Damaged or Lost Stroller: 10 Tips on What to Do and How to Claim Compensation in 2026

When it comes to a damaged stroller and claiming compensation, you have exactly seven days from the moment you collect it to report the damage — otherwise your claim is gone for good. Broken wheels or a torn canopy simply can’t wait until you’re back home.

As soon as you land, head straight to the desk while you’re still in the arrivals hall and file a damage report with the staff. To make a successful claim you’ll also need your boarding pass and the baggage tag. Keep in mind that some airlines, such as Smartwings, require a protective bag — otherwise they’ll refuse liability outright.

You’ll get a complete guide on how to get your money back from the airline and what to watch out for before you even take off. The maximum compensation sits at around 2,175 dollars, so sorting it out on time is definitely worth it.

TL;DR

• Stay in the transit zone: If your stroller doesn’t arrive or is damaged, never leave the airport hall — head straight to the Baggage Claim desk.
• The strict 7-day deadline: You must report any damage to the airline in writing via their online form within seven days of collection, or your claim is lost for good.
• Maximum compensation limit: Under the Montreal Convention the airline is liable for baggage up to roughly 1,519 SDR, which works out to around 2,175 USD.
• Key documents: For a successful claim you absolutely need the baggage tag, your boarding pass, and the PIR report filed at the airport.
• The Smartwings rule: This airline explicitly does not accept liability for damage to a stroller that wasn’t wrapped in a protective bag or film before hand-over.
• Missing car seat: If your car seat doesn’t arrive, ask directly at the claims desk, because some airports keep spare seats they can lend or give away.

10 Things You Need to Know

Let’s take a look at everything you should know when your stroller goes missing.

1. What to do right after landing when your stroller doesn’t arrive

You’re standing exhausted at the baggage belt, the display already shows that delivery has ended, and your stroller is nowhere to be seen. At this point it’s absolutely crucial that you don’t leave the transit area and don’t walk through the one-way doors out to the taxis, because getting back to the claims desk would be needlessly complicated. Instead of panicking, look around the arrivals hall for a desk marked Baggage Claim, Baggage Services or Lost and Found — it’s usually right next to the belts.

That’s where you’ll need to show your passport, boarding pass and the small sticky tag you were given at check-in. The airport staff member enters your tag number into the global tracking system and very often can tell you immediately where your stroller is. Sometimes it simply didn’t make it onto your connecting flight and will arrive on the next plane a few hours later.

At this desk the staff member will then fill out what’s called a PIR report with you, where you carefully dictate the address of your hotel or apartment at the destination. The delayed baggage is then usually delivered by an airport courier straight to that address, so you don’t have to make another trip to the airport and can head to your accommodation in peace.

2. The holy trinity of documents for a successful claim

For the airline to even start dealing with your claim, you have to prove beyond doubt that the stroller actually travelled with you. The single most important scrap of paper is the baggage tag — that little strip with a barcode that staff usually stick onto the back of your passport or your ticket at check-in. Without this tag the airline’s system has no idea you ever had a stroller, and your chance of compensation drops to zero.

The second essential document is your boarding pass, which clearly proves that you were physically on that flight. If you use only electronic tickets in a mobile app, always take a screenshot of the screen to be safe, because a boarding pass can unexpectedly vanish from the app after the flight.

The third pillar of success is the aforementioned PIR report (Property Irregularity Report), which you get at the claims desk right there at the airport. To this holy trinity of papers you then add detailed photos of any damage, which are absolutely best taken right in the arrivals hall before you head out into town with the stroller.

3. The strict 7-day deadline for a written claim

It happens all the time: you land with the family at two in the morning, the baby is crying its heart out, and you quickly grab the stroller off the belt and rush for a taxi. Three days later, in your hotel room, you discover the stroller has a cracked load-bearing frame that dangerously buckles under the slightest weight. This is where you run into the rule tired parents most often miss — the strict seven-day deadline for reporting damage in writing.

These seven days from collecting your baggage are a hard limit set by international law, and once they pass, carriers usually reject claims without mercy. So treat this deadline as absolutely non-negotiable and don’t wait to deal with it until you’re back home from your holiday.

If you only notice the damage at your accommodation, you have to find the baggage claim form on the relevant airline’s website and fill it in online right away. And don’t forget to attach all the documents you’ve photographed to this electronic request — a copy of the PIR report, the baggage tag, your boarding pass, and of course sharp photos of the damaged parts of the stroller.

4. The Montreal Convention and the compensation limit

On all international flights you as a passenger are protected by the so-called Montreal Convention, which clearly defines the air carrier’s liability for your belongings. This legal protection covers both classic checked baggage from the hold and strollers handed over right before boarding at the aircraft. So the airline bears full liability for the destruction, loss and damage of your child’s equipment throughout the entire journey.

This liability, however, is by no means unlimited and comes with clearly defined financial ceilings. Under the convention, the maximum compensation limit is around 1,519 SDR (Special Drawing Rights), which in a rough conversion works out to about 2,175 US dollars.

So if you travel with a luxury stroller from an expensive limited edition whose purchase price exceeds this international limit, the airline won’t top up the difference. In that case you’ll have to rely on premium travel insurance, or better yet, don’t bring such an expensive item onto the plane at all and get a cheaper alternative for travel.

5. The stroller bag and airline liability

Plenty of parents hand over the stroller at the gate simply folded up without any cover and leave it at the mercy of airport workers, who toss it onto a trolley with the other suitcases. With some more accommodating airlines this might be fine, but with others you’re automatically slamming the door on any future compensation. The Czech carrier Smartwings, for example, explicitly states in its terms that it bears no liability for damage to a stroller that wasn’t properly wrapped.

A protective stroller bag — or at least careful wrapping in thick shrink film — isn’t just some cosmetic recommendation but a direct condition for having a compensation claim accepted. I’m not naming any specific bag brands here, because the principle of protection is always the same, whether you use a pricey branded cover or sturdy film from the DIY store.

When packing, though, be extremely careful about where the staff stick the baggage tag. The tag must always be visible from the outside on the cover so the airport scanners can read it, so first have the stroller labelled, then wrap it and stick the tag onto the film, or ask staff to print you a spare copy.

6. A damaged car seat and backup solutions at the airport

When you lose your stroller it’s a huge nuisance, but with a carrier or by walking you can manage with a toddler for a while. But if your checked car seat doesn’t arrive either, you’ve got a much tougher problem, because you can’t legally get to your hotel in a rental car. In Spain, for instance, children up to 135 centimetres must be in a certified seat under threat of a 300-euro fine, and in Italy the requirement applies all the way up to 150 centimetres.

Taxis are exempt from this rule in some countries, but that certainly doesn’t solve your problem with the rental car at the pick-up desk. In such a crisis, our in-depth research shows it pays to ask directly at the claims desk, because some airports are well prepared for situations like this.

At the Baggage Claim desk it can happen that they’ll lend or even give you a spare car seat from their unclaimed or in-house stock. So always actively ask the staff whether they have a seat to lend, because it costs nothing to try and could save your whole onward journey.

7. How to fight back when the airline rejects your claim

When a stroller gets destroyed, you essentially have two parallel routes to claim your money back. The first is the air carrier’s liability under the Montreal Convention, which has no excess to pay but is often very bureaucratic. The second route is your commercial travel baggage insurance, which tends to be heavily restricted by various sub-limits, and the insurer always factors in depreciation based on the age of the item.

Common practice is to file an official claim with the airline itself first. If the carrier pays out only part of the damage or rejects the claim on grounds your policy covers, you can take that rejection to your insurer and request a top-up up to your agreed limit.

You do have to be extremely careful never to receive double compensation for the same item, because you can’t get the full price from the airline and then the same amount from the insurer. That’s why the insurer will always want an official statement from the airline and a copy of the airport PIR report to prevent insurance fraud.

8. How to reduce the risk of damage at check-in

The best claim is of course the one you never have to deal with on holiday, which is why prevention before departure is key. Right before you hand the stroller over at the boarding gate or at check-in, photograph it thoroughly from several angles with your phone. Today’s phones save the exact time and GPS location into the photo, so you get watertight proof of its flawless condition before handing it to airport staff.

Airport sorting belts are ruthless with luggage, so you have to remove absolutely everything that sticks out from the stroller. Take off the cup holder, plastic tray, parasol and any clipped-on toys and stash them in your hand luggage, because these little bits are the first to snap off in the hold.

If you’re handing over the stroller without a bag as an exception, make sure it’s firmly clicked into its transport lock, and to be safe tighten it with a luggage strap so it doesn’t unfold on its own. If you have a two-part stroller — meaning a separate chassis and carrycot — you must have a tag printed and stuck on each piece separately at check-in, or the airline will never accept the loss of an unlabelled part.

9. A delayed flight and compensation for a baby

While damaged baggage and strollers fall solely under the Montreal Convention, delays to the passengers themselves are covered by European regulation EU 261/2004. If your family flight is delayed by more than three hours you’re entitled to financial compensation, but for small children travelling on a lap without their own seat this area is very disputed in legal practice ⚠️. Some sources claim the right applies to infants too, while others deny it, and the practice of individual carriers varies quite a bit.

My advice is simple: if a delay happens, always file a compensation claim for the child, because it costs you nothing — but expect the airline to probably push back. Regarding passenger rights, it’s worth knowing that in July 2026 a revision of this regulation was approved that will guarantee children up to 14 a free seat next to a parent, though because of a transition period it won’t actually take effect until mid-2027.

When it comes to a child’s baggage, though, the situation is crystal clear and beyond debate. If the child has their own checked baggage or a stroller with its own tag, the Montreal Convention fully covers it regardless of whether they have their own seat in the cabin.

10. Liquid and medicine limits for a calm flight

Once you’ve handed over the stroller safely, you and your child face the flight itself, which comes with its own specific rules on food and health. Bear in mind that at many airports the relaxed liquid rules, allowing containers of up to two litres, only apply at certain terminals — always check which terminal your Ryanair, easyJet or Wizz Air flight departs from, as the strict 100-millilitre limit per container often still applies at older terminals and for flights outside the Schengen area.

The good news is that baby food, boiled water for formula and purees enjoy a worldwide exemption at airports, and you can bring these in the quantity needed for the journey regardless of the airline’s limit, because they’re governed by the airport’s own rules.

As for settling a child during the flight, I never recommend any sleeping medication, and extra caution applies to the much-discussed melatonin. Melatonin must not be given to children under two, and for older ones it should only be used after consulting your paediatrician first — so rather rely on favourite toys and plenty of attention.

Practical Summary and Rough Prices

The rules for travelling with children’s equipment and resolving problems follow firm boundaries. Here’s a handy table showing how many pieces of equipment selected airlines will take for free.

And if you’re wondering how to hand over the stroller correctly at check-in so you don’t lose the option to claim, stick to these principles:

Where to Next

If you’re getting ready for a summer holiday or your first flight with a baby, you’ll definitely find our other articles useful, where we break down travelling with kids in the smallest detail.

• Flying with kids: the complete guide
• Taking a stroller on a plane
• Taking a car seat on a plane
• Baggage for children on a plane
• AirHelp review: claiming flight compensation

Frequently Asked Questions