Briggs & Riley repairs luggage

I don’t know of any airlines that reimburse passengers for damage to luggage tags or zippers (March ’14, pg. 26), but there is one luggage manufacturer that covers this type of damage: Briggs & Riley (Hauppauge, NY; 877/745-3978).

The guarantee page on their website states, “Briggs & Riley is committed to developing Briggs & Riley products of superior design, performance and value. We pride ourselves on developing an ongoing, lifelong relationship with you, our consumer and Briggs & Riley spokesperson.

“Due to our extreme confidence in our products and our insatiable desire to deliver only the highest level of service, we have created the most consumer-friendly guarantee in the travelware industry. If your Briggs & Riley bag is ever broken or damaged, even if it was caused by an airline, we will repair it free of charge — Simple as that!”

My husband and I know this guarantee is upheld by Briggs & Riley because we’ve had several suitcases repaired by them. We’ve had zippers replaced many times, and we’ve had the extending handle fixed a few times, too, once after an airline bent it so badly that it would no longer extend.

One thing they don’t cover is torn seams, but that doesn’t happen very often. The other thing that’s not covered is shipping, but that is very inexpensive compared to the cost of a new suitcase.

Briggs & Riley suitcases are not cheap, but, in the long run, they’re a great value.

PEGGY HUSON

Urbana, IL

Prices and sizes of Briggs & Riley luggage range from $189 for a Large Weekender duffel bag (19"x12"x9") to $569 for a Large Spinner suitcase (27"x20.3"x12.7").