Stack of colorful vintage suitcases
RecoverAir  ·  Baggage

Your bags didn't arrive.
Your claim doesn't have
to follow.

Lost, delayed, or damaged baggage is a documented financial loss with a defined liability ceiling. Most travelers settle for far less than that ceiling. RecoverAir Baggage is a lost baggage compensation service from TravelWise Tech that recovers payment for lost, delayed, and damaged bags under the Montreal Convention and DOT rules.

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Instant estimate

How much you might
be owed.

Three inputs, instant range. Grounded in the liability caps and recovery patterns shown below. Documentation determines where in the range you land; RecoverAir pursues the ceiling.

$1,500
Your potential entitlement
Qualifies for review
Liability cap$3,800
Your documented value$1,500

Initial airline offers come in around 50 percent of documented value. The ceiling is the legal maximum under DOT 14 CFR 254.

Start with RecoverAir →

Estimate only. Final recovery depends on case documentation.

The honest picture

The liability cap
is real.
Most travelers don't know the number.

Tell us what happened →

On domestic US flights, airlines are liable for up to $3,800 per passenger for lost or damaged baggage. On international flights under the Montreal Convention, the ceiling is approximately $1,800. These are floors set by law, not offers airlines can choose to make.

Most travelers receive far less, because the documentation burden falls entirely on them. Without the right paperwork in the right order, claims get denied or underpaid. The order matters.

The liability framework

What the rules
actually require.

The numbers airlines must pay are set by regulation, not negotiation. Three frameworks govern almost every baggage claim a US traveler will file. The ceiling is yours. The work is in documenting up to it.

Jurisdiction Liability ceiling Governing authority
US DomesticFlights within the United States $3,800per passenger 14 CFR Part 254US Department of Transportation
InternationalMost international routes ~$1,8001,288 SDR per passenger Montreal Convention, Art. 22ICAO multilateral treaty (1999)
International (legacy)Non-Montreal state routes VariableLower; route-specific Warsaw Convention 1929Applies where Montreal is not in force

SDR (Special Drawing Right) is an IMF reserve asset; the USD conversion fluctuates daily. The 1,288 SDR ceiling was set in the 2019 ICAO five-year review and took effect December 28, 2019. Last reviewed Q2 2026.

Luggage cart on train platform in golden light
What we handle

The baggage situations
we're built for.

01
Lost baggage

Bags declared lost trigger the full liability ceiling under DOT or Montreal Convention rules. The number is higher than most travelers know.

When is a bag legally "lost"? →
02
Delayed baggage

Reimbursement for essentials during a delay is recoverable. After 21 days, the claim becomes a lost baggage claim with a much larger ceiling.

The 21-day rule →
03
Damaged luggage

Bag and contents damage. The repair-or-replace question affects the payout, and it isn't always the airline's call to make.

Documenting contents →
04
Denied claims

The first denial is rarely the final answer. The DOT escalation path is real and underused.

Insurance denial recovery →
05
Low offers

An initial offer below your documented loss can be countered. The evidence usually exists. It just needs to be assembled.

Countering a low offer →
06
Theft from checked bags

Items removed from checked baggage in transit. A separate framework from damage, and often eligible for full liability recovery.

Proving what was inside →
What you'll need

The documentation
that actually matters.

Baggage claims succeed or fail on documentation. Most denials come down to a missing piece travelers didn't know to keep. Here is what to gather before you start.

  1. 01

    Property Irregularity Report (PIR)

    The airline's official record that something went wrong. File it at the airport before leaving the baggage claim area. Without a PIR number, every later step becomes harder.

  2. 02

    Original boarding pass

    Proves you were on the flight. Physical stub or airline-app screen capture both work. Hold onto it until your claim closes.

  3. 03

    Bag tag stub

    The tear-off receipt you receive at check-in. It carries the routing code that traces your bag through the airline's system. Lost stubs slow claims significantly.

  4. 04

    Contents receipts and proof of value

    Documented value drives the claim amount. Receipts, credit card statements, photographs of high-value items packed for the trip. Reconstruction from memory is accepted, but it lowers settlements.

  5. 05

    Photographs of the bag and any damage

    For damaged-luggage claims, photograph the exterior before leaving the airport. Time-stamped images establish that the damage occurred while the bag was in airline custody.

  6. 06

    Essentials receipts during a delay

    If your bag is delayed and you bought necessary clothing or toiletries, keep every receipt. These are recoverable separately from the lost-baggage ceiling and are often forgotten.

Some credit cards include baggage protection that stacks with airline liability. The two recoveries operate on different rules, and travelers regularly leave one of them on the table. RecoverAir pursues both. See card benefits recovery →

How recovery works

Airlines have a system.
We have one too.

Airlines process thousands of baggage claims every day. The system is built for efficiency, not for individual case detail. Delayed-vs-lost classifications, documentation gaps, and valuation disputes are routine.

RecoverAir knows the documentation that drives results and when the DOT route produces better outcomes than the airline's own process. The point isn't to argue. The point is to be paid the ceiling, not the offer.

When a baggage problem is compounded by a flight delay or cancellation, the recovery overlap is real and worth pursuing together. See flight disruption recovery →

“A bag designated as delayed after 21 days is legally considered lost under most international rules.”

The 21-day mark is what triggers the larger liability tier. RecoverAir tracks the calendar and escalates at the right moment.

Frequently asked

What people ask
before they start.

A few common questions and concerns from travelers exploring RecoverAir for the first time. Tap any question to expand the answer.

The RecoverAir app

Your claims,
in your pocket.

Start a claim from the airport. Track flights, hotels, and policies before anything goes wrong. Upload boarding passes from your phone camera. Get push notifications the moment something changes.

Claim from anywhere

Start the recovery process the moment a disruption happens. From the airport, the hotel lobby, or the cruise terminal.

Disruption tracking built in

Add your flights, hotels, or insurance policies. We watch them and alert you the moment something disrupts your trip.

Real-time status

Every demand, every response, every step from filing through resolution.

Camera document upload

Photograph receipts, boarding passes, and denial letters. We handle the rest.

▶ Get it on Google Play Coming soon App Store
Explore the app →
Help us improve

Your experience
shapes everything.

RecoverAir gets better because of people like you. Tell us what happened, what we missed, or what you wish we could do. Your story might help another traveler recover what they're owed.

Share your experience

How did it go? What would make RecoverAir better for you?

★ ★ ★ ★ ★
  1. 1
    What is confusing or broken

    If any part of the claim flow is unclear, we fix it immediately.

  2. 2
    What claim types are missing

    New recovery categories come directly from patterns in user feedback.

  3. 3
    What you wish existed

    The next TravelWise Tech product will be shaped by what you tell us here.

  4. 4
    What we got right

    Knowing what works matters just as much as knowing what does not.

Our commitment: Every piece of feedback is read by a human. We publish what we are building and why. If your feedback shapes a feature, we will tell you.

RecoverAir  ·  Baggage

Your baggage loss
is most likely recoverable.

Share the airline, the route, and what was in the bag. We identify the correct liability basis and pursue what the rules require. No pressure, no commitment to continue.

Start with RecoverAir

Free to start  ·  No recovery, no fee

File by Airline

Baggage liability limits and response times vary significantly by carrier. Select yours for specific guidance.

Delta Air LinesLow resistance · $3,800 domestic American AirlinesModerate · $3,800 domestic United AirlinesModerate · $3,800 domestic Southwest AirlinesModerate · $3,800 domestic JetBlue AirwaysLow resistance · $3,800 domestic Alaska AirlinesLow resistance · $3,800 domestic Spirit AirlinesHigh resistance · 21 days Frontier AirlinesHigh resistance · 21 days

Other claim types

Flight delays and cancellations Travel insurance denial Credit card baggage coverage OTA booking issues Cruise baggage claims