EasyJet is to charge passengers to check in all baggage, in line with rival
carriers.
The airline has previously allowed passengers to check one bag for free, with
a £5 charge to check in a second, but from October 1 will demand £5 for each
item of hold luggage. The price drops to £2 if the bag is registered at the
time of booking.
Easyjet says the move is intended to encourage people to check-in fewer bags,
and claims that reducing the weight of aircraft means lower carbon dioxide
emissions. While the carrier says it has not anticipated the impact of the
new bag charges on profits, it was recently
reported that rivals Ryanair are expected to make £92m profit from
baggage check-in charges this year. When Ryanair introduced its charges in
March 2006, it too insisted that they were to deter passengers from checking
baggage, not to generate profits.
The only way for easyJet passengers to avoid the fees is to fit their
belongings into a bag measuring no more than 55cm x 40cm x 20cm, regardless
of weight, which can be carried onboard for free.
EasyJet‘s weight limit for checked baggage will remain at 20kg per passenger
and excess baggage charges of £6 per kg still apply. In addition, easyJet's
charge for transporting sporting goods such as skis and mountain bikes
remains at £15 per flight if pre-booked, or £20 at the airport. Customers
who have already booked flights departing after October 1, will not pay the
new fees.
The first no-frills airline to introduce baggage charges was Flybe
in February 2006, with a charge of £4 per item, which has since
increased to £7, or £4 if customers register the bag when booking their
flight.
Nobody was surprised when Ryanair
followed suit with a £5 bag charge, reduced to £2.50 for passengers who
register their bags in advance.
But it was British Airways that made waves in February, with its one bag rule
for economy class passengers. For carriage of a second checked bag the
airline now charges £30 per bag on domestic flights, £60 on short haul
flights and £120 on long haul flights, which drop to £21, £42 and £84, if
paid online before arrival at the airport.
The practice isn’t new - the US no-frills carrier People Express, which served
domestic and transatlantic routes in the 1980s, introduced charges for
checked baggage over 20 years ago.
Again, a new way to bump up the prices... very clever to justify this rip-off with "measures against carbon dioxid emissions". Just imagine a family of four going on holidays... why can't the other "low cost" carriers do like Air Berlin from Germany? They stil allow 20kg check in baggage fro everybody, even for infants -free of charge and sport baggage up to 30 kg free of charge aswell.
Gilaine, Berlin, Germany
wot about the people who have already booked on line before this was made public does this mean they will have to pay £5.00 or will they only be charged £2.00. when does this come into effect.
b.hemmings, corby northants , england