An Oakville woman recently flew to Fort Lauderdale for what was supposed to be a celebration.“I was going there as a guest for a wedding to celebrate with family,” explained Folake Enitilo.But the trip soured as soon as she landed. Her checked luggage was delayed and then later delivered to her hotel the next early morning.“When I woke up in the morning, I opened my suitcase and everything was gone,” she said.It was nearly everything she had packed. Some clothing items were left but the luxury items in the suitcase that she had planned to wear at the wedding reception were all missing, including a purse worth more than $2,000, pricey aviator sunglasses, shoes and a Louis Vuitton bag.“My Louis Vuitton bag … I bought it for 6,150 pounds if you convert it to Canadian it’s like $11,000,” shared Enitilo.She flew American Airlines and had two connecting flights. She believes someone, somewhere along the transfer process swiped her goods.“They go through my property—they took it out,” she said. “I went back to the airport to speak with a representative and the lady gave me one form and she said I should write everything that was missing.”She went even further, providing receipts and photos of the missing items. “Since then, we’ve been trying to get in touch with them to see what’s going on.”Dr. Gabor Lukacs, an airline passenger rights advocate, says while not as common as other complaints, he has heard of people who like Entilio, have had items missing after they receive their luggage.“It’s important to understand that when this happens, you have rights,” Lukacs said. “The airline is liable for your checked baggage from the time you hand it over to the airline until the time, you get it back,” including the items inside.“It doesn’t matter whether an item was removed by security or a thief, the airline is your address for all complaints and they have a liability.”According to the Montreal Convention, an international treaty for passenger rights, the airline should reimburse passengers like Enitilo but it’s not always for the full amount of the goods.“There is a limit,” Lukacs said. “Their liability is limited based on the Montreal Convention.”In the end, American Airlines did respond to Enitilo’s claims, promising to issue a reimbursement in the amount of $4,148.96 USD which is the maximum liability permitted under the Montreal Convention.While that does meet their obligation set by the convention, Enitilo is still crying foul,, fighting to get back the full amount of her lost goods.“This is their fault,” she said. “I am a paying customer, this is their responsibility and I want my full refund. I will sue them if I have to.”If you have an issue, story or question you’d like us to look into, contact us.