American Airlines sued for bag fee

[pam]

Lots of fliers hate paying for checked bags, but one air traveler was so frustrated by the fee and a lost bag that she's taking an airline to court.

Danielle Covarrubias of Pierce County, Washington, wants American Airlines to pay $5 million.

Airline sued for $5 million over bag fee - CNN.com

Oh please...and who pays the $5 milion overall by raised airfares?

[Just_A_Guy]

Now, Pam . . . it's not about the money . . .

[pam]

Of course it's not. I would sue for $5 million too just for the principle of it.

[john doe]

Ya know, I do kinda see the logic of it. I mean, the airlines are charging extra to handle your bags, but they don't want to assume any more liability for losing or damaging them than they have in the past. We pay extra to ensure our packages sent by UPS, USPS, or Fedex make it there on time and in good condition. If the airlines are going to charge extra for bags, then they probably should take extra precautions to ensure they arrive on time and in good condition. I see the bag charge as just another way to hit you with a hidden charge for flying instead of rolling it into the cost of the ticket.

[UrbanFool]

I just got an entire page email from my friend Betsy about just this thing. She was going from NY to Bellingham, WA on American Airlines. I'd post it here because it's really funny (but then not), but the swear meter would ban me immediately.

[Wingnut]

I see the bag charge as just another way to hit you with a hidden charge for flying instead of rolling it into the cost of the ticket.

I agree. Interestingly, not only have the airlines added baggage fees, the ticket fees (where baggage used to be rolled into) continue to climb.

[pam]

But $5 million?

[Dravin]

But $5 million?

The idea is to make it financially painful to behave as they do*. It could be greed but if she's trying to change the way the industry operates then asking for a couple thousand (or just the value of the luggage) would either just be paid out to avoid legal costs or she'd have problems getting a lawyer on retainer unless she paid him out of pocket.

Honestly I'm surprised it isn't even more, $5 mil isn't even all that much unless they find themselves shelling it out regularly.

* Simple greed is a very possible reason, but if one had 'pure' motives of simply discouraging the practice/changing policy large amounts of money would still be involved.

Edited July 25, 2010 by Dravin

[Mahone]

Ya know, I do kinda see the logic of it. I mean, the airlines are charging extra to handle your bags, but they don't want to assume any more liability for losing or damaging them than they have in the past

Are they literally charging extra, or is what the bottom of the article says true?

Most major U.S. carriers now charge passengers to check their bags -- part of a trend to avoid fare increases by charging fees for services that used to be included in the ticket price.

If that is the case, then you aren't paying any more for your baggage than you were previously, except for inflation etc. In order to cope with inflation, rather than put the price of the ticket up, they charge for extras. The alternative would be that they just increase the cost of the ticket, however the same service from the airline regarding baggage is still expected and always has, as you have still paid for it - whether a bundled cost or not.

[Dravin]

Are they literally charging extra, or is what the bottom of the article says true?

I suppose you'd have to see their price structure with inflation and various costs included to actually know if what is being charged outside of the ticket structure is the same as what was being charged within it.

Personally I fly Southwest whenever possible, no bag fees (for your standard 2 pieces of checked luggage).

Edited July 25, 2010 by Dravin

[Cassiopeia]

oh doggone it! Someone thought of it first! Guess I'll have to figure out someone else to sue.

[pam]

I've just learned to travel much lighter and take carry on. Amazing that I have found that I don't need 5 pairs of pants. 5 shirts, 3 pairs of shoes for a 2 day trip.

[Cassiopeia]

I've just learned to travel much lighter and take carry on. Amazing that I have found that I don't need 5 pairs of pants. 5 shirts, 3 pairs of shoes for a 2 day trip.

Me too, Pam. It's interesting how easy it is to over pack. I've been known to travel to a place for a week and only take a carry on and a backpack. You'd be surprised how easy that is.

[Dravin]

I've just learned to travel much lighter and take carry on. Amazing that I have found that I don't need 5 pairs of pants. 5 shirts, 3 pairs of shoes for a 2 day trip.

Interestingly enough it has reached the point where depending on where you are going you could just ship your items to your destination (assuming you have someone who would receive them) and then ship them back home. Though that makes more sense for a two week trip not so much a 2 day visit. Heck with a Wal-mart on the other end of the flight it can be cheaper to buy clothes then to take them.

[Just_A_Guy]

oh doggone it! Someone thought of it first! Guess I'll have to figure out someone else to sue.

Not to worry, it's a class action. Plenty of room for anyone who wants to, to jump onto the gravy train for their ten cent payout.

[miztrniceguy]

My family went to NY for 3 days. I won a trip that included airfare but of course did not include baggage. For a family of 4 we had 2 checked bags, my 2 children each had a backpack, and my wife and I each had 1 carry-on.

[ADoyle90815]

I tend to fly Jet Blue or some other airline where the fee only applies to bags over a certain weight. Anyway, I prefer the curbside check in because the line is much shorter. There are some items that I do put in my carry on bag, such as something too fragile to be trusted to the people who load the planes.

[Mahone]

I tend to fly Jet Blue or some other airline where the fee only applies to bags over a certain weight. Anyway, I prefer the curbside check in because the line is much shorter. There are some items that I do put in my carry on bag, such as something too fragile to be trusted to the people who load the planes.

Or too valuable. I've had items go missing twice now sometime between check-in and receiving the luggage on the other end. Both times it passed through an African countries baggage control... go figure. I guess working for the airport has some major perks for them