The complaint filed by security expert Ahmed Rabiu against Virgin Atlantic Airways for alleged breach of contract and luggage loss on the airline’s September 24, 2024, London to Lagos trip was postponed until February 27, 2025 by a Federal High Court in Lagos yesterday.
Justice Alexander Owoeye was absent, allegedly attending an official engagement outside the state, therefore the court, which had originally scheduled the suit hearing for yesterday, postponed it.
The plaintiff’s stolen suitcase is valued at $4,000, and Rabiu is requesting N20 million in damages for the distress, trouble, and legal bills paid during the luggage recovery process.
The passenger claimed in an affidavit submitted in support of the lawsuit that he boarded flight No. CNY3JV from London-Heathrow, United Kingdom, to Murtala Mohammed Airport in Lagos following stringent security checks. The defendant’s operational staff correctly checked him in along with his tagged prime luggage.
After the jet touched down in Lagos, he claims that he waited at the conveyor belt from the time the baggage carousel was turned on until it was turned off. He claims that while all of the other passengers on the defendant’s flight picked up their bags and departed, he was devastated.
The plaintiff further claimed that he informed the defendant’s ground crew right away and was given the defendant’s Loss of Baggage Form to complete and submit, which he promptly did. However, the airline failed to provide the plaintiff with his luggage, replace it, or, better yet, reimburse him for the value of its contents.
The plaintiff stated that he was devastated by the defendant’s relevant operational staff’s actions, recklessness, and negligence, which resulted in the loss of his recently purchased bag, which was used to store all of his purchases in London and was correctly received and tagged in an accident-free flight that arrived in Lagos on time.
He added that the defendant had committed a serious breach of contract by neglecting to deliver his bags to him when he arrived in Lagos after he had struggled to pay for the defendant’s plane ticket. He induced his attorneys to write the defendant a demand letter after his luggage was stolen and lost, asking for the luggage or money for its contents.
According to the plaintiff, the defendant failed to reply to the letter. His attorney then sent the defendant another reminder letter, but this time, the defendant did not reply.