After a Lagos Federal High Court ordered British Airways to pay N50 million to a Nigerian passenger, travellers want to know: is the law on your side when luggage, gadgets or cash go missing at 35,000 feet? The answer lives in a patchwork of international treaties, domestic aviation law — and the Constitution’s promise to protect property.
Imagine boarding a long-flight: you tuck a laptop and a small bag into the overhead, hold your boarding pass like a talisman, then land to find the bag gone — or a seat denied, or a promised service not provided. That exact kind of indignity is the backstory to a recent court decision in Lagos. Justice Ibrahim Kala found for Mr. Stephen Osho and ordered British Airways to pay N50 million for breach of contract of carriage and unfair treatment; the court also awarded N3 million as costs.
The judgment did more than deliver money. It forced a public conversation: when an airline fails the passenger, which law applies — the Nigerian Constitution’s protections over property, international aviation treaties, or domestic aviation statutes? The short answer: all of the above play a role, but they operate in different lanes.
Read and learn.
The International Rulebook: The Montreal Convention
For cross-border flights, the Montreal Convention (1999) is the principal international framework. It governs liability for death or injury, delayed or lost baggage, and cargo, and sets out the mechanics of airline liability, limits, and timelines. Put simply: the Montreal Convention creates predictable, treaty-based rules for claims that arise during international carriage by air.
Under the Convention carriers are strictly liable up to certain limits for baggage loss/damage and may be responsible for proven losses beyond those limits unless they can prove the damage wasn’t their fault.
That international ceiling — combined with procedural rules (timelines to report loss, required documentation) — shapes most airline claims worldwide.
Domestic Enforcement: How Nigeria Made The Convention Work At Home
International treaties don’t run themselves inside a country. Nigeria has domesticated the Montreal Convention through its aviation legislation and regulatory framework. The Civil Aviation Act (and its implementing regulations) incorporate international conventions so Nigerian courts and the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority can enforce them.
In short: Nigerian air travel claims will often be heard under the Montreal Convention as adopted into national law.
That is why the Lagos judgment referenced the Convention when deciding Mr. Osho’s claim: it is the statutory lens through which courts evaluate international carriage disputes in Nigeria.
The Constitution’s Place: Property Rights, But Not A Passenger Handbook
The 1999 Constitution guarantees the right to acquire and own property and protects Nigerians from compulsory deprivation of movable and immovable property except where laws provide for it and compensation.
These constitutional protections are broad and important — they anchor citizens’ property rights in the highest law of the land.
But the Constitution is a framework, not a playbook for airline claims. When a phone, baggage or checked item disappears on a flight, the legal route is usually through the Civil Aviation Act and the Montreal Convention’s specific remedies (and the contract of carriage the passenger accepted).
Still, the Constitution gives weight to the principle that people should not be deprived of property without procedure or compensation; that normative pressure informs how courts think about fairness and remedies.
The Messy Border: Treaty Exclusivity vs. National Remedies
One of the thornier legal questions is whether the Montreal Convention is the exclusive remedy for aviation claims, or whether passengers can bring additional claims under national laws (for example, negligence, breach of contract or statutory consumer protections). Nigerian courts and commentators have debated this.
Some decisions interpret the Convention as the primary framework for international carriage claims while allowing room for national remedies in carefully circumscribed situations. Expect this to be a recurring battleground in Nigerian aviation litigation.
Did You Miss? Sujimoto Scandal: How to Vet a Nigerian Real Estate Developer Before You Invest
So when Justice Kala awarded N50m, the ruling read the international regime together with domestic law and facts of unfair treatment — and the court exercised its discretion to compensate the passenger for proven hardship and loss.
Practical Playbook: What To Do If Your Baggage Or Property Goes Missing
The law helps — but procedure wins most claims. If you discover your property missing or damaged after a flight, do this immediately:
1. Report it before leaving the airport: go to the airline’s baggage desk and lodge a Property Irregularity Report (PIR) or official loss report. Keep the reference. This step is the gateway to compensation under the Montreal regime.
2. Keep boarding passes, baggage tags and receipts: airlines and courts ask for proof of carriage and value.
3. File written claims promptly: timelines matter — many airlines require notification within 7–21 days depending on damage versus loss. Follow the airline’s claims portal instructions (British Airways and others publish specific deadlines and forms).
4. Document conversations and keep evidence: email threads, photographs of the bag and serial numbers help.
5. Escalate if necessary: if the airline’s offer is unreasonable, you can take the matter to court — as Mr. Osho did — or lodge complaints with the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority or consumer protection bodies.
Why The N50m Judgment Matters To Travellers And Airlines
That Lagos ruling is a warning shot: courts will look beyond boilerplate contracts when treatment amounts to a real breach that causes hardship. For passengers, the judgment is a reminder that the law can produce meaningful remedies, but only when procedural steps are followed and losses are proven.
For airlines, the case underscores the reputational and financial risk of sloppy customer handling on international routes.
But remember: many aviation claims will still be governed by the Montreal Convention’s limits and technical rules. The constitutional promise of property, while philosophically powerful, is applied through the statutory and treaty instruments that regulate air travel.
Carry your Receipts, Not Just Your Boarding Pass
If you travel internationally, treat airline rules like immigration: learn them, follow them, and create an evidence trail. The law — from the Montreal Convention to Nigeria’s Civil Aviation Act and the Constitution — can protect you.
But protection begins with the practical steps you take the moment something goes missing.
