excess baggage

[saintpeter48]

anyone know what penalty charges are for excess baggage? we go from Heathrow to Bangkok on Thai airways and are allowed20kg but we are both over by about 15kg in total. thanks

[jammiedodger]

hi, when travelling to Crete last summer on holiday we flew with Thomson and were charged �6 per extra kilo but obviously this might not be the same as your airline. Hope this gives u a rough estimate!!! happy holidays!!! x

[Buenchico]

The captain of an aircraft orders the fuel for each flight based upon the calculated weight of the aircraft. Excess baggage means excess fuel, so that's why you have to pay. However, the amount of extra fuel required depends upon the distance being flown. For this reason, excess baggage charges for long haul flights are often considerably more than for short-haul travel.

Each airline will have it's own way of calculating excess baggage charges but when I flew, with Qantas, from Adelaide to Heathrow, they tried to charge me an excess baggage fee which was greater than the return fare from the UK to Australia. I managed to beg and plead and pay a more reasonable figure but you should be aware of the way they worked out the charge. (Other airlines might use a similar policy and not be so lenient in their interpretation of the rules):

Qantas calculated the charge as 1% of the price of a full-fare First Class ticket for the journey. I've just checked out the price, with Thai Air, of a similar ticket from London to Bangkok. The figure quoted was �5582.50. That means, that if Thai Air operate the same policy as Qantas, you could be asked to pay around �840 for your excess baggage .

The Thai Air website isn't particularly user-friendly. It takes quite a while to find the page which refers to excess baggage charges - and then it only says that 'these are available on request'. I strongly recommend phoning Thai Air to get a definitive answer to your question, rather than risk having to pay a massive bill: 020 7491 7953.

Chris

[mikey0118]

Korean Air from Heathrow Airport to Seoul wanted �25 per extra kilogram when I checked in with 29kg of baggage. My allowance was only 20kg. They said that if I could get it down to 25kg, they wouldn't charge me anything.

I think airlines are pretty flexible (not the charters, however), so I am very sure if you have 25kg each, you'll get away with it. The excess of 5kg would have to be paid for, and from London, it's not going to be cheap.

[Trotbot]

Thai have charged 1.5% of the full economy fare per 1 kg in the past (a number likely to be similar to Chris's). Whatever yo do , don't go beyond 32 kgs in one bag or it will not be allowed under strict health and safety policies. Begging can help.
If someone is taking you, pack 2 suitcases of about 22-23 kgs each plus one bag of the balance (with low priority items). If they charge you, your friend can take it away with you.
Do bear in mind you will probably want to bring stuff back, which will only add to the problem. If there are only two of you, you really don't need 55 kgs between you! No overcoats required.....

[KARL]

I advise you to, if at all possible, equalise the weight if you are checking in one bag each. You could then consider checking in separately because as your weight might be 27-28kg each then you will find most airlines will at most charge you for half that excess or say 4kg each (maybe even let you off). It could be a case of paying 10-12kg excess if you check in together as opposed to 8kg total. On the other hand, you might get away with the excess even when checking in together - it all depends on airline policy and the person checking you in. The drawback with checking in separately is if you have not already been allocated seats - you might end up with very separate seats. In that case immediately go back and ask for an adjacent seat - this could be by the first checked in afterwards joining the second for allocation of adjacent seats. In any case, I think equalising the weight is a good policy. Make sure to maximise the weight of handbaggage (within the stated limits or at least very nearly so) by carrying heavy bits that are nevertheless permitted in handbaggage.