Have you been charged extra recently for flying with overweight baggage? If so, you may have been ripped off by the airlines.
The Times in England reports:
AIRLINES face a crackdown on faulty baggage scales which result in passengers paying more to check-in luggage.
A survey by Trading Standards at Gatwick [Airport] found that 62 of the airport's 321 scales gave incorrect readings. One unnamed airline registered 10 faulty scales among 18 used.
But research by Times Online also reveals widespread confusion among airlines over recalibrating scales. EasyJet claims it can't, Ryanair says it doesn't and BA only resets scales when opening check-in.
The issue is further clouded by revelations that some airlines, including easyJet and Monarch, pay check-in staff bonuses to collect excess baggage charges from passengers, a practice condemned by Trading Standards.
The Institute has received dozens of complaints from travellers, including one who said her bag weighed 23kg at the airport and 18kg on her home scales. In some cases this can be up to £7.50 per kg on short-haul flights with low cost airlines, and up to £30 per kg on long-haul flights.
Many US airlines are now adopting tighter restrictions on the number and weight of checked baggage items. I haven't heard of anyone doing a similar survey of check-in counter scales at US airports.
Maybe it's about time . . .
Peter
Why is this not really surprising...
ReplyDeleteThey should replace the counter scales and tell the passenger to get on a larger scale with the luggage and base the fees on the total weight. When I'm 150 pounds lighter than the person sitting next to me, but I paid an extra $25 because my bag weighs 4.5 more pounds, I get a little confused.
ReplyDelete