Court awards N500,000 against Air France over Lagos judge’s misplaced luggage

A federal high court in Lagos has ordered Air France to pay N500,000 to Oke Lawal, a Lagos state high court judge and her husband, Bayo Lawal, as compensation for losing their luggage.

In their suit, the plaintiffs said in July 2015, the airline delayed two and lost one of their three pieces of luggage during their trip to Florence, Italy, Paris and London.

Lawal (husband) said he later received a call from an unidentified person on July 29, 2015, claiming to have his luggage.

He assumed that the individual had had forcefully opened his luggage which contained personal items, including his iPad and medications, to be able to identify the owner.

The couple prayed the court to award a cost of N30 million against the airline for general damages and £2,871 for the loss of their luggage, its contents and compensation for the mental anguish and distress they suffered following the breach of contract.

In its defence, the airline, through its counsel Ogunyemi Olanrewaju, denied liability and urged the court to dismiss the plaintiffs’ claims

However, in his ruling, Saliu Saidu, the judge, upheld the couple’s case.

Saidu said: “The provisions of section 22(2) of the Montreal Convention 1999, is very clear, the damages arising from loss or delay of luggage is limited to 1,000 Special Drawing Right.

“It is part of the evidence of the plaintiffs that they carried out some actions in seeing to the recovery of their baggage.

“These actions of the plaintiffs will definitely incur additional expenses in the course trying to locate their luggage.

“The defendant having admitted that it lost chief Bayo Lawal’s luggage and delayed the delivery of Justice Oke Lawal’s luggage, l gave judgement in favour of the plaintiffs as follows.

“Delay of the defendant to deliver the check-in Luggage of justice Oke Lawal amounts to a breach of contract of carriage by Air.

“The defendant is liable for loss and delay of the plaintiffs’ Luggage and the defendant is to pay the plaintiffs 1,000 Special Drawing Right each. General damages in the sum of N500,000 only in favour of the plaintiffs.”