Damaged passport - nibbled by rabbits - replacement needed?

nrcbennett

My daughter's pet rabbits have free rein in the house, daughter tries to keep all items that could be damaged out of reach but a rabbit somehow got hold of her UK passport and nibbled the cover. Two or three mm on top corner of front cover and also bottom corner of back cover are now chewed off. No internal pages are damaged in any way and no text on the covers has been removed/damaged. Would any forum members who have worked in border control care to comment on whether she needs to get a new passport? She is booked to fly to Spain in a couple of weeks. Thanks!

TELLIT01

I haven't worked in border control but all it needs is one who is possible over officious and won't accept any damage and she is sunk.  That said, tying to get a new passport in a couple of weeks isn't going to be easy.

onashoestring

It is good that all the pages are legible, however if the electronic chip has been damaged the passport won’t work in the e-gates which could mean a long queue at the border . No way of knowing if it’s damaged until she uses it - have heard of people accidentally putting their passports in the washing machine and it still working - 

basill

TELLIT01 said:

I haven't worked in border control but all it needs is one who is possible over officious and won't accept any damage and she is sunk.  That said, tying to get a new passport in a couple of weeks isn't going to be easy.

I wouldn`t worry about time for a replacement, I had an August renewal done in two working days, applied online on Thursday, approved Friday and delivered on Monday.  The cost however was painful

I needed the passport for an impending trip so used a camera shop photo to avoid issues and special delivery to return the old one.  

Nannytone

It's not relevant but I'm amazed that someone can't keep their passport safe from a rabbit.
It's not like it's something you use everyday so don't put away

eDicky

2-3mm of corner nibble is very minor, and doesn't compromise the passport's function in any way. Just don't be tempted to trim it with scissors as a cut corner signifies cancellation.

It's the airline staff who check passports and prevent boarding if they feel there's any problem for the destination border control.

I certainly wouldn't go to the trouble and expense of replacement, for damage as described. And I'm not so able to sweetly smile and say "my bunny nibbled it sir" in English and Spanish...

smudge56

If the data page is in any way damaged you should replace it. The electronic chip is in the cover so depending on how much damage there is to the cover it may not read.  I would recommend replacing it explaining exactly what happened.  Remember a replacement can take up to ten weeks at the moment.

eDicky

smudge56 said:

The electronic chip is in the cover

Thanks Smudge, I didn't know that. Previous editions have the chip and antenna in a page inside.

Mine is visible and goes nowhere near the corner. Although the latest design antenna may extend further, I kinda doubt it would go within 5mm of the corner.

MasonJar

smudge56 said:

If the data page is in any way damaged you should replace it. The electronic chip is in the cover so depending on how much damage there is to the cover it may not read.  I would recommend replacing it explaining exactly what happened.  Remember a replacement can take up to ten weeks at the moment.

Actually in newer passports (2020 onwards but they issued some in 2019) the electronic chip and aerial are in the data page. You can tell if this is the case if you have a plastic data page.

If the OP needs a passport soon then they are probably out of luck, there are very few appointments available for the £177 one day service so you're probably looking at a 2 week wait on that.

TELLIT01

Nannytone said:

It's not relevant but I'm amazed that someone can't keep their passport safe from a rabbit.
It's not like it's something you use everyday so don't put away

I thought the same.  I'm assuming the rabbit isn't clever enough to open a drawer and go through it looking for the most valuable document available to have for lunch.  Then, I can't understand allowing a rabbit to have the run of the house either.  Each to their own.  In fairness that's not as bad as being invited to a house for a meal and watching the people handling pet rats and not washing their hands before preparing the food.

Spendless

I had the same though the culprit was the dog who had taken it from an unzipped internal pocket of my bag which I'd left on the floor - and it was in there instead of at  it's usual  keeping place that's not at dog height because I'd taken it to my new workplace to prove my ID. Sometimes accidents just happen! 
I replaced mine just in case. It had a further 18 months to run which I lost and I only did it because I truly believed we'd be travelling  abroad last July! Now wish I'd not bothered, let it run out  and just renewed as and when I'm likely to need it again.
In your case as it's needed for travel I'd have a look at what options there are if any for replacing it quickly, otherwise it's take the risk that it'll be accepted on both legs of journey or see if trip can be changed to a later date.