An Australian passenger had a lengthy dispute with an airline after his luggage went missing on an international flight.
For Michael Pascale, the nightmare began in May 2022, when he flew with Qantas from Brisbane to Sydney and then with SriLankan Airlines via Colombo to Paris.
Mister Pascale arrived in the City of Light, but his luggage did not.
He told the ABC He waited at the baggage carousel for his luggage to appear.
“It was a situation where you just saw it go round and round and round… and then it never came back,” he recalls.
He had only the clothes he was wearing and one spare T-shirt.
Mr Pascale reported his lost luggage to Qantas and subsequently began calling the airline daily.
Expecting his bag to be returned, he bought a pair of jeans at a thrift store, cut off the legs, and bought a pair of slippers for two euros.
Michael Pascale (pictured) endured an 18-month nightmare to get compensation
His luggage ended up in Dubai, then was sent to the UK and then returned to Brisbane.
At that time, Mr. Pascale was already in the US.
When he realized he wouldn’t get his bag, he bought new clothes and other items and asked the airline for a refund.
He checked the terms and conditions of his plane ticket, which mentioned the Montreal Convention, a 1999 multilateral treaty that allows passengers to claim compensation if their luggage is missing for more than 21 days.
He raised the Montreal Convention with Qantas, who blamed SriLankan Airlines, which originally offered Pascale only $150.
He was ‘quite furious’ at this stage of his pursuit of full compensation.
“I wanted my money… but I also didn’t want them to just walk all over me,” Pascale said.
He wondered why he continued to demand compensation despite all the effort and time it took, but said it had become a matter of pride.
“I refused to let them win. To say it was an obsession is probably not too far from the truth.”
Mr Pascale commenced legal proceedings and filed a claim with the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
“I just wanted to be compensated for the money I spent on the clothes I needed to survive the rest of my trip,” he said.
Qantas blamed Mr Pascale’s lost luggage on SriLankan Airlines, who offered Mr Pascale only $150, but he wanted full compensation
He added that he was not seeking damages.
Representatives of SriLankan Airlines were not present at the hearing.
SriLankan Airlines was ordered to pay Mr Pascale $2,717 within seven days.
This caused further problems as the airline is based in Melbourne and the ruling was made in Queensland.
Mr Pascale transferred the judgment to Victoria and hired a bailiff to deliver the documents to the SriLankan Airlines office.
After a marathon 18 months after Mr. Pascale’s bag first disappeared, the airline finally agreed to pay him what he was owed.
According to Victoria Roy, spokesperson for the Australian Lawyers Alliance, Australia is “way behind” on passenger rights, with “no framework whatsoever”.
This means that passengers like Mr Pascale are forced to go to court to claim compensation.
A marathon 18 months after Mr. Pascale’s bag first disappeared, SriLankan Airlines finally agreed to pay him what he was owed. (SriLankan Airlines plane pictured)
The federal government is expected to publish its white paper on aviation in the coming weeks.
Transport Minister Catherine King has said measures will be taken to better protect consumers.
“Like all Australians, the Government wants an aviation sector that supports our nation’s way of life. That means services that are reliable, competitive and affordable,” Ms King said in a statement.
A Qantas spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia the issue was between Sri Lankan Airlines and the customer.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Sri Lankan Airlines for comment.