Telangana Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum reduces compensation for lost baggage

Hyderabad: The Telangana State Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum has reduced the compensation ordered by the Ranga Reddy Consumer Forum for loss of baggage of an Air India passenger.

The RR district forum had directed the airline to pay Rs 50,000 as compensation to passenger Pathuri Vittal, a resident of Satavahananagar, Kukatpally, for “inconvenience and mental agony” caused by the loss of his baggage, and Rs 50,000 as the cost of the contents.

The state forum reduced the amount to Rs 20,000 and 17 Special Drawing Rights (SRDs) per kg of baggae as directed by the Montreal Convention.

The order came on an appeal filed by Air India against the order of the district forum delivered in January 2014.

Mr Vittal and his wife were to visit their daughter in New Jersey, US, in July 2012 from Hyderabad. Due to a strike, the flight was cancelled and the couple booked again to travel to Delhi and from there to New York by a connecting flight.

Once on board the flight from RGIA Hyderabad to Delhi on July 11, 2012, the flight attendants told the couple that as there was a space constraint, they should hand over their hand luggage, for which tags were issued.

At New Jersey, the two hand bags weighing about 8 kg, containing clothes, silk sarees, medicines, important documents and medical records were not handed back to the two passengers.

Air India, in its counter, said no complaint was registered at JKF Airport, New York, about the missing bags, which would have been tracked if a complaint had been lodged. It said the passengers had been requested to remove valuables from the hand baggage and were provided a sling bag for the purpose. It said the liability of the carrier was limited under the Montreal Convention.

The airline argued that Mr Vittal was entitled to compensation for weight loss, 17 SDRs per kg totalling 136 SDRs for 8 kg, equivalent to $203.95.

The state forum found email evidence that the couple had filed a complaint, and said no effort was made to trace the baggage. However, it did not accept the valuation of the contents of the bags at Rs1 lakh.

The state forum ruled: “The value of 17 SDRs was shown at Rs 11,360 as on July 2012, which was not acceptable under any stretch of imagination in view of the fact that the same was not paid by the appellants, though admitted. However, the compensation awarded by the (district) forum is on the high side. In these circumstances, we feel it is just and necessary to direct the appellants to pay the value of 17 SDRs per kilogram at the rate existing.”