Travel insurers have been hit by hundreds of claims for missing luggage following the chaos at Schiphol airport, and the worst is yet to come, the Parool reported on Friday.

People whose suitcases go missing can claim the cost of replacement articles – such as toiletries and clothing – up to a maximum €250. But if a suitcase has not turned up after 60 days, travellers can make a claim for its fully insured value, and those won’t be filed until the autumn.

Centraal Beheer said it had 240 claims to date, while Unigarant, the insurance arm of travel organisation ANWB said it had ‘several hundred’ claims and phone calls from holidaymakers who had lost their luggage.

‘Lost or delayed luggage is always and issue but the volume at the moment is unheard of,’  Paul Vaneker from claim organisation EU-claim said.

16,000 suitcases

NOS reported in early July that ‘around 16,000 suitcases’ had been left at the airport, following weeks of travel chaos and technical problems.

The sources shared images of rooms full of pushchairs, lines of covered luggage trucks outside and everything from cases to guitars waiting to be claimed.

Schiphol has slashed passenger numbers and flights for the summer to deal with the issues, partially caused by a shortage of security staff and baggage handlers. It has also told customers not to come more than four hours early and not to take too much hand baggage.

Dutch flag carrier KLM is currently telling passengers that ‘many airports worldwide are currently facing exceptional operational circumstances. That may impact the delivery of your delayed baggage’.