Airlines think we are fools — don’t prove them right

by Charlie Leocha on September 16, 2008

The latest announcement by United Airlines that they are raising their fee for the second checked bag to $50 isn’t the worst slap in the face to the traveling public. Their explanation of the reasoning behind their move is the real insult.

United blamed their baggage fee bombshell on “higher jet fuel costs.” Who do they think they are fooling? Oil prices and jet fuel prices have dropped from a high of the $140s to the $90s over the past few months. Horse hockey!

Customers who do not look carefully at these extra baggage fees and consciously book away from airlines with these extra fees will find themselves paying almost double the published airfare after baggage and booking fees are added into the final cost equation.

I just checked flights from Boston to Baltimore in mid-October. The round trip, including taxes, comes in at $159. That sounds great, but with United’s hidden baggage charges for anyone carrying two bags that means paying an additional $130. That’s amazing! In effect, United only charges $29 more for transporting a human (and giving them a soda or water) than they charge for two bags. This baggage charge thing has gotten out of hand.

Boston to Baltimore/Washington = $159
Initially hidden baggage charges = $130
Total = $289

This is a basic money grab — a more audacious money grab than any other airline has tried in the past year.

First United led the move to charging $25 for the second checked bag that was eventually matched by the other legacy carriers — American, Continental, Delta, Northwest and US Airways. For the next grab, American Airlines led the way with a $15 charge for the first checked bag. They were eventually followed by every other legacy airline other than Delta. Delta countered with an increase in the second checked bag, but still maintained their policy of the free first checked bag.

Now United is loading a $50 second-checked bag charge on top of a first checked bag — an industry first.

The Calgary Herald reports, “The increase applies to tickets bought starting today for travel Nov. 10 or later, the airline said in a statement Monday. First- and business-class customers and United’s frequent fliers don’t have to pay the new charge. The Chicago-based carrier, a unit of UAL Corp., said one in seven passengers will be affected by the higher fee.”

Don’t let the airlines, especially United Airlines, keep playing you for a fool.

Register your ire. Email United with your displeasure. The airlines are playing chicken with the American public. As long as passengers meekly stand in line and pay these outrageous baggage fees, the airlines will continue to stick it to us. There was an email uproar when United decided to charge for meals on international flights, but a flurry of emails and phone calls managed to change United’s corporate mind.

Anyone putting up with these kinds of unreasonable fees and not shifting their flights to an airline such as Southwest which does not charge these extra fees is simply enabling the fee-happy carriers and asking for continued mistreatment.

Perhaps the increased fuel costs were a legitimate rationale for fare and fee increases when oil soared above the $100 a barrel mark. I think many Americans could understand the dire times airlines were facing. In a way passengers felt they were shouldering their fair burden.

However, these last grasps at your wallet by a dying airline like United is totally out of line and unjustifiable. Don’t let the airlines beat you down! Send email. Write letters. Vote with your wallet and steer clear of United Airlines and any of the airlines that dare to follow them into the abyss.

Email United Airlines customer service with this form or call 1-877-228-1327.
United Airlines’ address is — United Customer Relations, P.O. Box 66100, Chicago, IL 60666.

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Tagged as: baggage charges, southwest, united airlines

  • Prof Burgos

    What’s actually required is a class-action lawsuit, or at least the publicity surrounding one. A good lawyer in front of a field of microphones, running down the NET cost of UA airline tickets — not the advertised cost — and then UA having to get out there and justify.

  • Frank

    I just checked flights from Boston to Baltimore in mid-October. The round trip, including taxes, comes in at $159. That sounds great, but with United’s hidden baggage charges for anyone carrying two bags that means paying an additional $130. That’s amazing! In effect, United only charges $29 more for transporting a human (and giving them a soda or water) than they charge for two bags. This baggage charge thing has gotten out of hand.

    Boston to Baltimore/Washington = $159
    Initially hidden baggage charges = $130
    Total = $289
    =============================================================

    Can you back up your statistics with HOW MANY people actually check TWO bags?
    If you drove this trip between BOS and BWI, it would cost you $112 DOLLARS just in gas money. It’s 700 miles roundtrip. 4 dollar a gallon gas and your car gets 25 miles to the gallon. I didnt even add in ROAD TOLLS. Let’s add in another $20 dollars for tolls. Your total:

    GAS from BOS to BWI= $112 dollars
    Tolls each way=$40 dollars
    Total= $152 DOLLARS ROUND TRIP……………….and for SEVEN more dollars, you can FLY, NOT CHECK A BAG (like most business travelers do) and BE THERE IN JUST OVER AN “HOUR”.

    ….Oh, wait, you stopped to eat at McD’s. There went that SEVEN dollars.
    So, SEVEN HOURS ON THE ROAD (most likely in traffic) or 90 MINUTES flying with a rollaboard?

  • http://www.tripso.com/author/leocha Charlie Leocha

    Ah! The overall pricing model used by the airlines is another discussion. I’ll be writing about that as well. Their airfare model is amazingly cheap when compared to trains and driving and the time involved.

    My point here is that the airfare while very reasonable can increase dramatically when baggage fees are included… and those fees are basically hidden until the last stages of a reservation … and consumers in many cases don’t factor them into the overall trip costs.

    Airlines are counting on that. They are using the base airfare as their competitive tool for online displays and hiding the extra fees until later.

  • http://leftcoastsportsbabe.com Janice Hough

    Hey Charlie, and you didn’t add what happens if you have a 51 pound bag. The cost is now $125.00 each way. Fortunately most people can adjust a slightly overweight bag but if you can’t…. well the bag may well cost more than you do. And most people are a little heavier than 50 pounds.

  • Prof Burgos

    Or a golf bag.

  • Frank

    On September 17th, 2008 at 9:45 am Charlie Leocha said Ah! The overall pricing model used by the airlines is another discussion. I’ll be writing about that as well. Their airfare model is amazingly cheap when compared to trains and driving and the time involved.
    =======================================================

    This is the pricing model….you are paying for the FLIGHT, all other SERVICES are now extra.
    But, MOST people know to check in ONE BAG and use the ONE BAG RULE, ONE PERSONAL ITEM to avoid paying another bag charge. Most passengers on this route would be traveling via rollerboard. You forgot to mention that MOST airlines exempt their best customers of any BAG FEES. Also dont charge for wheelchair checkin, car seats, strollers.
    I disagree with you that these bag fees are hidden, most travelers are very travel “experienced”, they not only know, but know how to AVOID THEM.

  • Frank

    by Charlie Leocha
    United blamed their baggage fee bombshell on “higher jet fuel costs.” Who do they think they are fooling? Oil prices and jet fuel prices have dropped from a high of the $140s to the $90s over the past few months. Horse hockey!
    ===========================================================

    Oil at $140 would of caused half the industry to liquidate if those prices held while everyone burned through their assets AND/OR CASH. $90 dollars and a WEAK ECONOMY, load factors declining. The summer HIGH SEASON should of been the industry’s PROFIT TIME, IT WAS NOT. The industry LOST Billions.

  • envie

    I have grown tired of the complaints about extra baggage fees. Here is the consumer choice: 1) EVERYONE pay more for air fare price increases or 2) people who want to take more stuff pay more to take their stuff. I like #2.
    The airlines are not out to screw people over – they are trying to stay in business.
    Just because the price of oil went down today, it doesn’t make up for a whole summer of lost profit.

  • Prof Burgos

    That’s a nice thought, envie. what about people who MUST take more stuff? Like parents traveling with children? Frankly I’d like to see a surcharge on Mr. Businessman who keeps knocking me in the head with his friggin’ projector screen, ordered from the back pages of the in-flight magazine. Why doesn’t HE carry less?

    Here’s a class non-answer answer I received from UA about simply raising airfares and being honest about it. I love the bit about “tailored services,” like people are buying airline tickets from Savile Row:

    Dear Dr. B:

    I regret to learn about your disappointment with the increase in extra
    charges for our various services.

    We understand your dissatisfaction with the increase in extra charges.
    Most airlines base fees on the cost of doing business at a realistic
    profit. Since our customers need specific services for a variety of
    reasons, we consider such factors as customer demand, type of service
    needed, as well as the fees charged by our competitors. Please know
    that fees for specific services allow us to tailor our products and
    services around what our customers value most and are willing to pay
    for. Other products we have customized include Economy Plus seating and
    Buy on Board products. Still, your comments are important to us and I
    will share your views with our baggage management team responsible for
    policies. Your feedback will help us evaluate our decisions that impact
    your choice of airline.

    As a Premier Executive member, we truly value your business and look
    forward for your continued support.

  • http://www.ffocus.org Robert Johnson

    Well Envie,

    I’ve grown tired after 8 years as a Chairman’s Preferred of airlines treating the customer as the enemy. The entire industry has customer satisfaction ratings BELOW that of the IRS and that Envie is all one really need say. But I’m feeling a bit verbose today so thus the rant shall continue.

    Airline Senior Management IMO thinks the flying public is genuinely stupid and sadly each day customers do things to support that perception.

    However it is NOT the price of fuel that is causing the fee explosion. What’s happening is decades of bad, out of touch management is finally being brought to light by the fuel crisis. All of the BK’s, outsourcing & fees can not hide the facts that operation ineffiencies have made the legacy carrier uncompetitive against true LCC’s like Southwest.

    Southwest turns an Aircraft on average 31 minutes faster which allows them to have about a 20% advantage in aircraft utilization and an even greater utilization of ground staff. In aviation time IS money . I know of no aircraft type that genereates money while on the ground.

  • Frank

    On September 17th, 2008 at 10:27 pm Prof Burgos said

    Here’s a class non-answer answer I received from UA about simply raising airfares and being honest about it.
    =====================================================

    what part of that didnt you understand? AIR FARES on the internet are shown by the LOWEST FARE on the first page and so on and so on. Airlines are under great pressure to keep their AIR FARES on the first page or RISK having their fares buried on other pages within the site!!! Consumers, generally stay on that first page, hence, “simply raising” airfares CAN NOT be the answer. Even for a $10 dollar increase.

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