‘Premium’ liquor bottle ‘shatters’ in transit, airline passenger wins Rs 55,000 payout

4 min readNew DelhiJul 31, 2026 04:06 PM IST The commission held that when an airline knowingly accepts a fragile item that has been verified as properly packed and sealed, it owes a "heightened duty" of care to the passenger. (AI-generated image)A Hyderabad district consumer commission has held IndiGo Airlines guilty of an “unfair contract” after a passenger’s premium liquor bottle packed safely inside a suitcase was allegedly found shattered on arrival at the Chennai airport, holding that the bottle could not have “shattered into pieces” during standard transit unless it was “severely mishandled” by the ground staff. The commission directed the airline to pay Rs 55,000 to the man for the “clear gross negligence”. President M Ramgopal Reddy and members J Shyamala and D Madhavi Latha were