Has anyone seen anybody kicked out of the priority check in counters?

[ermen]

So I fly a lot and use the F / J counters due to my OW status.

Most of the time the line is not policed. Sometimes the line has a person standing there asking if you are Elite / F / J or whatever. I know what I'm doing so just say yes and they dont check or ask for further proof.

So what is stopping some schmuck to just lie and say yes, and use the F/J/Elite check in counter?
Has anyone seen anybody turned away by the check in agent?

 

[kermatu]

I have. At least once that I recall. Checking-in to a Finnair flight in Madrid. Was in the J line. Person in front of me got to the desk. Was told, sorry, I can't help you this is for business pax only, please go to next queue and back of line. Was only two people in that line from memory but still point was made.

I've only recently had status with VA but yet to be asked when entering queue. Occasionally get asked when entering QF check-in areas and have usually been asked to show my FF card (definitely in Perth, sometimes Adelaide, but never in Canberra or Cairns).

 

[Himeno]

I've seen people get turned back from priority counters a number of times at LAX, JFK, DXB, NRT, HND, SIN, KUL, and a few others.

 

[leadman]

I've witnessed it many times, the latest was at terminal 4 LAX a few days ago. Remember once in KUL at MH F a PAX and family had started to check in when his status showed up. They would not process him any more telling him to go back to Y; started a massive argument with security being called. Not sure what the outcome was as i continued on my way.

 

[lovetravellingoz]

So I fly a lot and use the F / J counters due to my OW status.

Most of the time the line is not policed. Sometimes the line has a person standing there asking if you are Elite / F / J or whatever. I know what I'm doing so just say yes and they dont check or ask for further proof.

So what is stopping some schmuck to just lie and say yes, and use the F/J/Elite check in counter?
Has anyone seen anybody turned away by the check in agent?

Yes have seen people knocked back at a number of airports. Not when they go to stand in the line, but when they go to check-in as status, or lack there of shows up..


Also once my daughter who was about 20 was flying F by herself and went to check in and was initially told quite brusquely when she arrived at the F counter that looked closed to go to the Y counter. On showing her boarding pass they went the other way with over the top service

 

[AIRwin]

Remember once in KUL at MH F a PAX and family had started to check in when his status showed up. They would not process him any more telling him to go back to Y; started a massive argument with security being called.

Not even a DYKWIA...

 

[ermen]

interesting!
didn't know people were willing to be embarrassed trying to wing it in a different queue!

 

[kermatu]

interesting!
didn't know people were willing to be embarrassed trying to wing it in a different queue!

I'm sure some would be genuine mistakes. Non-savvy travelers or someone distracted by kids - see a counter with your flight or airline on it and rock up.
But sure others will be those willing to cop a bit of embarrassment on the chance they can skip a 30 minute queue.

 

[drron]

And many times in LOTFAP I have encountered an agent determining who gets into the AA premium line.Last time was at MCO.

 

[marki]

Same here LOTFAP more so

 

[Deleted member]

While not priority line, I saw about 40 Asian people in LHR sent to the back of the security line for not having themselves ready , I.ei coats off, lap tops out, LAG’s on display etc. it was a pleasure to see proper enforcement at work.
I am forever held up by pax who are forever bumbling around at the security scanning point. It drives me nuts

 

[Pushka]

Hong Kong polices the line. And I’m betting Dubai and Qatar airlines do too!

 

[ozbeachbabe]

I'm sure some would be genuine mistakes. Non-savvy travelers or someone distracted by kids - see a counter with your flight or airline on it and rock up. But sure others will be those willing to cop a bit of embarrassment on the chance they can skip a 30 minute queue.

Quite often it's the kids that are on the ball rather than the parents. I've seen a CSA at the J checkin counter (no J pax waiting in queue) call forward a family from the whY queue to serve them. One of the kids said "Dad, that's the business class queue" maybe not realising they'd been called forward.

While not priority line, I saw about 40 Asian people in LHR sent to the back of the security line for not having themselves ready , I.ei coats off, lap tops out, LAG’s on display etc. it was a pleasure to see proper enforcement at work. I am forever held up by pax who are forever bumbling around at the security scanning point. It drives me nuts

My brother arrived in LAX off an NZ flight and the KE pax in front of him in the CBP queue hadn't filled their forms in so the officer sent them packing to the back of the queue.

 

[AlexFly77]

Happens all the time. At lounges and Priority boarding too. Recently at the LH lounge in Frankfurt an Egyptair FF was sure his Goldcard dated 2016 was still valid despite computer saying otherwise.
It’s sad to see and I hope I never get to the point of doing it myself.

 

[downgraded]

Not check in, but I was pleased to see the tax refund queue at MEL actively rejecting people at the counter of the online queue after they'd spent significant periods trying to avoid the even longer normal queue and get sent to the back.

 

[Pushka]

I’ve had the opposite. Travelling with Mum and was SG solely through MrPs travel. I didn’t know what it meant. Lined up in the long queue in HK about to fly Cathay. Someone was doing a pre check. Saw SG on the BP and brought us straight to the front of the boarding queue.

 

[zig]

I have usually seen it happen in airports overseas, rather than in Australia. Checkin queues overseas that I have used generally have a staff member on them checking your entitlement to use priority checkin.

 

[PineappleSkip]

HK about to fly Cathay. Someone was doing a pre check. Saw SG on the BP and brought us straight to the front of the boarding queue.

CX are good queue police. Last couple departures at the ‘arrive in the queue’ check I was ushered to an unsigned F queue for WPs. No F on either aircraft.
Cheers skip

 

[JohnPhelan]

And many times in LOTFAP I have encountered an agent determining who gets into the AA premium line.Last time was at MCO.

I had this a few weeks back at JFK T8 (AA). Have also seen it at multiple QF counters, with an agent standing at the entry point. (Especially at the BNE Dom J entry for QF.) They do seem to engage in a bit of profiling - I just walk on through and I'm rarely asked if I'm F/J/Plat/Gold, but have seen it happen to others, especially if they 'look' like they might not belong …..

I've also had an experience with JAL at NRT (before I had status), when standing in the Y line, that a staffer came over and got me out of the line and took me to the J desk. The 10 people in front of me were ignored, as well as a similar number behind me. I was the only one 'saved' and I can only presume it was because I was Caucasian and well-dressed!

 

[Lord_Lenny]

I seem to remember there being 'filtering' by Air NZ at SYD when checking in for our Queenstown trip last year. There was an agent at the head of the priority check in lane, but they seemed to be there primarily to direct people to the self-check in machines or the bag drop lines rather then explicitly policing status.