Paddle Your Own Kanoo flags American Airlines returning a customer’s checked bag with the wheel missing, and telling that customer ‘sorry, not sorry’ they don’t cover wheels on checked bags – and asserts that American’s position is in conflict with Department of Transportation regulations that say airlines cannot exclude liability for a bag’s wheels.
Damage to or loss from normal wear and tear to parts that stick out like wheels, straps, pockets, handles, hooks or other attachments aren't something we cover. We're sorry for the inconvenience. You can find this info under our bag liability here: https://t.co/peO9PQ0ui0
— americanair (@AmericanAir) March 20, 2026
However, it’s actually quite a bit more complicated than this, and American Airlines isn’t out of step with the industry (even if the industry does push the envelope of what’s acceptable under the rules).
- A claim that “we don’t cover wheel damage” is inconsistent with Department of Transportation rules. But that doesn’t mean every missing wheel is entitled to payment. Airlines can deny true fair wear and tear, but they can’t impose an across-the-board liability exclusion for wheels, handles and straps. The American Airlines twitter response is actually consistent with this.
- Airlines are not responsible for pre-existing damage or damage caused by improper packing.
- Compensation is based on repair or depreciated value, not replacement cost. For international trips, the Montreal Convention lets an airline avoid liability where damage resulted from the bag’s “inherent defect, quality or vice.”
Wheels break off. Many bags are old or overpacked. A missing wheel doesn’t prove mishandling by the airline and liability on its own.
American’s Contrct of Carriage is consistent with this and says they don’t cover “damage to or loss from normal wear and tear” to parts that stick out, including wheels, straps, pockets, handles, hooks, and attachments. They do not claim ‘wheels aren’t covered’ the rule is ‘wheels aren’t covered when they’re lost due to ordinary wear and tear’.
The problem is that this is ripe for abuse. To the airline, every piece of damage looks like normal wear and tear, and that’s why the Department of Transportation acted in 2015, saying airlines were “routinely” excluding damage to wheels and other protruding parts and that these categorical exclusions are “arbitrary limitations of liability.” They said airlines had to accept these claims for review rather than refusing them automatically.
Here we have a bag accepted intact and returned to the customer with the wheel ripped off. On first impression, that seems more likely to be damage than wear and tear. But American also hasn’t denied the claim yet, either, their twitter account just gave the (correct) lawyerly answer. American is similar to others in taking this stance, too, by the way.
- United: is “not liable for … protruding parts such as wheels” if the damage “occurred as a result of normal wear and tear.”
- JetBlue: is not liable for loss or damage to “baggage wheels” and similar parts when the damage results from “fair wear and tear or the ordinary handling of baggage.”
- Spirit: excludes loss of or damage to “protruding parts such as wheels” if the loss or damage “occurred as a result of normal wear and tear.”
There’s an obvious tension because it’s hard to dispute the normal wear and tear line, and DOT has said this has been abused in the past. My sense, broadly, is that DOT is not currently much for enforcing consumer protection rules against U.S. airlines (not least of which rules adopted during the Obama administration).
Several years ago I wrote about an internal memo that American Airlines sent reminding agents of the ways they can deny damaged bag claims. They are certainly looking to minimize their exposure!
A few months back I wrote about American crushing a family’s stroller, promising to pay, and then rejecting the claim as ‘normal wear and tear’. Getting payouts on these claims isn’t easy. I’d note also that many rewards cards offer coverage for damaged bags, so that’s another avenue of redress.
Bags are made to be damaged over time. That is inevitable. They protect what is inside. Anyone upset over damage to a bag needs to get a life. If you can’t afford a few hundred $ for a bag or live with some level of damage then you don’t need to be traveling. To me bags are disposable and I get a new one every few year anyway.
The baggage handlers are very rough with luggage, especially with parts that stick out. I have a Samsonite 25″ bag that has seen a lot of trips and still keeps on going. It is an older style that doesn’t have four swivel wheels but two non-swivel ones instead that don’t stick out much. My other large bag for international travel is a military style canvas duffle bag in which I put a travel backpack. It is hard to throw. It is not as easy to move when it is loaded (if I am going a distance on foot, I take the backpack out and put it on after securing the rolled up duffle bag to it – much better than a roller bag over rough ground). The combination of the duffle bag and the backpack is lighter than the Samsonite bag so I can pack more. I’m sure that I’m spoiling the fun of the baggage handlers.