Airline Travel and Snowboards

[Jcar]

I did a snowboard trip this past winter with Alaska Airlines and had 2 of my 4 boards severely damaged.  After filing a claim with Alaska Air Central Baggage and waiting six weeks for a decision, here is what I was told!

“Unfortunately, some items are more susceptible to damage than others and, therefore, are considered fragile. These items include sports equipment like golf clubs, surfboards, and snowboards. Because of the nature of these items and along with most other airlines, we exclude fragile items from our liability. For this reason, you were appropriately advised that there would be no compensation for the resulting damage to your Snowboards.”

Unsatisfied with this decision, I decided to call and find out where on their website it states this.  I was directed to this:

https://www.alaskaair.com/content/legal/contract-of-carriage/rule-15#checked-and-carry-on-baggage

Alaska Airlines

Contract of Carriage 

Rule 15 Acceptance of Baggage.

Checked and carry-on baggage

Section J “Sporting Equipment” 

#14 Ski/Snowboards.

After checking a few other airlines Contract of Carriage, I discovered they too release themselves of all liability for most all sporting goods including skis and Snowboards.

Please cover your Snowboards with some other form of insurance while traveling!!  

Homeowners, renters, travel etc.  I was even told by American Express that, had I paid for my airline ticket  with that card they would have covered any and all damages. 

Unfortunate lesson learned!!

I’ll be covering my ass multiple ways in the future.

Just wanted to share my experience with you all so nobody else learns the hard way!

 

[daveo]

I always cover my boards with snow sport specific travel insurance. 1 month costs only 150bucks. Up to $50,000 for snow equipment with no limit on each item among other things like health insurance included. Damage, theft, whatever. $400 excess.

I also cover them in bubblewrap and use a hard SPORTUBE 2 for alpine gear and SPORTUBE 3 for softboot gear to transport them. Hardboots go in carryons. 

Anyone not doing so is just asking for trouble.

[Jcar]

1 hour ago, daveo said:

I always cover my boards with snow sport specific travel insurance. 1 month costs only 150bucks. Up to $50,000 for snow equipment with no limit on each item among other things like health insurance included. Damage, theft, whatever. $400 excess.

I also cover them in bubblewrap and use a hard SPORTUBE 2 for alpine gear and SPORTUBE 3 for softboot gear to transport them. Hardboots go in carryons. 

Anyone not doing so is just asking for trouble.

What insurance company or companies have you used?

[daveo]

8 minutes ago, Jcar said:

What insurance company or companies have you used?

I use Bupa. The same company I use for my health insurance. It is one of the biggest if not the biggest where I reside.

[philw]

Hmm. US law is likely different, but...

1. The Montreal Convention means they're liable if they lose or break stuff they accept.
   Under EU law the same thing's true: they lose or break it, and they're liable (within a maximum which
   will cover a snowboard easily). Obviously you're not flying here.
    
2. I think it would be hard to argue that a snowboard is "fragile".
   Note that their wording is very carefully chosen: they explain that other airlines avoid paying for "fragile" items,
   but not that other airlines class snowboards as "fragile", which in my experience they do not.

I travel a lot and have had a few disagreements with airlines over the law. British Airways actually instructs their "customer service" people to insist that it's possible for a customer to waive basic consumer rights, which is legal nonsense. I just tell them I'll issue proceedings (which is cheap to do here) and they pay up. It's a bad customer experience, having to threaten a supplier with legal sanction, but it works ever time. It may be different there, 

I've had BA lose snowboards and also damage snowboard bags (not the boards, the bags!), for which they're 100% liable. I'd love them to argue in court that a snowboard bag is somehow more fragile than any other bag

[daveo]

I think proper air travel guidelines should be stickied. It's as simple as some bubble wrap, a couple of velcro ties and a sportube.

Snowboards are definitely fragile. They sustain damage from impact to edges and pressure to topsheets/bases quite easily relative to other types of luggage. They just need to be packed properly for air travel.

Anyone who doesn't pack their snowboard with bubble wrap (or something similar) and then pack it tight (so no movement of the snowboard inside the case if it were to drop or be shaken around in the event of a rough environment- example turbulence or rough/fast unload/loading of an aeroplane) while encased it in a hard case like a Sportube is taking on unnecessary risk.

Anyone's snowboard bags might contain up to say $7-10k of equipment if you have a big wallet. 30minutes of packing and a $200 dollar bag is surely a worthwhile risk management measure.

My first snowboard maaaaany years ago (Salomon Burner 161) was damaged in air travel and it was entirely my fault. I was young and didn't know the risks of sending my board on the plane. Expensive mistake, especially when I was poor (sorry, still am..). Nothing has happened since and my Sportubes are holding up nicely after many international trips and stopovers.

[JohnE]

I have never traveled with my snowboard but I have shipped several via UPS or similar. I never took special precautions to protect them. I have just wrapped them with a few sheets of corrugated cardboard (1 - 2 thicknesses) and sent them on their way. 

My thought was this: Imagine how much force a snowboard takes when used as intended. As long as the edges, topsheet & base are reasonably protected from hard impact, one would have to work really hard to damage one. 

Maybe I have just been lucky. 

[davekempmeister]

a few years ago, SWA destroyed a beloved Tanker 200 and i called them about it.  i got the same response about the carrier not being liable.  initially, anyway. 

the rep asked me how much the board would cost to replace and i explained that it had been used for many years and that, in fairness, some depreciation was in order.  she thanked me for being honest about that aspect of the whole thing and gave me flight credits for $600.  i think they were gracious, under the circumstances.

 

daveo's method seems like more of a sure thing.

[JohnE]

Are airlines getting more reasonable? We just had United give us full credit for future travel due to a cancelled trip as a result of a death in the family. Seems like just years ago, this would have been money just lost. 

[TVR]

FULL DISCLOSURE: I am not giving legal advise, but my OPINION here.

 

If you are a US Citizen, you can always take them to small claims. It costs you ~$19.00 to file, so except for your time showing up, it doesn't leave you with much risk.

 

The key point to your argument would hing on the term fragile. Printing out the Websters definition, and then printing out some of the stats of the Gs put upon these boards, establishing these are not "fragile" per se should be fairly straight forward. It would then boil down to what the specific damage was and how it could be produced.

 

Worse case, you cause them to waste a day of someones time from the airline and you lose, best case they offer you something and you become whole. This is the direction I would take and since no lawyer is required, you also might get to perform and live out any Fred Thompson (Law and Order chief prosecutor) fantasies you might secretly have.