Page 1 of 1

Airline baggage charges

PostPosted: Fri Aug 04, 2023 6:57 am
by RJC
MADRID (Reuters) -
Spain's Ministry of Consumer Affairs said on Thursday it had opened an investigation into low-cost airlines over hand luggage and other fees, which result in the price most consumers pay being higher than the one that was initially advertised.
The probe could result in fines of up to one million euros ($1.09 million) regardless of the profit made from such fees, and as much as eight times the profit obtained, if it is in excess of one million euros, the ministry said in a statement. It did not name any specific airlines.
Budget carriers like Ryanair, easyJet, or their Spanish rival Vueling charge passengers for hand luggage, such as trolley bags larger than a certain size. They also impose an additional fee if a passenger wants a choice in seating.
The ministry said that by separating such fees from those traditionally included in ticket prices these airlines "offer in their advertisement very competitive prices".
This "does not correspond in most cases with the price that the consumer ends up paying, as a consequence of these practices."
It said Internet search engines can also give an unfair advantage to airlines offering tickets that exclude the fees compared to pricier tickets offered by competitors.
In 2019, a Spanish court ruled Ryanair's policy of charging a fee for hand luggage was "abusive". However, Ryanair continued with its policy, citing airlines' commercial freedom to determine the size of their cabin baggage.

Re: Airline baggage charges

PostPosted: Fri Aug 04, 2023 7:06 am
by HarvHar2018
The people that moan about budget airlines are the same people that keep on using them, if they don't like it then use a superior airline with a more expensive ticket which includes baggage
I've no idea what the issue is, they are budget airlines for a reason and they need to make extra money where & when they can :text-lol:

Re: Airline baggage charges

PostPosted: Fri Aug 04, 2023 8:35 am
by Darro
Last time I flew to UK I needed to take hold baggage, I checked around and found that the price on BA was barely a handful of Euros more than RA.

Guess who I flew with!

Re: Airline baggage charges

PostPosted: Fri Aug 04, 2023 5:56 pm
by Neradd
HarvHar2018 wrote:The people that moan about budget airlines are the same people that keep on using them, if they don't like it then use a superior airline with a more expensive ticket which includes baggage
I've no idea what the issue is, they are budget airlines for a reason and they need to make extra money where & when they can :text-lol:




I don't need a bag on wheels or need to sit next to anyone. So Im happy to jump on a Ryanair for £20 -£30

I'll sit where they want me to sit.
If when allocated a seat I dont like it, I'll buy one I want for another £10 - £15

Why should I pay a stupid price to fly just because you want to take the kitchen sink on holiday with you ?

Re: Airline baggage charges

PostPosted: Sat Aug 05, 2023 10:25 am
by pedrosloggett
If you fly regularly or are fully up to speed with the practices it is not a problem. For people less savvy they get pulled in by a low price and then lead by the nose until it is too late to back out which is obviously the intention of the airline. In any sales situation this is sharp practice. Perhaps the fare inclusive of extras should be shown alongside the minimum one to avoid any confusion.

Re: Airline baggage charges

PostPosted: Sat Aug 05, 2023 6:18 pm
by Iancorker
If you fly regularly you understand that the actual cost is far higher than the base cost, but you do have the option to keep costs low if you want.

But the big advantage of the low cost airlines is that they fly to and from regional airports. The cost of baggage and seats is far less than the cost of getting to London or Madrid, if you live away from the capital.

Re: Airline baggage charges

PostPosted: Sat Aug 05, 2023 7:59 pm
by Darro
Spain to probe budget airlines over hand luggage fees.


https://www.reuters.com/business/aerosp ... 023-08-03/

Re: Airline baggage charges

PostPosted: Sun Aug 06, 2023 1:15 pm
by Paul58
pedrosloggett wrote:If you fly regularly or are fully up to speed with the practices it is not a problem. For people less savvy they get pulled in by a low price and then lead by the nose until it is too late to back out which is obviously the intention of the airline. In any sales situation this is sharp practice. Perhaps the fare inclusive of extras should be shown alongside the minimum one to avoid any confusion.



I fully agree with this. However, even savvy frequent fliers have to plough through the booking process, to the point of payment, before they can get a price to compare.

The airlines base fare will change regularly due to competition and demand and it's this fare that is used by the comparison websites. If you want to include a cabin bag, hold bag or seat selection these items also change depending on what part of the process you book them and this isn't reflected on the comparison sites.

I fly quite a few times a year and Ryanair frequently top the cheapest comparison for the time of day I wish to travel. I usually like to pick my seat and occaisionally take a cabin bag but once these items are selected with Ryanair they are sometimes higher than the base fare and more expensive than alternative airlines.

Personally, I pick the next cheapest 2 airlines and repeat the booking process and if any other airline is not more than 10 euro more expensive then I don't book with Ryanair. The reason for this is that other airlines don't punish you for not paying for a seat (aisle), have a better onboard service, have better customer service, often use the terminal airbridge and don't arrive at terminal 3 in Manchester.

Re: Airline baggage charges

PostPosted: Sun Aug 06, 2023 8:55 pm
by wilsonm10
Well we fly alot and have used most of the budget airlines and use the small cabin bag and have not had an issue until last week when one airline flying from Alicante to Barcelona, charged us 60 euro due to the bag being to large, we only had one bag between two of us as it was a one night visit. On the way back at Barcelona, they checked nearly every bag in the queue, the charge was 75 euro's, we had already booked our bag in to the hold (41 euro's)

They now have -
-smaller cabin bag (free), (laptop size), note this is 2cm shorter than the small cabin bag
-Small cabin bag which is normally free (easyjet and Ryanair), now billable 60 euro
-Standard cabin bag which you pay for on low budget airlines
-Hold luggage

When we booked the smaller cabin bag was not an item
My advice check before you fly