Airline denies claim of shredded luggage and suit because of missing original receipt

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WHEC) – In January, Claire Noonan and her husband went to Boston for a wedding. He officiated the wedding in his Hickey Freeman suit.

The suit and the garment bag it was in did not show up at the Rochester airport when they arrived back home.

The next day, when they returned to the airport, they got a brand new suitcase with the tag still on it. When they opened it, they found it packed with the garment bag and the Hickey Freeman suit in tatters.

"The reception was fun but this is not the result of what happened from a wedding," Noonan said.

Noonan filed a claim with American Airlines and submitted everything the airline asked for except the original receipt for the suit which they did not have. It was purchased in 2019.

AA Claim Requirement List by News10NBC

Because the family did not provide the original receipt within 30 days, American Airlines denied the claim and an appeal. The final denial letter came two weeks ago.

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AA Final Rejection Letter by News10NBC on Scribd

"It’s not like we put in a claim and they said we’ll settle for $400 or $500 or anything," Noonan said. "They gave us nothing and said, basically, don’t bother us anymore. We’re done."

I contacted American Airlines a week ago. Before the holiday weekend, they told me they were looking into this situation again.

But on the checklist for lost or damaged items, American requires "a receipt for all items valued over $100."

And American says United, Delta and Southwest have similar rules.

Brean: "We’ve got thousands of people who fly and check their baggage. What’s the big picture here? What’s the takeaway for people watching tonight?"

Noonan: "So keep all your receipts, stay on top of things, don’t let it go because in the end this multi-billion dollar company is not doing anything to serve us."

Noonan said Hickey Freeman provided an email saying the suit was purchased for 800 dollars. Noonan says American didn’t accept that.

American told me it would accept a credit card or bank statement showing what you paid for the item that was lost or damaged.

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