QF check-in agent told me a whopper last night...

[markis10]

Seems bizarre no one seems to care, even when I used the on-line feed back form for some replacement luggage tags I got a call the very next day asking how many I wanted.

Extra luggage tags is an easy fix, fixing a staff member who does nto like the job is a bit harder!

 

[UP4014]

Extra luggage tags is an easy fix, fixing a staff member who does nto like the job is a bit harder!

Yes, but the intial call receiver is only taking the details to pass on to someone else, they shouldn't redirect you making you call somewhere else.

 

[Homer]

you sure no one you knew was setting you up for a prank? Seems unbelievable that a check in agent would put their job on the line for some giggles.

I wish I had such well connected friends... But anyway I don't think this guy was having a joke. I think he may be on a poorly conceived solo mission to scare pax into reducing their carry-on luggage by inventing a QF policy.

What's even poorer is Qantas' response. You have a premium passenger who hasn't just been slightly mislead or received some incorrect information as a result of an agents mistake, but one who has been straight out lied to, and the best they can offer is "oh sorry it's a busy airport, you deal with it next time you're there".

A supervisor isn't going to give a toss about someone who walks up to them and says "3 weeks ago this person did this". Poor form on the part of Customer Care.

Yes, absolutely.

Forget waiting until next time you pass thru BNE. Call the Customer Care Centre today or the Premium Desk & report him. They'll see his staff number from your checkin record but do it now.

I called the premium desk this morning and, after consulting with their "hotline" regarding rules, etc, they were the ones who advised me to report it at the airport in a few weeks. They also suggested I could write a letter to Customer Care. The last time I did that, which was actually a detailed document praising a QF staff member at LHR, I heard nothing from Customer Care so I think I would just be wasting my time. I had a look online and I couldn't find a phone number for Customer Care either. So it seems like QF doesn't really want the feedback.

 

[Homer]

I was inspired by some of the comments here to try contacting QF again in order to provide feedback about this employee. This time when I called the premium desk I was told that there is actually a premium customer care team and that you can speak to these people directly. So obviously, as is often the case, you just have to get the right person when you call...

So anyway after waiting on hold for nearly 20 minutes (you have to be dedicated to provide feedback to QF...) I was put through to a woman in the customer care team and she seemed interested in the feedback and said that she would pass the information on to the duty manager in Brisbane which is all that I had wanted to have happen.

She did however stop short of apologising for his deception, which I guess is OK because it is just an allegation as far as she may be concerned. However more worryingly on a few occasions during our conversation she made comments like "we do have a problem with carry on luggage, you know?" as if she was excusing the behaviour. I accept that they have problems with carry on luggage. That isn't the issue. I think that one of the first things someone in a "customer care" team needs to do is learn to listen to the customer rather than jump in too quickly with defensive statements.

Anyway it's logged now so hopefully this guy gets any help that he may need, even if it's just some time off.

 

[straitman]

Anyway it's logged now so hopefully this guy gets any help that he may need, even if it's just some time off.

Excellent.

Please keep us informed of any feedback you may get.

 

[djfuzz]

However more worryingly on a few occasions during our conversation she made comments like "we do have a problem with carry on luggage, you know?" as if she was excusing the behaviour. I accept that they have problems with carry on luggage. That isn't the issue. I think that one of the first things someone in a "customer care" team needs to do is learn to listen to the customer rather than jump in too quickly with defensive statements.

OT

Indeed - lost count of the number of times I've been escalated to a senior CS representative (not QF, but for other services, mainly telco and CC) who begin each response with an irrelevant lecture of the obvious rather than a substantive response to the particular issue.

Maybe it's just me, but then again, I've usually done a little bit of research and examined the relevant T&Cs before I go to them, and usually acknowledge the obvious before I proceed. I only wish they'd do half of the same - despite making notes on the system, no one ever seems to be able to retrieve these notes and every time I end up having to repeat the story.

/OT

Surely you pointed out that if they had such problems, they should be addressed and accommodated directly (I assume you could have literally taken a tote or plastic bag for the excess weight and called it a 'personal item'), rather than in a deliberatively deceptive ad-hoc manner? :-|

 

[Homer]

Surely you pointed out that if they had such problems, they should be addressed and accommodated directly (I assume you could have literally taken a tote or plastic bag for the excess weight and called it a 'personal item'), rather than in a deliberatively deceptive ad-hoc manner? :-|

Yes I did. The weight wasn't even an issue in my case. My carry-on weighed 8kg and I asked the check-in agent whether it was a problem. I would have happily either taken something out of it and carried it separately (I was with Marge and Maggie, also WPs, so we had plenty of carry-on allowance to go around had that been required) or checked the whole bag in (we were at check-in, checking in another bag at the time) had he requested this. He didn't. In fact he told me that they usually overlook a little extra weight. It was then that he gave me his account of this supposed new policy.

 

[medhead]

She did however stop short of apologising for his deception, which I guess is OK because it is just an allegation as far as she may be concerned. However more worryingly on a few occasions during our conversation she made comments like "we do have a problem with carry on luggage, you know?" as if she was excusing the behaviour. I accept that they have problems with carry on luggage. That isn't the issue. I think that one of the first things someone in a "customer care" team needs to do is learn to listen to the customer rather than jump in too quickly with defensive statements.

Anyway it's logged now so hopefully this guy gets any help that he may need, even if it's just some time off.

Good that it is logged. I wanted to pick up of this "problems with carry on". having just started weekly communting with carry on only I just can't see the problem as being weight. I have maybe 6 to 9 kgs between 2 bags (wheely and small backpack), but no checked bags! So the aircraft isn't going to be overloaded and fall out of the sky or anything. Yep sure the overhead lockers have weight limits. but the real issue has to be space with some idiots dragging around massively ovesized bags.

NB I actually measured my wheely as being 105 cm before buying and didn't go for the "slightly" bigger and more usefully sized wheely. Of course i was also having a few alliance flights at that time.

Maybe it's just me, but then again, I've usually done a little bit of research and examined the relevant T&Cs before I go to them, and usually acknowledge the obvious before I proceed. I only wish they'd do half of the same - despite making notes on the system, no one ever seems to be able to retrieve these notes and every time I end up having to repeat the story.

I have taken to telling them to read the notes on my account and not explain again for the 16th time. Especially with telstra

 

[Cocitus23]

Starts with G, eh? By God, that would be Godwin Grech, wouldn't it? Well known fantacist, recently moved from Canberra, aquiline features, Adam's apple, over-sized collar, Walter Mitty type living in a parallel universe where he shapes the world.

 

[Mal]

So the aircraft isn't going to be overloaded and fall out of the sky or anything. Yep sure the overhead lockers have weight limits. but the real issue has to be space with some idiots dragging around massively ovesized bags.

It does make me wonder how important weight limits on overhead lockers are. Neither BMI or BA have any weight limit on cabin baggage - the only rule is that the passenger must be able to lift it themselves.

I haven't seen any BMI or BA planes fall out of the sky yet....

 

[harvyk]

Starts with G, eh? By God, that would be Godwin Grech, wouldn't it? Well known fantacist, recently moved from Canberra, aquiline features, Adam's apple, over-sized collar, Walter Mitty type living in a parallel universe where he shapes the world.

Could well be, his house is right now for sale... Turns out I've driven past it numerious times...

I have taken to telling them to read the notes on my account and not explain again for the 16th time. Especially with telstra

Yeah, by the 16th time you'd have thought someone would have entered in something useful to their computer system, and it turns out someone has, it was just the person on the other end of the phone is oftan too lazy to open their eyes and read.

 

[mannej]

It does make me wonder how important weight limits on overhead lockers are. Neither BMI or BA have any weight limit on cabin baggage - the only rule is that the passenger must be able to lift it themselves.

I haven't seen any BMI or BA planes fall out of the sky yet....

Although I have noted your smily face, I think the weight allowances for the overhead compartments are more OSH and safety related rather than related to the total weight of the aircraft.

The lighter the carry-on, the less force (if all things are equal) it hits a passenger with if it happens to fall out.

 

[Mal]

The lighter the carry-on, the less force (if all things are equal) it hits a passenger with if it happens to fall out.

Yeah I agree that the limits are probably H&S type related (and could be engineering related as well - it depends on the load bearing capacity of the lockers), but what I can't work out is how other airlines can have no weight restrictions and happily fly around. Same deal with say AA who have 18kg limits instead of 7kg, and again happily fly around.

I somehow suspect Qantas has deliberately chosen a conservative figure and <expects> passengers to break it.

 

[mannej]

Yeah I agree that the limits are probably H&S type related (and could be engineering related as well - it depends on the load bearing capacity of the lockers), but what I can't work out is how other airlines can have no weight restrictions and happily fly around. Same deal with say AA who have 18kg limits instead of 7kg, and again happily fly around.

I somehow suspect Qantas has deliberately chosen a conservative figure and <expects> passengers to break it.

From memory I can remember the "load" on the MH 772 being around 34kg's, but I would expect it to be able to hold more than that as a back up.

I guess the figure is rather arbitrary, as there is no real substance behind how it is worked out. MH only has 5kg's in Y + a personal bag (laptop etc), so again who knows.

What is DJ, TT and JQ's hand luggage allowance? If it was all the same (which I don't think it is-IIRC JQ is 10kg), than the value may be set by an outside source (CASA et al?)

 

[serfty]

Was this international or domestic?

For a start, any QF mainline domestic jet flight has a basic 2 x 7kg bag rule.

 

[drron]

Ah for the old days.I remember flying back from bali on QF in the early 90s.There had been a special on J fares,may have been the first time we ever flew together in J.We had been to lombok and mrsdrron had fallen in love with Lombok pottery which was insanely cheap,about $2 for very large platers.it was reasonably fragile so checking it in was not an option so we bought a cheap large duffle type bag and i carried it on.I refused help from FAs as I struggled up the boarding stairs-no airbridges then,even at the old BNE terminal.We put it in the front closet downstairs-no way i could have put it in an overhead.On arriving home we weighed it-35kg.Would go well on Air Asia/TT wouldn't it?:shock:

 

[thewinchester]

Back on topic for a moment, I've just spotted this thread and I agree with the OP that this is taking the mick.

Seriously, you're so annoyed with your job or other issues that you feel it appropriate to yank a premium pax's chain that hard? I'd suggest that employee run before I personally hop a flight to BNE so my wingtip can make uncomfortable contact with his backside.

And I see as usual QF's customer complaints handling remains an absolute joke, so surprise there.

 

[medhead]

Although I have noted your smily face, I think the weight allowances for the overhead compartments are more OSH and safety related rather than related to the total weight of the aircraft.

The lighter the carry-on, the less force (if all things are equal) it hits a passenger with if it happens to fall out.

Probably more an engineering issue that affects safety. The only OHS restriction is on the wieght that is allowed to be lifted above shoulder height. But that wouldn't apply to pax only staff.

I would guess that once that for any event that had enough force to open to force open the locker that anything weight 5 kg or greater would represent a major hazard to peoples heads.

 

[oz_mark]

Probably more an engineering issue that affects safety.

...or even an insurance issue. Liability if someone does get hit on the head...

 

[Mal]

I would guess that once that for any event that had enough force to open to force open the locker that anything weight 5 kg or greater would represent a major hazard to peoples heads.

...or even an insurance issue. Liability if someone does get hit on the head...

I think any event that forces open a locker and allows baggage to fall will cause plenty of injuries already - including the potential of people bouncing and hitting others because they 'forgot' to do up their seatbelts (or "were on their way to the lav"). Even a couple of Kg's flying upwards and then down could cause some hefty damage to a head. or other parts of the body.

It does surprise me how this doesn't seem to be an issue with UK based carriers (and the rule changes there were done due to the security alerts and single bag restrictions etc I believe). American based carriers seemed to change the rules so people wouldn't check hold luggage. So possibly the insurance angle is part of it, but I still think it's an arbitrary limit decided by an airline to suit their requirements.

At some stage I'll compile a list of carry on restrictions from various airlines and see if I can identify a pattern.