Baggage Chaos at Heathrow

Staff at Heathrow Airport are working hard to reduce the thousands of items of luggage that are piled up after the airport was hit by poor weather and faulty equipment.

The problems began before Christmas when a baggage belt at Terminal 4 and 3 days of flight delays due to fog caused 10,000 bags to go undelivered. British Airways, who are hoping to move it's entire operation to Terminal 5 in 2008, stated that the problems coincided with the introduction of new working practices for baggage handlers and Terminals 1 and 4.

While the airline has started using air freighter planes to get the bags to their owners, hoping to reduce the remaining 4,500 by a further 3,000 bags, the situation is, nonetheless, stressful to passengers as an estimated 20,000 have been left without their luggage for anywhere between 24 hours and 10 days. As lost, delayed and damaged luggage is covered under the Montreal Convention, British Airways have promised compensation for those affected and the bill for the incident may as high as £16 million.

In order to make a compensation claim, customers must fill in the missing luggage form available on the British Airways website or request a form by phone - details provided below. For further updates and other travel news, remember to check back with Holiday Extras.

By: Tony Hill

British Airways London Heathrow Telephone: 0800 727 800 Website: www.britishairways.com