don’t sell luggage, handbags, airline tickets, or insurance, and we never sell, broker, consign, finance, or arrange the sale of any vehicle. Only for the Wealthy is a publisher, not a dealer (see 625 ILCS 5/5-101). This is general information drawn from U.S. Department of Transportation rules, the Montreal Convention and ICAO’s published limits, an airline’s published contract of carriage, and FAA and TSA guidance, all cited below. It is not legal or insurance advice. We are not affiliated with any airline, luggage maker, lock maker, or agency, and we earn nothing from anyone named here.

The suitcase is part of the wardrobe

For the discerning traveler, the luggage is never an afterthought: an aluminum trunk that has collected a decade of dents with dignity, a leather weekender that matches the car, the handbag that goes everywhere. Then it all disappears down a belt behind the check-in desk, and what protects it from that moment is not the brand on the shell but a short set of rules most travelers never read: a federal minimum for domestic flights, an international treaty for flights abroad, the airline’s own contract, and deadlines that can quietly end a claim. Here is how each one reads, from the regulations, the treaty, and the airline’s own text.

1. Domestic flights: the $4,700 floor

On a U.S. domestic flight segment using a large aircraft (designed for more than 60 seats), or on any segment on the same ticket as one, an airline “shall not limit its liability” for provable direct or consequential damages from the disappearance of, damage to, or delay of a passenger’s property in its custody “to an amount less than $4,700 for each passenger” [1]. The airline must tell you its limit in writing on or with the ticket, or print the notice that federal rules require any limit to be at least $4,700 per passenger [1]. DOT reviews the figure every two years using the July consumer price index [1].

Two words in that rule matter to anyone traveling with fine things. The first is floor: $4,700 is the least an airline may limit itself to, and nothing stops a contract from setting it higher. The second is per passenger: it is one figure for everything you checked, not per bag. A single designer handbag can be worth more than that, before counting the luggage it travels in.

The airline’s contract then decides how a claim is valued. Delta’s published U.S. contract of carriage, as one example, says reimbursement is based on the documented original purchase price less depreciation for prior use, and that liability “under no circumstances” exceeds $4,700 per fare-paying passenger [7]. Read your own airline’s contract before you fly; it is the document that actually governs.

2. What the airline’s contract may refuse to cover

Contracts of carriage commonly list items the airline won’t pay for. Delta’s says it is not liable for loss or damage to “precious items,” defined as items that are high value, limited edition, or irreplaceable, and it names, among others, jewelry, watches, antiques, collectibles, electronic equipment, and money [7]. It also says it is not liable for fragile items not packed appropriately, or for pre-existing damage and ordinary wear and tear, including “minor cuts, scratches, and broken zippers as a result of over packing” [7], and that it may ask for receipts for high-value items [7].

The practical reading is simple: the handbag, the watch, and the jewelry fly with you in the cabin, never in the hold. Checked luggage is for what you can afford to have scuffed, delayed, or replaced at depreciated value. For a piece you can’t afford to lose anywhere, a scheduled insurance endorsement is the serious answer; our guide to insuring a fine watch or jewelry explains how a schedule works, and our travel insurance guide covers why a trip policy’s baggage limit is usually the weaker layer.

3. International flights: the Montreal Convention

For international carriage between countries that are parties to it, the Montreal Convention of 1999 sets the airline’s baggage liability [3]. It applies when the place of departure and destination are in two states parties, or in one state party with an agreed stopping place in another country [3].

Situation	What the Convention says
Checked bag lost, destroyed, or damaged	The airline is liable if the event happened on board or while the bag was in its charge, except to the extent the damage came from the bag’s own “inherent defect, quality or vice” [3]
Bag still missing after 21 days	If the airline admits the loss, or the bag hasn’t arrived 21 days after it should have, you can enforce your rights as for a lost bag [3]
Carry-on and personal items	The airline is liable only if the damage resulted from its fault or that of its staff or agents [3]
Delay	The airline is liable for damage from delay of baggage unless it proves it took all reasonable measures to avoid it, or that it was impossible to do so [3]
The limit	1,519 Special Drawing Rights per passenger for destruction, loss, damage, or delay of baggage, since December 28, 2024 (it began at 1,000 and was 1,288 from 2019) [4]

A Special Drawing Right is a unit of account defined by the International Monetary Fund. When ICAO announced the 2024 revision, it put the new baggage limit at about US$2,000 at that day’s rate [5]; the dollar figure moves with exchange rates. In other words, on an international ticket the default protection for everything you check can be well under half the domestic floor.

The Convention also says that any contract term tending to relieve the airline of liability, or to set a lower limit than the treaty’s, is “null and void” [3]. How that interacts with a particular airline’s list of excluded valuables on an international trip is a question for a lawyer if a large loss happens; it is not a reason to check a fine watch.

4. Declaring a higher value

The treaty offers one way above its limit. If, when you hand over the checked bag, you make “a special declaration of interest in delivery at destination” and pay a supplementary sum if the airline requires one, the airline is liable up to the declared sum, unless it proves that sum is greater than your actual interest [3]. The Convention also lets airlines agree to higher limits or no limit at all [6].

Whether a given airline accepts a declaration, how much it charges, and which items it will still exclude are set by that airline, so ask at check-in and keep the receipt. Domestically, the federal rule is only a minimum [1], and some contracts, like the Delta example above, state a hard cap instead [7]. If the airline won’t take a higher value, the decision is made for you: the item travels in the cabin or is insured separately.

5. The deadlines that end claims

This is where well-dressed travelers lose money. Under the Montreal Convention, damage to checked baggage must be reported to the airline “forthwith” after you discover it and at the latest within seven days of receiving the bag; a delay complaint must be made within 21 days from when the bag was placed at your disposal [3]. Every complaint must be in writing, and if none is made in time, “no action shall lie against the carrier,” except for fraud [3]. A lawsuit must be brought within two years [3].

Airline contracts for domestic travel can be much shorter. Delta’s U.S. contract, for example, requires damage claims to be presented in person, with the bag, at a Delta baggage office within six hours of arrival, with 24 hours allowed for pilferage or damage not apparent from the outside and for delayed bags after they are returned to you, and says any lawsuit must start within one year [7]. Other airlines set their own windows, so open the bag and inspect it before you leave the airport.

6. Your bag fee comes back, separately

Compensation for the contents is one claim; the checked-bag fee is another. Under DOT’s refund rule, the airline must refund the fee for a lost or “significantly delayed” checked bag: one not delivered within 12 hours of arrival on a domestic itinerary, or within 15 or 30 hours on an international one, depending on whether the nonstop segment to or from the United States is 12 hours or less, or longer [2]. The refund depends on your filing a Mishandled Baggage Report with the airline that operated the flight (or the last segment) [2]. Our guide to first- and business-class refund rights covers the fare side of the same rule.

7. Locks, power banks, and the inspection notice

TSA screens checked bags and may open one by hand; if it does, it places a notice of inspection inside [9]. TSA holds master keys under agreements with Safe Skies and Travel Sentry, so locks from those programs may not have to be cut, but it takes no position on how effective they are and will remove them if it must [9]. If something goes missing or is damaged during screening, the claim is with TSA; during transport to the plane or to baggage claim, it is with the airline [9].

If your suitcase has a removable battery pack or you travel with power banks, the FAA rule is that spare lithium batteries and power banks go in carry-on baggage only, and must be taken out of a carry-on that is checked at the gate or planeside [8]. Damaged or recalled batteries may not fly at all unless removed or made safe [8].

8. Before you fly: a checklist

Keep the handbag, watch, jewelry, and electronics in the cabin; the airline’s contract may exclude them from checked baggage entirely [7].
Read the baggage section of your airline’s contract of carriage, including its limit, exclusions, and claim deadlines [1][7].
On international trips, know the treaty limit (1,519 SDR) and ask at check-in whether the airline accepts a special declaration of value [3][4].
Photograph the luggage and its contents before you leave, and keep receipts for anything valuable; airlines may ask for them [7].
Use a TSA-recognized lock if you lock checked bags at all [9].
Carry power banks and spare batteries in the cabin [8].
Inspect the bag at the carousel and report damage before leaving the airport, in writing, and keep a copy [3][7].
File a Mishandled Baggage Report for any delayed or lost bag, which also starts the bag-fee refund [2].
For a piece worth more than the limits, insure it on a schedule rather than relying on the airline [1][4].

Shopping abroad on the same trip? Our guides to VAT refunds and crossing customs with a fine watch or jewelry cover the paperwork on the way home, and our pre-owned handbag guide covers authenticity if you buy one there.

Frequently asked questions

How much will an airline pay if it loses my checked luxury luggage?

On U.S. domestic flights on large aircraft, an airline may not limit its liability below $4,700 per passenger [1]. On international trips covered by the Montreal Convention, the limit is 1,519 Special Drawing Rights per passenger, about US$2,000 when ICAO announced it in 2024 [3][4][5]. Contracts may value claims at purchase price less depreciation and exclude jewelry, watches, and other valuables [7].

Can I declare a higher value for my checked bag?

The Montreal Convention lets you make a special declaration of interest at check-in and pay a supplementary sum if required, raising the airline’s liability to the declared amount [3]. Whether an airline accepts one, and its charge, depends on the airline [6].

How long do I have to report a damaged bag?

Under the Montreal Convention, in writing within seven days of receiving the bag, or within 21 days for a delay [3]. Domestic airline contracts can be much shorter; Delta’s U.S. contract asks for damage to be reported in person within six hours of arrival in most cases [7].

Should I check a designer handbag?

No. Airline contracts commonly exclude high-value and irreplaceable items from checked baggage liability, and the limits are per passenger, not per item [1][7]. Carry it in the cabin.