European court rules that compensation for lost dog should be same as a suitcase
The owner of the animal, which escaped as it was being loaded onto the plane, had claimed 5,000 euros from the airline Iberia for moral damages
On 22 October 2019 a passenger travelled with her mother and dog on an Iberia flight from Buenos Aires to Barcelona. Due to its size and weight (more than eight kilos) the dog had to travel in the hold. During check-in, the passenger did not make what is known as a special declaration of interest or value, an option provided for when checking in special baggage and which has a value.
The decision would ultimately cost her dearly, because the animal escaped while being loaded onto the plane and was never found. The passenger claimed 5,000 euros for moral damages suffered and although Iberia accepted its responsibility and paid compensation, it considered that the amount should be limited to the amount established for checked baggage.
The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has now ruled that a dog can be considered as ordinary luggage and does not deserve further compensation in the event of loss, in a decision published on Thursday 16 October which agrees with the decision taken by Iberia. "The fact that the protection of animal welfare is an objective of general interest recognised by the European Union does not prevent animals from being transported as 'baggage' and considered as such for the purposes of liability arising from loss," the CJEU said in its ruling.
The Spanish court examining the claim for compensation decided to refer the matter to the CJEU for a preliminary ruling, which ultimately held that the concept of "baggage" within the meaning of the Montreal Convention includes pets travelling with passengers.
Mona ran down the airport runway while being chased by three vans, her owner, Grisel Ortiz, told Argentinian media. Ortiz set up a Facebook page to seek information on Mona's whereabouts and offered a cash reward for the dog's return, but her efforts were unsuccessful.
The CJEU ruling is advisory and does not resolve the dispute, something that will be up to the Spanish court dealing with the case. Ortiz's lawyer says she hopes that Spanish judges "will be more sensitive to the new realities of our society". The lawyer argued that the loss of a dog could cause "not only moral but also psychological and even psychiatric damage which, according to this ruling, can never be compensated for".
