This is the section you need if you’ve had something stolen, you’ve lost something or an item has been damaged.
The first thing to check is that you elected to have baggage included on your policy with us. If your Validation Certificate includes the wording “Section K (Baggage) Add-on” please read on. If it states “Section K (Baggage) Not Selected” then you have no cover for any losses incurred on your journey so you will not be able to claim against your travel insurance.
If personal baggage is delayed obtain a written report from the carrier (e.g. airline, shipping company etc.) detailing the length and the cause of the delay. Retain all the receipts which relate to any emergency replacement items you have purchased.
In addition, you may have requested that a Specified Item, like a laptop, be included on your policy. Again, just double check your Validation Certificate to ensure you can claim.
Delayed Baggage
If the airline you’re flying with delays your baggage on your first flight out from your home country for more than 12 hours, then you can claim up to £25 for every 12-hour delay up to £75 on the True Value policy, £35 for every 12-hour delay up to £105 on the Traveller policy and £50 for every 12-hour delay up to £150 on the Traveller Plus policy. This is so you can buy any replacement necessities you needed whilst you were waiting for your luggage to arrive. Keep all the receipts, as this will be needed when making your claim!
If you’re waiting by the baggage carousel and everyone has left and your bag hasn't appeared, immediately go to the airlines Baggage Desk which should be close by. Register your loss with them and complete a Property Irregularity Report (PIR). Also, ask the airline there and then for some compensation for you to buy some necessities. Some airlines will give you $100 or so as an interim payment, but they don’t have to.
How to Claim for Delayed Baggage
You can either make your delayed baggage claim online, or instead complete a claim form and then email or send that in to our claim handlers. It is usually much faster to obtain settlement if you use the online claims system.
You must complete your online claim on a PC or MAC. As you will have to upload documents, you will not be able to start a claim using your mobile device or tablet, though once a claim has been submitted you will be able to check the status of an online claim on any device.
Documents to Prepare before starting your Claim
You will have to attach to your claim a copy of confirmation from your airline or shipping company detailing the length of the delay. Please scan these in as PDF’s using Tiny Scanner using your phone, as photos may be too large for the online system to accept.
Tiny Scanner is available on
No Excess applies
There is no excess applied on delayed baggage claims.
Make your Claim
Click here for online claims, or here for a claim form to submit manually.
Lost or Stolen Baggage
In the case of each claim, you are required to obtain written proof of the incident relating to the loss or theft from the police, the accommodation management, tour operator or airline within 24 hours of the loss/theft. Without this written proof, any claim will most probably fail.
Note for valuables , this policy will not pay out for loss or damage if such item is left unattended. For example, if you are in a bar and leave your laptop on a table whilst you go and order drinks from the bar this would be classed as being left unattended and any claim will most probably fail. Likewise, if you put your valuables in checked-in baggage on an airline, that is an exclusion on the policy and any claim would again most probably fail.
In the case of an airline losing your luggage, after 3 days, most airlines will assume your baggage has been lost. Then, just go to the airlines website and put in a claim with the airline. Airlines, under the "Montreal Convention" must compensate your luggage to a maximum of XDR1131 (which is a UN Currency) but it equates to around £1200/€1360 which they will pay after 21 days. In most circumstances, this will cover your baggage anyway, but if it doesn’t, you can put in a further claim on your policy.
Baggage claims are settled on an indemnity basis, which means that they’re depreciated according to wear and tear, and their age. The levels of depreciation our claims handlers work on is detailed here
For all item(s), pair or sets of items valued at over £100, you must provide receipts. If you don’t have the receipts anymore, then other proof of ownership (such as bank/credit card statements and photographs of the items in your possession) may be offered to support your claim.
There are limits to Baggage claims depending on the policy you took out with us. For True Value policies, the overall limit is £1000, with a single article limit of £100. In addition, the total limit for your valuables is £200. On the Traveller policy, the overall limit is £2000, with a single article limit of £200 and the valuables limit is £350. On Traveller Plus, the overall limit is £2500, with a single article limit of £300 and the valuables limit is £400.
If you have specified items detailed on your Validation Certificate, the limit for each article is £450 on the True Value and Traveller Policy, and £750 on the Traveller Plus.
How to Claim for Lost or Stolen Baggage
You can either make your baggage claim online, or instead complete a claim form and then email that in to our claim handlers. It is usually much faster to obtain settlement if you use the online claims system.
You must complete any online claim on a PC or MAC. As you will have to upload documents, you will not be able to start a claim using your mobile device or tablet, though once a claim has been submitted you will be able to check the status of an online claim on any device.
Documents to Prepare before starting your Claim
You will have to attach to your claim all receipts for your expenses, together with a Police Report or other report as necessary to provide proof of loss. Please scan these in as PDF’s using Tiny Scanner using your phone, as photos may be too large for the online system to accept.
Tiny Scanner is available on
Check your Excess
The Excess is the amount of money the claims service will deduct from any settlement they make to you. You may have chosen to remove the excess when you applied for cover so then no excess will apply. Just check your Validation Certificate, or click here to check your Excess online.
Make your Claim
Click here for online claims, or here for a claim form to submit manually.
Damaged Items in Baggage
If an item has been damaged on your journey, for example a laptop or a mobile phone, don’t throw it away! Take it to an authorised repair centre, either wherever you are or on your return home if you’re due back home soon. If they can repair it, keep the receipts. If they cannot repair it, get written confirmation from them stating that they couldn’t repair it, detailing the item and the serial number. Note you do have to prove you owned said laptop/mobile phone to start with, so our claims service will need to see the original purchase receipt. If the item is of high value and was a gift you will still need to provide evidence of ownership in the absence of the original purchase receipt.
Do remember that we cover your baggage for damage, but we don’t cover wear and tear, denting or scratching, or "moth or vermin" damage. So, if your camera or laptop just stops working for some unknown reason, it’s probably at the end of its natural life so any claim would probably fail. Please also refer to the “indemnity basis” explanation above.
How to Claim for Damaged Items
Just follow the same procedure and form as Lost or Stolen Baggage above.
About our Claims Service
In common with most travel insurance companies, we outsource our Claims service to a totally separate, specialist company, to ensure total impartiality when it comes to settling claims.
For all policies purchased up until 1 April 2019, our claims service is handled by Claims Settlement Agencies (CSA). CSA aim to settle all claims within 10 working days of receipt of your claim.
If you ever believe you think you are not getting the service you think you should be getting from CSA, please get in contact with True Traveller immediately so we can help.