Easyjet baggage allowance

[alcanadakid]

Easyjet were very strict yesterday at Palma regarding baggage allowance.

They were charging even if the bags were just one kg over the 20kg allowance at a rate of €12 per kg. They were catching lots of people and delaying checkin as a result. At the gate they were checking once again and catching even more people, this time looking for oversize bags and people with more than one bag.

This is probably a result of their latest quarterly results were they said they were losing revenue from add-on services. I would imagine it won't be long before they reduce the baggage allowance to 15kg to compete with Ryanair.

[sws97sdg]

Of cause the good thing about Easyjet over Ryanair is the hand luggage, we only go hand luggage now, with Ryanair you are limited on size and weight, 10kg, Easyjet however is similar size with no limit, I think you could get close to 15kg in the hand luggage size limit, ideal for a week and no waiting at baggage reclaim for what seems like hours.

[Belladonna]

Easyjet have been a nightmare with their weighing for a few years now. Even when we have known for absolute certain that our bags were 2kg under they still managed to get us 1kg over on their scales () and charge us! We had offloaded bits for the apartment and come back with nothing extra, so the Majorcan air must weigh quite a bit!
I do agree about the checking of two bags of hand luggage though. Far too many cheeky monkeys getting away with that one!

[Sparky]

This subject seems to come up every year doesn't it?.
I wonder how often airport scales are calibrated and by whom? but surely it should be done by an independent body and i think at least every 4 to 6 weeks.

[eleanor]

I agree with you Sparky. This is such an easy way for extra money. The majority of people pay up as they are usually at the front of a very large que. It is embarrassing and annoying especially as Bella says, you just know you are underweight. Not many people feel they can argue the point. This has happened to us a couple of times with Ryanair. We have weighed our cases and know we are underweight just to be challenged at the desk. I'm afraid i'm one of those people who open their case to transfer or even dispose of certain items.

[marilyn]

Originally Posted by alcanadakid

Easyjet were very strict yesterday at Palma regarding baggage allowance.

They were charging even if the bags were just one kg over the 20kg allowance at a rate of €12 per kg. They were catching lots of people and delaying checkin as a result. At the gate they were checking once again and catching even more people, this time looking for oversize bags and people with more than one bag.

This is probably a result of their latest quarterly results were they said they were losing revenue from add-on services. I would imagine it won't be long before they reduce the baggage allowance to 15kg to compete with Ryanair.

I have just visited their site for a June booking and found they have now increased the baggage charge to £25 each. Last week I was quoted £18 per bag. What next?

[Chemical Dave]

In the UK trading standards monitor the accuracy of the "scales" at checkin. Not sure what happens at Palma, but they have been known to be wrong. Many carriers use an agent to check in and they are on commission for XS baggage.

If you are absolutely sure your bags are underweight and are charged excess it can be embarrassing to create a scene at checkin. Take the details of the checkin person and weight of bag and go to the carriers agent. Register your complaint (again take staff details) and let them know that you will arrange for the baggage to be checked back in the UK. When you get to the UK, contact your carrier (Sleazyjet, Ryanair etc) and get them to recheck the bags. If your suspicions are confirmed you can pursue a refund.

It is always worth checking your bags on an empty checkin desk before queueing up - just in case.

Probably the subject of another post but how much excess baggage can you get away with. Is 10.9 kg OK but 11.0 kg excess? How much have you gotten away with or not?

Adios

Dave

[smg]

sorry for a long post - this is from a couple of years ago:

Airlines using out of calibration scales?
Airlines hiding extra charges in baggage

An investigation by the Trading Standards Institute (TSI) has exposed how major airlines are now bagging extra charges from passengers.
Bruce Treloar, TSI’s national lead officer for holidays and travel, said: “Since February 2006, we have been raising concerns about the lack of transparency of flight pricing and the OFT last August announced it was taking action against 13 online airlines over misleading holiday pricing. But our investigation proves that a number of airlines are finding new ways to add extra charges to flight prices.”

The TSI investigation found:

■Increasing confusion with baggage limits and extra charges levied by airlines when luggage is checked in at the airport, rather than online when the booking is made.
■Inaccuracy of scales used to weigh luggage at airport check-ins.
■A bewildering use of ‘tick boxes’ on websites. One required customers to put a tick in a box to avoid extra charges – while on the same site they were required to remove the tick to avoid extra charges!
■Families with children and people with disabilities, including those with visual impairments, cannot check in baggage online, resulting in extra charges at the airport.
■‘Priority boarding’ charges – yet no choice of seat on the plane.
■One airline that charges an extra fee just to check in at the airport.
Consumer Direct reported a 64% increase in air travel complaints last year, compared with 2006. So, as well as the misleading information on websites, TSI looked further into the mounting complaints about baggage weighing and pricing.

Following one complaint about the accuracy of a baggage weigher, an airline was visited by trading standards officers at the request of the British Airports Authority. A total of 18 sets of scales were tested – of which 10 were showing a weight on the machine even before the customer’s baggage was lifted on.

“The significance of these errors is compounded by the fact that all check-in staff at every airport in the UK can easily correct the indication on the scales by pushing a button, which sets the scale indication to zero, before the consumer is asked to put their baggage on,” said Mr Treloar.

“The findings of our investigation show that, despite the spotlight being on them , airlines are still not being up front about the true cost of flights – and it’s clearly a nightmare for consumers.”

Cllr Geoffrey Theobald OBE, chairman of LACORS, said:

“LACORS has worked hard with the Trading Standards Institute and the Office of Fair Trading to crack down on airline websites that are less than fair and transparent. Unfortunately some airlines are using ever more spurious ways to confuse consumers and hide costs during the booking process.

“As more airlines start charging to check in luggage it’s important travellers know that their bags are being weighed accurately. Council trading standards officers regularly check airport weighing equipment to make sure they are accurate. Whilst the vast majority of weighing scales are accurate, customers should always check that scales read zero before checking in their bags and report any suspicious practices to their local council’s trading standards service.”

I dealt professionally with Bruce Treloar some years ago when he was a local trading standards officer, & he always struck me as a decent chap.

I've been the victim of excess baggage charges @ LGW on EJ where their scales didn't agree with ours. Post Office scales have to be regularly calibrated, with, I think, the date of last inspection shown. Surely airports should be the same?

As said above, check that the scales are at zero before placing cases on. If scales appear widely 'out', reweigh with own travel scales - many people now travel with these - & ask to see a supervisor - if the airlines are causing queues/delays by meticulously checking each bag, why feel pressured by a queue behind if it looks like the scales are wrong, especially if ebveryone is being 'done'?

'spect that's me on a 'no-fly' list, so the other tip , especially when faced with a dozy check-in person, is to cannily 'take the strain' of a case whilst on the scales to reduce the reading
(the opposite of the 'butcher's thumb'?)

As a habitually 'heavy' flier appalled at the level of charges currently being levied, I will try to do some more research on this before we next travel.

I suspect that this thread may grow quite a bit......

[sws97sdg]

Easyjet are bombarding me with emails concerning baggage, they are paranoid about losing money as we have not paid for any hold luggage and only taking free hand luggage. This may be useful to same, remember to check you hand luggage sizes!!


Hand Baggage
From April 5th we have updated our pricing policy for hold luggage and for oversized cabin baggage that needs to be checked into the hold.

The following charges apply:
• At the airport check-in desk: If you purchase a bag to be checked into the hold and/or we notice that your cabin bag exceeds the maximum allowed dimensions, you will be charged £25 per bag
• At the boarding gate: If you go directly to the boarding gate and your one permitted item of cabin baggage exceeds the maximum allowed dimensions you will be charged £40 and your bag will be checked into the hold
Remember: easyJet allows one item of hand baggage into the cabin per person; maximum dimensions are 56 x 45 x 25 cm.

To keep our fares low, be able to board the plane as quickly as possible and ensure your comfort onboard, if you bring more than one piece of hand baggage we'll check the extra piece into the hold. Hand bags, briefcases, laptops and laptop bags are all counted as one piece, so if you have a trolley and, for example, an additional hand bag or laptop bag you'll be asked to put those items into your trolley bag. If you can't consolidate your cabin baggage into one single item, one of your bags will be checked into the hold and we will have to charge you £40. We do this to ensure that we don't delay the boarding process and bring everyone to their destination on time.

To get the best price pre-book your hold baggage online. You can do this when booking your flight or by adding it to an existing booking via my easyJet.com.

[BonysLad]

Interesting point about the calibration of airline check in scales .

Back in February our suitcases gained 3 kg each in a matter of three hours between checking in with TAP at Buenos Aires and then onto British Airways at Rio de Janeiro.

Fortunately it wasn't an issue cos we wus travlin First Class .

Otherwise BonyLadette's " Smalls " ( there's a misnomer if ever you've heard one, folks !!! ) would have gone straight in the rubbish bin !!!!

Seriously , best to leave a margin of safety when packing nowadays , Guys .

BonysLad

[Tonsyl]

How long will it be before they go back to weighing passengers again. Anyone remember those days way back when you had to fly into San Bonet (I think it was called) ?

[pollensa]

We now have our own Travel Scales as we regularly travel with hand-luggage only - see Travel Accessories

[Nick]

"We now have our own Travel Scales as we regularly travel with hand-luggage only"

The problem with having your own scales though is that to be accurate they would have to be calibrated EXACTLY to the scales at the airport to be of any use surely??

At the end of the day, the airline will have the right to refuse you and what can you do???

[BonysLad]

Originally Posted by Tonsyl

How long will it be before they go back to weighing passengers again.

What a great idea !!!

I'm not saying Bonyladette is heavy ( although the Speak your Weight machine in the local Chemist does go " One at a time, please " when she steps on it ) but it could be " Singles Holidays " for old BonysLad if this was introduced !!!!

BonysLad

[sws97sdg]

Originally Posted by nickpaulanoah

"We now have our own Travel Scales as we regularly travel with hand-luggage only"

The problem with having your own scales though is that to be accurate they would have to be calibrated EXACTLY to the scales at the airport to be of any use surely??

At the end of the day, the airline will have the right to refuse you and what can you do???

I have scales as well but only use them as a guide, what you can do is to store heavy clothes near the top, if you are slightly over take them out of the case and put them on, they cant stop you, also stuff you pockets with heavy stuff like charges etc.