Baggage..The hidden cost

[jackcollins1960]

I just booked and paid for 2 seats for my 85 year old mum and her partner to travel from Melbourne, Australia to Manchester, England. For expediency I used a travel agent (1st mistake). They recommended Qatar, Etihad or Emirates as they fly the route 1 stop thereby avoiding London.

They checked prices and advised that QATAR was the cheapest and that they had heard great things about them. They knew my dear old mum would be in the UK for a month.

So I booked and paid yesterday. Then today I checked on some detail as I had 5 mins to spare...the luggage allowance is a paltry 20 kg's and after I called they said its strictly enforced and is AUD $114 per kilo for the over's. That compares with Etihad at the standard 23KG and Emirates with a whopping 30KG's.. and all had ticket prices within $100 of each other !!! AND the Emirates penalty is only $70 per kilo above their 30KG Allowance!!!!

The travel agent should have pointed this out as it will drive the net cost of the QATAR ticket much higher than the other carriers and that is theft by trick in my book!...beware QATAR airlines (and poorly informed travel agents).

 

[Dave Noble]

20Kg is the typical allowance for economy class ; Emirates at 30Kg is an exception rather than the norm with 30Kg and 40Kg the norm for business and 1st

Dave

 

[mannej]

How is it theft by trick? 20kgs is the norm for most airlines in economy, and it is up to the buyer (if the amount of luggage is an issue) to be aware of this, as the information is freely available

 

[medhead]

Surely the real issue is the TA who failed to properly consider/compare all costs involved. They should have said it was the cheapest fare but the baggage allowance is lower. Hardly theft by the airline. They have their limits and they state them upfront, no tricks involved.

Then of course in terms of actual items 3 kg isn't that much. 3 shirts and a pair of pants?

 

[lovetravellingoz]

If your mum is 85, and I assume her partner similar I would suggest actually making sure that her/their bags are as light as possible.

 

[serfty]

How is it theft by trick? 20kgs is the norm for most airlines in economy, and it is up to the buyer (if the amount of luggage is an issue) to be aware of this, as the information is freely available

I guess the OP believes the TA should have pointed out the difference in the cost of baggage as part of the overall TA service.

Maybe the TA was at fault, but theft is probably too strong a word.

... The travel agent should have pointed this out as it will drive the net cost of the QATAR ticket much higher than the other carriers and that is theft by trick in my book!...beware QATAR airlines (and poorly informed travel agents).

 

[jackcollins1960]

Well I beg to differ on 20KG being the "Norm"...Perhaps you should check out QANTAS 23kg or ETIHAD 23KG or British Airways 23KG (and of course Emirates at 30KG) or V Australia at 23KG, China Airlines at 23KG......shall I keep going??
Check out also the 4 Amount per Kilo ($114.00 PER KILO) and compare TAHT with all of the above...it is by far the dearest!

 

[RB]

I would suggest that it is not only on the flight an 85 yr old female is going to struggle with more than the "paltry" 20kg of luggage. Are there any particular reasons why she will need more than 20kg of belongings for a 1 month trip? I think that now the seat is booked you concentrate your energies on reducing the planned superfluous luggage. I assume that prior to the booking you would have discussed the types of bags your Mum would be taking and how she would cope with the challenges of travel (not just baggage) at her age.

 

[kezsco]

It's certainly not Qatar's fault. As the OP says, it takes less than 5 minutes to discover baggage allowances.

It's hard to apportion blame to the TA as well. If the TA was told that the only concern was making the flight as direct and cheap as possible, then they have done their job. In fact, by providing alternatives (Etihad, Emirates), they have done everything asked of them.

If the TA was told that baggage allowance would be important, then I am sure they would have suggested Emirates.

Qatar is a great choice though. Best seat pitch, good service. If the TA had booked the mother on Emirates and then the OP found out that seat pitch was 34" on Qatar but only 32" on Emirates, would that have been theft by Emirates?

Theft is a ridiculous word. Differences between airlines with regards to service, options and prices are great. It's up the buyer to know what they want and request it to their TA (unless they have a mind reading TA).

 

[mannej]

Well I beg to differ on 20KG being the "Norm"...Perhaps you should check out QANTAS 23kg or ETIHAD 23KG or British Airways 23KG (and of course Emirates at 30KG) or V Australia at 23KG, China Airlines at 23KG......shall I keep going??
Check out also the 4 Amount per Kilo ($114.00 PER KILO) and compare TAHT with all of the above...it is by far the dearest!

Yes I know that airlines have different values, but if you looked at things, the norm would come out to be 20kgs for economy class.

Malaysia, Singapore, Air New Zealand (intl not inc. US), Thai, Cathay Pacific, SAF etc are all 20kgs.

Those offering 23kgs have only started recently (within the last 2 yrs or so), but 20kgs is still the typical economy class value for checked baggage

 

[mannej]

Qatar is a great choice though. Best seat pitch, good service. If the TA had booked the mother on Emirates and then the OP found out that seat pitch was 34" on Qatar but only 32" on Emirates, would that have been theft by Emirates?

EK also has 34" on certain planes in their fleet.

 

[Flashback]

Yes I know that airlines have different values, but if you looked at things, the norm would come out to be 20kgs for economy class.

Malaysia, Singapore, Air New Zealand (intl not inc. US), Thai, Cathay Pacific, SAF etc are all 20kgs.

Those offering 23kgs have only started recently (within the last 2 yrs or so), but 20kgs is still the typical economy class value for checked baggage

And is certainly the amount I will be working on when I get to Europe in a month! Given a lot of travel may well be on LCC's and also the fact I'll be carrying my goods on my back... it will be prudent to keep it sub-20kg

 

[kezsco]

Well I beg to differ on 20KG being the "Norm"...Perhaps you should check out QANTAS 23kg or ETIHAD 23KG or British Airways 23KG (and of course Emirates at 30KG) or V Australia at 23KG, China Airlines at 23KG......shall I keep going??
Check out also the 4 Amount per Kilo ($114.00 PER KILO) and compare TAHT with all of the above...it is by far the dearest!

Some well selected airlines to support your argument. However, it is fairly standard for the weight system to use 20kg as the norm for economy fares. Good legacy carriers such JAL, ANA, Lufthansa, Singapore are all 20kgs. This is definitely the norm. There are even carriers that charge for any checked luggage, be thankful that Qatar isn't one of those carriers.

For two fares, 40kgs is decent amount of luggage though. You might even consider shipping stuff over prior if you think she needs more. (or cancel and rebook on Emirates)

 

[markis10]

Well I beg to differ on 20KG being the "Norm"...Perhaps you should check out QANTAS 23kg or ETIHAD 23KG or British Airways 23KG (and of course Emirates at 30KG) or V Australia at 23KG, China Airlines at 23KG......shall I keep going??
Check out also the 4 Amount per Kilo ($114.00 PER KILO) and compare TAHT with all of the above...it is by far the dearest!

The norm is for people to look at how they judge value in what they are buying by their own criteria, if you knew that there was going to be a significant baggage requirement then this should have been communicated to the TA and some research done by you beforehand to sanity check the recommendations, absolute trust mandates absolute acceptance of the outcome if the right questions are not asked at the right time.

 

[jackcollins1960]

Well RB i think if you were realistic anyone traveling to the other side of the world for a month (85 or any age) would like to take a reasonable amountof luggage. She may be 85 but she has people each end to help her !
And Kezsco, your right it only takes ANOTHER 5 minutes to search each site for each detail...thats why i decided to get a TA...someone who is supposed to know all the pros and CONs of the various options!...and it is rediculous to claim that baggage allowance is irrelevent, especialy when they want to charge an extra$342 pep Pax for 23KG...how can that make them the cheapest? I expect a proffessional to know theses things and to ask questions. Has anyone read the "Goods Act"...you are entitled to rely on the skill and eexpertise of agents of any product...not read minds but ask questions!
your Caveat Emptor approch would not be tolerated in any other industry. When you pick up your next new car and they tell you after you paid that the engine is extra and there is no way out will you be happy???

 

[jackcollins1960]

And yes I did try to canvel and re book...24 hours later the penalty? $650 per person!

 

[Flashback]

And yes I did try to canvel and re book...24 hours later the penalty? $650 per person!

From your posts, I can't tell whether you've asked them the rate to pre-pay for extra luggage, or whether you're only quoting the amount you'd get charged when at the airport? If so, have you asked about the rate to pre-pay?

 

[JohnK]

I now many airlines only have 20kgs at the baggage allowance for economy airfares. But please note it is not always set in stone and in December/January I was able to get away with ~25kg checked luggage (golf clubs and luggage) on SQ and a few weeks my mother was able to check-in ~25kgs as well on SQ. YMMV.

Then of course in terms of actual items 3 kg isn't that much. 3 shirts and a pair of pants?

In my experience 3kgs is actually quite a lot of clothing.

Pair of Trousers ~450g
Pair of Jeans ~650g
Business/Casual Long Sleeve Shirt ~250g
Polo T-Shirt ~200g-300g
Singlet ~150g
Underpants ~45g-60g
Socks ~35g-50g
Golf Ball ~45g

And yes I did go through the process of weighing everything on my small 3kg (max) scales. In the end I was very close with the actual total weight.

 

[jackcollins1960]

Hi Flashware. the airline told the TA it was $114 per KG when she rang (because she had no idea...she even suggested i was wrong and that the norm was 23KG when I first called her!...TRUE STORY). I then called them and they confirmed the $114 per Kilo rate on 20KG+....no pre paid rate was offered up!).
and thank you Johnk ...3KG is a lot of items

 

[Must...Fly!]

Ring up QR Australia, they are very helpful if you need something, and ask if they do prepaid additional luggage.

EDIT: just saw above post...i am sorry about your situation...