Airport baggage allowance

bounty
Posts: 13
Joined: Tue Apr 14, 2015 8:31 am

Airport baggage allowance

Post by bounty »

Hi,
This may seem an odd query but it can save lots of money. I booked a flight with Emirates to Shanghai from the UK. They pride themselves in having a baggage allowance of 30kg, but charge a massive £42 per kg if that allowance goes over the limits. I have never had to pay so much for an extra bag. It is disgusting to charge that.

My school said they would pay in the contract, but I need an extra 16kg, which is a massive £672 over! That is the same as an extra seat! I would feel bad asking for that back.

What to do? Ship? A bit too late, as leave in 10 days? Pay extra? Or go with 1 bag?
b12r
Posts: 79
Joined: Fri Jan 10, 2014 1:47 pm

Re: Airport baggage allowance

Post by b12r »

Is it possible to purchase an "extra bag" with the airline?
PsyGuy
Posts: 10789
Joined: Wed Oct 12, 2011 9:51 am
Location: Northern Europe

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Post by PsyGuy »

@ b12r

That is the cost for extra baggage. Emirates charges based on the weight not "per piece" from the UK to China.

@bounty

Stop feeling bad, your IS approved the baggage excess. Your IS isnt giving it another thought, and neither should you. Bring the extra baggage, at that weight and cost, and do your traveling. You risk losing that approval and reimbursement by trying to do something else such as using a third . shipper, or spending time and resources trying to figure something else out.
b12r
Posts: 79
Joined: Fri Jan 10, 2014 1:47 pm

Re: Airport baggage allowance

Post by b12r »

I have never flown with Emirates but after googling I realize what you meant.

I am going to go in a different direction as PSYguy...

Why not chat with your school about this situation? If I was in your position, being a new hire, I would want to make the best first impression possible. I would email them with this query and say that you feel like the price is very high and you would feel bad asking for the refund. They might say it does not matter and to do it anyway or they may say bring a couple of KGs over and that is what you'll be reimbursed with.

Regardless, by opening a line of communication you'll stand a better chance at meshing into the school well.
wrldtrvlr123
Posts: 1173
Joined: Sat Feb 06, 2010 10:59 am
Location: Japan

Re: Airport baggage allowance

Post by wrldtrvlr123 »

I would also be very careful about the exact language in the contract. It's one thing to say you will cover an extra bag, it's another to shell out that kind of money for one piece of luggage (but maybe they are used to it if they have to deal with Emirates on a regular basis).
PsyGuy
Posts: 10789
Joined: Wed Oct 12, 2011 9:51 am
Location: Northern Europe

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Post by PsyGuy »

If you talk it over with the IS and leadership all you are doing is giving them the opportunity to claw back some of their coin. What do you think they will say. Either they say its, fine, its your allocation, dont worry about it, in which case you are in the same place you are now and youve gained nothing and thats the best case scenario. The alternatives are all outcomes that give you less than what you negotiated. They signed a contract, they agreed to X, if you give them a way out it says the contract is nothing more than a suggestion, and you the IT are happy to give them back this than youll give back something else later as well. The more attention you bring to this issue the more attention it will take. I would however agree with @WT123, and be really sure your contract permits that kind of cost for so little. Many contracts either directly or indirectly (referencing a policy) require the IT to be a good steward of the ISs coin and find good value for whatever reimbursements you claim. It sounds like while this is not ideal by any means that the options are you dont bring the extra bag or you pay what emirates wants, as there doesnt seem to be a more reasonable alternative.
bounty
Posts: 13
Joined: Tue Apr 14, 2015 8:31 am

Re: Airport baggage allowance

Post by bounty »

Well, rightly or wrongly, I have told them. No response as of yet...
sid
Posts: 1392
Joined: Sat Dec 02, 2006 11:44 am

Re: Airport baggage allowance

Post by sid »

It should all be quite clear in your contract. Either you are or you aren't entitled to it. If you are, great. If not, best to know now. Either way, talking with them should make things clearer since you're not quite sure.
Remember this is a business expense for them, which is quite different from a personal one. High fees are not reasonable for a personal vacation, but quite reasonable for a teacher moving country.
Artsmg
Posts: 6
Joined: Mon Jan 16, 2017 10:13 pm

Re: Airport baggage allowance

Post by Artsmg »

I agree about looking closely into your contract-- do they specify an amount, bag, or baggage?

For me I am allowed $800 USD as a starting teacher, and it goes up depending on a few factors. It might seem like a lot to you, but not necessarily a lot to your employer.
buffalofan
Posts: 350
Joined: Wed Jan 06, 2010 11:08 pm

Re: Airport baggage allowance

Post by buffalofan »

If you haven't already, go to the Emirates website, create an account, and find your booking. If you go to "Mangage my booking", there should be a link somewhere where you can select and prepay for excess bags by the piece (up to 30 kg) for much more reasonable prices. Keep the receipts and maybe even screenshot the page after you pay, then submit these to the school. Have done this a couple of times, no problems. From the school's perspective, this is still far cheaper and less hassle than organizing a shipment.
PsyGuy
Posts: 10789
Joined: Wed Oct 12, 2011 9:51 am
Location: Northern Europe

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Post by PsyGuy »

@buffalofan

No it doesnt, at least not significantly. Emirates uses two different schemes depending on the route you are taking. You can only buy excess baggage based on "piece" on routes that originate or connect through CAN, US, and the LCSA. On all other routes including the UK the scheme is based on weight per Kg. This would include the LWs LON -> PVG route. When you attempt to login and manage your flight it prices excess baggage based on weight, and without a higher membership tier (Silver, Gold, Platinum members get additional weight allowance) or upgrading the fare class (flex plus economy, business or first) then with a basic blue membership in economy saver (economy special has an even smaller baggage allowance of 20Kg) the rate is £42/Kg with a 30Kg free allowance. Buying and paying for it online only gives you a 10% discount. So two large bags at 25Kg/each is 50Kg, the baggage allowance is 30Kg/total leaves us with 20Kg of excess baggage at £42/Kg is £840 for the excess baggage at walk up rates, purchased in advance at a 10% discount is still a very heavy £756.
IAMBOG
Posts: 388
Joined: Thu Jul 08, 2010 11:20 pm

Re: Airport baggage allowance

Post by IAMBOG »

Check out www.sevenseasworldwide.com . They are picking boxes up from our UK house today. They have been recomended on here a few times. So far so good. Quite efficient.
PsyGuy
Posts: 10789
Joined: Wed Oct 12, 2011 9:51 am
Location: Northern Europe

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Post by PsyGuy »

I have recommended 7Seas in the past and still do. You can get a couple of boxes, twice what you would check as excess for a fraction what you would pay as excess baggage. The main problem is its not exactly fast. The shortest time is about a month at a cost of about £250 and the longest is about 3 months at a cost of about £100.
vandsmith
Posts: 348
Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2014 12:16 am

Re: Airport baggage allowance

Post by vandsmith »

what's the problem? your school gives baggage allowance so take it. the only problem i can see is if there is a limit and you go over it.

i agree with PG - don't give your admin a reason to lessen your benefits. keep the receipts, hand them in, collect your money. easy. i have done this several times, never had any complaints about it. just remember it's their offer to YOU, not the other way around....unless you're trying to ingratiate yourself for something later on...

good luck!

v.
Helen Back
Posts: 242
Joined: Fri Dec 28, 2012 4:16 pm

Re: Airport baggage allowance

Post by Helen Back »

If your end up travelling with Emirates, make sure you don't overpack. We were 7kg over between four of us and they wanted us to dump stuff. They also weighed all our hand luggage to make sure it wasn't over 7kg a bag. Really harsh, never been through that before.

A woman travelling alone managed to get her hand luggage down to the gate before they asked to weigh it. It weighed 17kg. Her choice was to dump 10kg of stuff or pay $330.

This was an Gatwick in the UK.
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