So I went to drop my mum and my auntie last night who were flying to SCL. We tried to use to the self-tag machines only to find out that they were both over the allowable weight on their suitcases. My mom was 600 grams over, and my auntie 1.1 kilo over.

I asked the lady who was there for help and she said and I think I am able to quote word by word "Look, you should know you can't use the self tag machines if your bags are over the limit, I suggest you go to one of the other counters. If it were up to me, they both should pay the fine but talk to them and see". Huh?

We went to one of the other counters where the guy was very unhelpful. He made my mum shift 600 grams from her suitcase to her carry on, and then made my auntie do the same for her 1.1 Kilo while making remarks like: rules are the rules, you should know better when you pack about the baggage allowance, etc.

I mean, sure, there will be the brigade here who will side with these two nincompoops. But really, you just had a major meltdown as an airline, you are met with two seventy+ year old ladies who are (in the case of my mum) barely over the limit. Show some sympathy, show you know how to deal with customers. And you know what? even if they are really stuck on applying the rules, fine, but don't lecture your clients, be helpful, empathetic.

I was livid. This is not the British Airways I used to love. Not. At. All. Have you guys had similar experiences?

Edited for appalling grammar

I may be in the minority here, but honestly I don't see any issues with what they did.

I know I'm a bit cold-blooded, but the agent's right. Rules are rules, and they are there for a reason. You should follow the rule instead of trying to cheat the system. You shouldn't think that you're "just a bit over". If you went over it, just pay for it. I've met a lot of agents from quite a few airlines who did exactly what this particular BA agent did in this end of the world (Asia and Australia), both LCC and traditional carriers, and honestly I think this should be widely implemented, both at check-in and at gate.

Not to mention that the "traditional" carriers are also being LCCed, it is perfectly foreseeable that the agent is doing this way.

Cheers
Michael

A more holistic approach is to be sensible and pragmatic and occasionally cut a bit of slack using good judgement. None of this is encouraged in the current business model of aviation. The only thing we can do is fly with someone else, the calibre of staff in the industry continues to decline as wages are kept low and good people leave as they are rewarded better elsewhere.

This kind of situation is really a hit or miss, I mean you have to understand the carriers by going on the basis of "what if every passenger does this" rules are in place for a reason. That being said I've had airlines clear bags that were up to 10kg overweight with a simple "try to be in the limits next time" and a smile. So yeah really comes down to the airline or the staff at the counter.
(1kg is really nothing, it's kinda ridiculous, especially since they just had to shift stuff to their carry-on. Would have expected BA to make use of courtesy to seniors....)

I guess some of you missed the part where I said that if you were to apply the rules, you should not lecture the passengers. I also think that some courtesy could have been shown to both. In the case of my mum it was just 600 grams over. And no, they were not trying to cheat the system. They tried to weigh their bags at home and honestly thought they were within the limits.

My rant is about the attitude. You can enforce rules without being patronizing. Customer service is just going downhill everywhere. And the decline is relentless. Some people think it's ok, the "new way". Me? I think yeah, it is how it goes, but wont ever be ok with it.

So which rules are rules and which ones are not. For example if you find the seatbelt constraining is that optional to be buckled in during flight

If every bag is slightly over weight and you are in a regional jet and bags need to be left behind is that OK?

While I'm sure this is more about the rudeness of the staff vs the actual weight limit - I think the agent could have said your bag is over weight - how would you like to resolve this - would you like to remove some things or pay extra for the bag as is - what do you prefer? Also the person who directed you to the counter could have said - if you would like you can remove things from your bag to be within limit otherwise my teammates at the counter will be happy to help get your bag checked

It's all in approach

I would complain. There is a minority of BA LHR ground staff who can be incredibly direct and rude at times.

PITflights wrote:

It's all in approach

Thanks. That's all I've been trying to say.

You are right, the agents should be able to do their job but at the same time treat a customer with courtesy and respect. It is pretty easy to explain the options to a customer in a polite and professional manner.

"Unfortunately your case is overweight. If you wish to take it as it is, there will be an addition fee to pay. Or you can remove items from your case so that it is below our weight limit".

I do actually think that having a weight limit that is enforced is a good thing, because leaving it up to discretion can lead to confusion and give the impression that all passengers are not being treated equally.

It is a shame that the ladies were treated like that. On a positive note, I would hope that this type of bad attitude is the exception and not the rule. I am sure there are many professional and polite staff other than those you came across.

ogre727 wrote:

So I went to drop my mum and my auntie last night who were flying to SCL. We tried to use to the self-tag machines only to find out that they were both over the allowable weight on their suitcases. My mom was 600 grams over, and my auntie 1.1 kilo over.

I asked the lady who was there for help and she said and I think I am able to quote word by word "Look, you should know you can't use the self tag machines if your bags are over the limit, I suggest you go to one of the other counters. If it were up to me, they both should pay the fine but talk to them and see". Huh?

We went to one of the other counters where the guy was very unhelpful. He made my mum shift 600 grams from her suitcase to her carry on, and then made my auntie do the same for her 1.1 Kilo while making remarks like: rules are the rules, you should know better when you pack about the baggage allowance, etc.

I mean, sure, there will be the brigade here who will side with these two nincompoops. But really, you just had a major meltdown as an airline, you are met with two seventy+ year old ladies who are (in the case of my mum) barely over the limit. Show some sympathy, show you know how to deal with customers. And you know what? even if they are really stuck on applying the rules, fine, but don't lecture your clients, be helpful, empathetic.

I was livid. This is not the British Airways I used to love. Not. At. All. Have you guys had similar experiences?

Edited for appalling grammar

You've call them "nincompoops" and you have stated you were livid. How did you approach these agents?

DJWM wrote:

ogre727 wrote:

You've call them "nincompoops" and you have stated you were livid. How did you approach these agents?

Well, if you need to know, we were very sad that she was leaving. My father passed away less than a year ago and this was her first trip without him. So the mood was very sad and nostalgic which did not take away from how polite we are around.... just anyone.

That good enough for you?

In fairness I don't blame the agents, they have had a serious operational melt down, as a former agent cancellations are mentally, physically and emotionally draining yet alone the shut down of an entire operation. No matter how polite you are and how hard you work to look after and satisfy your customers with little to no options most people are beyond unhappy and aggressive. And yes it was my job and I enjoyed but it's hard for people outside the industry to understand the literal rage of passengers against you in the situations.

The BA ground staff team will be exhausted for a week or so.... whose fault is that however? Their leadership team! Insufficient resources pushing people (and IT!) to the brink. This is to excuse the agents not BA

At the end of the day you can purchase a device to weight your cases before you arrive at the airport. This means you are not faced with this situation. If they let everyone go with 1 kilo over that would cost quite a lot in additional fuel I suspect.
Reality is that BA ground staff have probably taken lots of abuse over the last week for a situation they had no control over. I think that they are simply explaining the situation/rules and perhaps this will prepare people better next time for when they fly so they do not have over weight luggage.

Remember peeps, we only have one sides version of the story here - don't simply and blindly accept it as the reality of the event...

You could have encountered a really nice person having a really bad day, we all have them. I have worked in customer service front line roles and hand on heart I have been really mean to people sometimes. I would have cut the girls some slack, hope they enjoyed the rest of the trip.

ogre727 wrote:

DJWM wrote:

ogre727 wrote:

You've call them "nincompoops" and you have stated you were livid. How did you approach these agents?

Well, if you need to know, we were very sad that she was leaving. My father passed away less than a year ago and this was her first trip without him. So the mood was very sad and nostalgic which did not take away from how polite we are around.... just anyone.

That good enough for you?

Ha. Yea, that answer shows me there's more to this story. And don't tell me your attitude wasn't part of the problem. You approach people antagonistically, you'll get it right back, and rightfully so. Today's travelers, as we see so often now in the news, are not the travelers of yesteryear. What did the two ladies that were traveling say about their bags? Or did you ''do all the talking'' for them? I've seen this before.....so often. The passengers that are traveling are often not the ones to start trouble, it's the ones dropping them off that have to interject themselves and they're not even the ones flying.

slvrblt wrote:

ogre727 wrote:

DJWM wrote:

Well, if you need to know, we were very sad that she was leaving. My father passed away less than a year ago and this was her first trip without him. So the mood was very sad and nostalgic which did not take away from how polite we are around.... just anyone.

That good enough for you?

Ha. Yea, that answer shows me there's more to this story. And don't tell me your attitude wasn't part of the problem. You approach people antagonistically, you'll get it right back, and rightfully so. Today's travelers, as we see so often now in the news, are not the travelers of yesteryear. What did the two ladies that were traveling say about their bags? Or did you ''do all the talking'' for them? I've seen this before.....so often. The passengers that are traveling are often not the ones to start trouble, it's the ones dropping them off that have to interject themselves and they're not even the ones flying.

Wow, I seemed to have struck a never with bitter airline staff.... Where did I say I was antagonistic? All I said the mood was subdued and that we were as polite as always. You can take that and twist it whatever way you want but doesnt change anything.

Go spread your venom elsewhere. The staff was unnecessarily rude and that's that. You are assuming I said something, or my mum, or my aunt. You are just ASSuming a lot. So be it. You need to spread your bitterness go ahead... but don't say things that didnt happen.

Amazing.

Customer-facing staff should ALWAYS use tact and professionalism when dealing with customers. Full stop.

ogre727 wrote:

slvrblt wrote:

ogre727 wrote:

Well, if you need to know, we were very sad that she was leaving. My father passed away less than a year ago and this was her first trip without him. So the mood was very sad and nostalgic which did not take away from how polite we are around.... just anyone.

That good enough for you?

Ha. Yea, that answer shows me there's more to this story. And don't tell me your attitude wasn't part of the problem. You approach people antagonistically, you'll get it right back, and rightfully so. Today's travelers, as we see so often now in the news, are not the travelers of yesteryear. What did the two ladies that were traveling say about their bags? Or did you ''do all the talking'' for them? I've seen this before.....so often. The passengers that are traveling are often not the ones to start trouble, it's the ones dropping them off that have to interject themselves and they're not even the ones flying.

Wow, I seemed to have struck a never with bitter airline staff.... Where did I say I was antagonistic? All I said the mood was subdued and that we were as polite as always. You can take that and twist it whatever way you want but doesnt change anything.

Go spread your venom elsewhere. The staff was unnecessarily rude and that's that. You are assuming I said something, or my mum, or my aunt. You are just ASSuming a lot. So be it. You need to spread your bitterness go ahead... but don't say things that didnt happen.

Amazing.

I felt sympathy with you at the beginning of the thread. May I just say that while I do not doubt your version and all that, your way of addressing people here doesn't buy you friends, get you more sympathy nor does it further your case. Please try staying to the facts, even if others maybe don't (in fact, only you have the facts in this case), and you will see that you will get a lot further. Just some friendly advice...

I personally think there is no excuse for treating customers (be they passengers, clients, old or young, ladies or not) in the way described by you. The excuse of the IT chaos days earlier is just bollocks. Why should they have the right to take it out on other passengers? Several days later....

I'm always amazed when people star quoting 'rules'. There are no 'rules' - there are conditions. Conditions under which the airline and the passenger entered into a contractual arrangement. Whenever I hear airline staff (and I work for an airline, so I hear them a lot) talking about 'rules' I cringe. It immediately frames the interaction in a way that will end up with a 'you vs me' situation, where the airline staff somehow represents the voice of authority.
Bear in mind though that checkin staff spend a fair amount of time with passengers who lie to them and try to deceive them. After a while it does get to the point where you distrust everyone who tells you that they didn't know, or that they aren't hiding an extra piece of hand luggage, or that their dining mother needs the 12 kettles packed in the bag (true story).

So this is just a useless thread providing no value to airliners.net.... Just another person whining because they could not follow the rules of the airline... If the limit says you can't be over a weight of X, then the rules are, that you can't be over the weight limit of X.... It's simple.... FOLLOW THE RULES... It's the same thing as when the sign says "No Smoking" on the plane. If your auntie pulled out her cigarettes and lit one up on the plane, would you still be here complaining and say "Ohh poor them, they need compassion for elderly people".. No!! Because smoking, just like baggage weight is a rule. I hate the entitlement people have thinking they or everyone they know are "special" for a reason. Jeez....

LHRFlyer wrote:

I would complain. There is a minority of BA LHR ground staff who can be incredibly direct and rude at times.

It`s not limited to ground staff either believe me! Last time I flew BA (2002 ) a member of CC was really obnoxious for no
good reason, so I decided not to fly them again. To the OP, I`d suggest he & his relatives do the same, as there`s a huge
choice. It`s not a good start to a vacation to be rudely spoken to......the customer is king, BA would do well to remember it.

Cush wrote:

So this is just a useless thread providing no value to airliners.net.... Just another person whining because they could not follow the rules of the airline... If the limit says you can't be over a weight of X, then the rules are, that you can't be over the weight limit of X.... It's simple.... FOLLOW THE RULES... It's the same thing as when the sign says "No Smoking" on the plane. If your auntie pulled out her cigarettes and lit one up on the plane, would you still be here complaining and say "Ohh poor them, they need compassion for elderly people".. No!! Because smoking, just like baggage weight is a rule. I hate the entitlement people have thinking they or everyone they know are "special" for a reason. Jeez....

I am sorry you are unable to comprehend what is written. No one is entitled, no one was asking to bend the rules. The complain is about the ground staff being rude, condescending.

I can too easily say that comments like yours are of no value to the site, as they come from people who do not bother to read carefully what they are replying to. Geez!

eamondzhang wrote:

I may be in the minority here, but honestly I don't see any issues with what they did.

I know I'm a bit cold-blooded, but the agent's right. Rules are rules, and they are there for a reason. You should follow the rule instead of trying to cheat the system. You shouldn't think that you're "just a bit over". If you went over it, just pay for it.

Not at all Michael, sorry. Pardon my jumping in on you - and I'm doing it in the most amicable way, believe me, but... I have worked check-in for a pretty big airline in my younger days, and we were told to always consider a buffer of 2 to 3 kilos before "going stringent" over the limit and make people pay or repack, particularly for those who were travelling long distance, or were going/had been away for some time. You do show some understanding - it's only common sense.
And one very strict "no no" during training was that in no case you lecture passengers.

Cheers

oldannyboy wrote:

eamondzhang wrote:

I may be in the minority here, but honestly I don't see any issues with what they did.

I know I'm a bit cold-blooded, but the agent's right. Rules are rules, and they are there for a reason. You should follow the rule instead of trying to cheat the system. You shouldn't think that you're "just a bit over". If you went over it, just pay for it.

Not at all Michael, sorry. Pardon my jumping in on you - and I'm doing it in the most amicable way, believe me, but... I have worked check-in for a pretty big airline in my younger days, and we were told to always consider a buffer of 2 to 3 kilos before "going stringent" over the limit and make people pay or repack, particularly for those who were travelling long distance, or were going/had been away for some time. You do show some understanding - it's only common sense.
And one very strict "no no" during training was that in no case you lecture passengers.

Cheers

Thanks for that - I really hope that some agents from the airlines in Asia-Pacific can be the same as you guys. In endless number of occasions I was told to remove stuff when my luggage is 300-500g(!) over the limit. And I'm serious on that.

However if some agent's going strict on the weight issue I never complain. It's the rule, after all.

Cheers

You should feel aggrieved. The attitude of many UK airport ground staff - BA or otherwise - has been nothing short of appalling in my experience. One would easily be led to think that customers are little more than pests to some public-facing ground staff, and I've had countless experiences where it has felt as though I'm being baited into a confrontation with them when I've been nothing but polite, calm, and pleasant.

The response you're getting here, too, says it all - so many people in this industry take it as a personal challenge to their imagined sense of authority, when all you really want is a little humanity.

Well, to add insult to injury the flight left over an hour late, without any explanation given to the passengers! and, as if that wasn't enough, no one in the cabin crew spoke Spanish (flying to a Spanish speaking country). So yes, I do think BA is losing quality. Which is a shame, I used to be the biggest fan.

One thing to also bear in mind is that SCL is a long flight, to some degree very weight restricted. While customer service agents should be nice when dealing with passengers, pax should also be careful not to go over the limit. They were lucky they weren't told to leave their bags in the UK because the plane was too heavy to take any more.

In most countries the police lets you off with a warning if you are speeding up to 10% over the limit.
For example - they let you often go, for up to 66 miles per hour in a 60 miles per hour zone.

That kind of flexibility can of course not be expected from airline staff - because with them
"rules-are-rules" and they have that "I am God"- complex.

That the plane will be too heavy "if everyone is 2 kg over" is ridiculous. There are plenty of people
whose luggage is under the maximum weight.

And shifting 600 grams from checked luggage to hand luggage is especially helpful. Where do they find
these morons? The problem is really - that the stupidity is coming from the top - from the guy who wears
the yellow west in the office.

Wow, just wow. It's posts like these that pisses us airline employee off. You say they were rude, but the pax bags were over weight. So an employee instead of charging a fine suggests that they move stuff from overweight bags to another to avoid charging the fee, that is justified because the pax packed to many things in their suitcase causing the bags to be overweight. The BA staff saved the pax money, yet the BA employee was rude, in making the "poor old lady" move stuff around instead of having to pay a fee. The balls of the op to complain. It's another case of "I was inconvenienced so I blame the airline over my own stupidity."

Why do people think they're entitled to something for nothing? You wouldn't expect to go into a shop and take 5 items if you'd only paid for 4, so why should an airline allow you to take 21kg of baggage if you've only paid for 20? Good on the BA gound staff for making these people follow the rules that everyone else was expected to follow.

The weight limit enforcement seems to be all over the lot. At FRA last month I put a 60 lb bag on the scale at Singapore Airlines check in (allowance is 2 - 50 lb bags) and the clerk did not bat an eyelash. Got to JFK connecting to DL and was flagged, though a very nice lady who said they were not busy stated I could open my bag and move the 10 lb overage to my carry-on (so much for the total aircraft weight, fuel used argument!). So luck of the draw I guess. Maybe on an A380 on most days they don't sweat the weight issue too much either.

airtrantpa wrote:

Wow, just wow. It's posts like these that pisses us airline employee off. You say they were rude, but the pax bags were over weight. So an employee instead of charging a fine suggests that they move stuff from overweight bags to another to avoid charging the fee, that is justified because the pax packed to many things in their suitcase causing the bags to be overweight. The BA staff saved the pax money, yet the BA employee was rude, in making the "poor old lady" move stuff around instead of having to pay a fee. The balls of the op to complain. It's another case of "I was inconvenienced so I blame the airline over my own stupidity."

Read the original complaint again. He's not complaining about what needed to be done, but the condescending and downright rude tone with which the staff did it.

Honestly, this entire thread is full of people who are missing the forest for the trees, and taking OP's words as though they're personal insults. It's quite alarming that this is the approach so many in our industry have to customer service.

seat24charlie wrote:

airtrantpa wrote:

Read the original complaint again. He's not complaining about what needed to be done, but the condescending and downright rude tone with which the staff did it.Honestly, this entire thread is full of people who are missing the forest for the trees, and taking OP's words as though they're personal insults. It's quite alarming that this is the approach so many in our industry have to customer service.

The story of a condescending and rude tone is entirely one-sided (his) and toward a staff that has had a horrendous week from IT problems caused by their dumb management's decisions outsourcing IT. Maybe the BA agents could have chosen their phrases better. I agree that it's not what you say, but how you say it. And that goes BOTH WAYS. In reading the OP's responses to this thread, I feel he certainly contributed to the BA agent's attitude.

As for bag rules, I don't know about BA, but I do know at my carrier if you get caught waiving overweight bags (yes, even a pound or two) it grants you a visit to the supervisor's office to explain yourself. Trust me, YOU aren't going to get me fired because you don't like the baggage rules. So yes....on top of everything else they've endured recently the BA agents were probably a little sensitive. And, of course, you were all about you, never mind anyone else's silly rules.

It astounds me when passengers say, ''oh come on, that's ridiculous, can't you waive it?'' ''It'' being a ticket change or a bag fee. But it's a daily question. Not only do people want to fly for $50 or less, they want bag fees and everything else either 'negotiated' or waived outright.

And those of you that don't think overweight bags can be a problem? Think again....every bag on your flight being overweight by 1 or 2 pounds...or 3? Not much, is it? Well, you've got a couple hundred bags or more on the plane. (250 lbs over....? 500 lbs? 1000lbs?) You're rolling down that runway and the nose doesn't....want....to.....lift.....but hey, what's 500lbs over the limit? Oh, wait. It's because your plane's CG is way off. Tsk. Because all those 'nice' agents checked in your heavy bags as regular ones. And now the weight and balance calculation is way off.

Oops. oh, well.

A bit of common sense should have been used here - on both sides. If 600g and 1kg is taken as hand luggage out of the cases, the overall weight on the plane is still the same ! If agent X is being officious in applying the strict 20.00 kg rule, then I would have walked away from that desk, and after a few minutes gone to another desk with a smile and I'm sure agent Y would have let the same bags through.

seat24charlie wrote:

airtrantpa wrote:

Wow, just wow. It's posts like these that pisses us airline employee off. You say they were rude, but the pax bags were over weight. So an employee instead of charging a fine suggests that they move stuff from overweight bags to another to avoid charging the fee, that is justified because the pax packed to many things in their suitcase causing the bags to be overweight. The BA staff saved the pax money, yet the BA employee was rude, in making the "poor old lady" move stuff around instead of having to pay a fee. The balls of the op to complain. It's another case of "I was inconvenienced so I blame the airline over my own stupidity."

Read the original complaint again. He's not complaining about what needed to be done, but the condescending and downright rude tone with which the staff did it.

Honestly, this entire thread is full of people who are missing the forest for the trees, and taking OP's words as though they're personal insults. It's quite alarming that this is the approach so many in our industry have to customer service.

He's complaining because the BA staff did there job. If the pax knew (or didn't know) there bag was overweight us moot. The self bag taggers were overweight and had to be handled at a different location. OP admitted that the mood wasn't the best, again we only have one side of the story. Now I've. It checked in at LHR but in the US there are signs that say what bags can be checked where, especially when there are multiple check in desk, plus curbside. At my airline, skycaps on curbside cannot collect baggage fees, so I'm assuming the BA staff redirected the ladies to another agent because that is BA policy. (Again employee was doing what he/she was supposed to do). Pax is inconvenienced because they have to go to a different counter. I'm sorry but no sympathy from me. Bravo to the BA staff for doing their job.

I know I won't risk my job for not following rules, I feel like a jerk at times when I have to charge a bag fee, but it's my job and i won't give it up for nobody.

The annoying thing is find is that I abide to theat rules or conditions and they you see other people carrying three bags and a kitchen sink and you think what??? If I did that I'd get stopped and yet.....

Inconsistant application of the rules and conditions by staff are also a problem and that's why people get annoyed.

GSPSPOT wrote:

Customer-facing staff should ALWAYS use tact and professionalism when dealing with customers. Full stop.

This. Nothing wrong with being told to switch it, it's the way it's done. Rules are rules, got to draw the line somewhere.

That's not to say I wasn't annoyed at having to switch 1lb of luggage as a top tier flyer on a $27k full fare First Class ticket by AA agents at ORD a few years ago. I had checked it at JFK a couple of days earlier and it was within the limit (I saw the machine) but despite not being opened it was now overweight! {biggrin}

As mentioned above, it's not the fact of having to juggle items around one's luggage. Those are the rules, we all get it. Again, it's the WAY in which it is approached by front line employees that makes all the difference.

[threeid][/threeid]

GSPSPOT wrote:

As mentioned above, it's not the fact of having to juggle items around one's luggage. Those are the rules, we all get it. Again, it's the WAY in which it is approached by front line employees that makes all the difference.

It doesnt matter how many times its repeated.... they will reply the same over and over again.

So guys, by 600 grams overweight, does it mean that the bag was 23.6kg? If you really want to be difficult with the ground staff, ask for the calibration certificate of the scale. I find these scale not that accurate anyway!

I have heard that airlines tend to give you 1 or 2 kg slack only because they cannot be certain how accurate their scales at check in are.

It's quite telling the responses of those who clearly work in the US aviation industry vs those from other parts of the world. You guys are a special kind of nasty.

Ogre727, even though your family had bags that were overweight, I think the checkin staff should have used some common sense judgement regarding the limits. 600 grams is nothing! It's all going onboard anyway, right? I've had mixed experiences at LHR. Some good, some not so good.

Life's too short to dwell on it. Hope you had a nice time with your family despite this bad experience

I find this surprising. Are you sure that the staff said " they both should pay the fine but talk to them and see"? I mean, there is no fine to pay, though a fee could be charged. Are you sure that she didn't say " they both should be fine but talk to them and see"? It just seems rather bizarre.