Lost Baggage Is a Weighty Matter for Carriers : Airlines: If you’re not satisfied with the cash settlement on your lost luggage, your only alternative is to go to small-claims court.

When you check in for an international flight and hand your check-through baggage over to the airline counter personnel, you should get more than just a tag as a receipt. The number of bags and their weight should also be recorded on your ticket.

Flights to and from the United States generally allow passengers two pieces of checked luggage at no extra cost. In other parts of the world the weight system may be used with different free-weight limitations per class of service (such as 44 pounds economy and 66 pounds for first or business class).

Airlines, however, also apply a weight limitation to checked luggage, even with the piece system. The amount of weight per bag can vary from region to region. Generally, if the weight of either bag goes over 70 pounds on flights to Europe, you pay extra for the excess weight.

To avoid any problems, it’s always a good idea to check with the airline on how many pieces of check-through luggage you can take, plus the maximum allowable weight per bag.

If your bags should be lost and never recovered, the airlines--under the provisions of the Warsaw Convention--are committed to paying you a maximum of $9.07 a pound or $20 a kilo.

Airline personnel, busy boarding a heavily booked jet, may not always have time to note the weight of your luggage on your ticket.

In that case, some airline may just pay you the maximum for lost luggage, depending on the circumstances.

“We might, for the sake of expediency, assume that the weight of the lost bag is the total allowed, so $640 would be the most a passenger could be paid per bag based on the 70-pounds cut-off point,” a TWA spokesman said. “This doesn’t happen too often.”

More often, the passenger is paid a lower amount based on the estimated value of the lost bag and its contents.

“This leads to a problem sometimes that’s resolved in Small Claims Court when passengers insist on being paid based on the weight of their lost baggage,” the TWA spokesman added.

Regardless of whether there is a record of the weight of your lost bag, you should--after filing a claim for your lost luggage--get a form from the carrier asking you to list each item, when it was purchased, what it cost and photocopies of whatever receipts you can produce to document your claim.

Airlines pay on the basis of depreciated value, not the original cost of items. Obviously, this can lead to differences of opinion.

“We have charts on various items, including different kinds of clothing, that we use for this purpose,” said the TWA spokesman. “If passengers can establish through a receipt that they just bought a suit or dress a month or so beforehand, chances are good they would get paid the full value.”

If there is a record of the weight of your lost luggage, the airline can pay you the amount due based on the weight, even if the amount you claim is higher than this total but still less than the maximum of $640.

Suppose your bag weighed 35 pounds, which would normally obligate the carrier for $317.45. You asked for $375, which the carrier then reduced to $275 based on depreciation. Most likely you would get the lowest figure involved, $275.

If there was no record of the weight of your luggage, the airline could still pay you the $275 in this scenario.

Airlines are also aware that some passengers may claim items that were not in the lost luggage and that their bags contained more expensive and more recently purchased items.

“All claims are subject to the proof of value, and those presented without receipts are reviewed more closely,” said the TWA spokesman. “Passengers should realize that when we have nothing to base a factual decision on, we have to review claims on a more subjective basis.”

Said another airline spokeswoman: “We try to show flexibility and give passengers some benefit of the doubt, as we know not everyone has receipts, but it’s amazing how many expensive furs and tuxedos are supposedly in suitcases.”

One mistake some passengers make is not completely filling out the forms that airlines send them. “Don’t leave any blanks,” the TWA spokesman said. “This will prevent a reviewer from having questions. And don’t forget to sign the form and have it notarized.”

The forms are likely to ask if you have any insurance coverage for lost baggage. The airlines will then coordinate your claim with the insurer; you’re not likely to get double coverage.

Both the report of the loss and the claim form must be submitted within 45 days from the date of the loss. “Some people sit on these forms and we can deny claims if they wait too long,” the TWA spokesman said.

If the value of your luggage is more than the airline’s maximum liability, consider getting excess valuation insurance. Cash, medications, important documents, jewelry and other valuables should be taken in your carry-on bags, not those you check in. The carriers can also decline liability for what they regard as fragile items.

Airlines, though, are on the hook for a maximum of $400 for any loss or damage for your unchecked baggage if they consider themselves responsible. Most often, the airlines hold that passengers are to blame, by generally leaving items behind even though they are reminded to look around before getting off the plane.

Items in unchecked baggage would also be assessed on a depreciated value basis by the airlines. Situations where airlines might accept responsibility for carry-on baggage could be when flight personnel take control of the item, such as hanging up a garment bag.

“But if a passenger hangs up his own garment bag, it’s not our responsibility,” said the TWA representative. “Many people mistakenly believe that airlines are automatically responsible for the personal property in their carry-on bags, but if you leave something behind, we have no liability.”

Domestically, the airlines will pay up to $1,250 per passenger (not per bag) for lost or damaged baggage. Airlines seldom pay that amount, however, using the same practice of working down from that figure. Again, you have to prove the worth of your luggage through receipts, with items assessed on a depreciated basis.

If you are traveling domestically and connecting to an international flight, the international rules on baggage apply.

Don’t expect to get paid immediately for a lost-bag claim. It may take the airline several months before your matter is fully processed and a check is issued.

If you believe the airline is unresponsive to processing your claim, you can bring the matter to the attention of the Department of Transportation’s consumer affairs division. Call (202) 366-2220, or write to the Office of Consumer Affairs, U.S. Department of Transportation, 400 7th St. S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590.

While the DOT can prod an airline to settle a claim, it does not get involved in determining the value of lost baggage and its contents.