Do we have no recourse with airline scales?

[brsnow]

Nah, as long as it's under 70#, the airline is happy to charge you for extra weight and put a Heavy sticker on the bag. It's about the money.

I think you mean to say it is all about you….

 

[Cio]

The purpose of the scale isn’t just about charging you , it’s to calculate how much fuel the aircraft needs.

This is a pointless comment.....

 

[BRT]

Bit late for a quote reply, but anyway, those per item weightlimits are not for the weight of the plane, but to keep it manageble for the people who handle the luggage to put it on the airplane, the handlers.

The proof of this is that they are not recording the weights.

 

[ThatDogDontHunt]

Airlines charge for baggage weight, so their scales must be certified. Look and you will see a cert sticker, usually about wasit high, near the display

Invest in a better scale, mine is a cheap Amazon one, just getting back from Florida, one bag 50 exact and the other 49.2. My hand scale measured 49.4 and 48.8.

As far as the scales at an airport being off, that is super strange. Industrial scales don't drift much If you see what you saw, take pics and send it to weights and measures. Be sure to get the cert sticker.

The subtle key is that they do not "charge by weight" (i.e. $1.15 a lb) but instead use the scale to loosely classify the weight of a bag (light or heavy). Hence the reason for many slightly overweight bags being let go.

I looked closely at the scale cert when checking in at EWR this afternoon. The cert was displayed and so badly worn that it was difficult to read. My best guess on the date was Dec 2014. The scale was probably calibrated at install time and has not been checked since?

 

[kinoons]

Why do they? Easy - because they can. One airline had the idea of charging more for bags. When the consumer showed they would put up with it, every other airline followed suit.

When an airline then decides that heavy bags could be also charged and the public went along with it other airlines followed suit.

Your choices? Pack lighter, try a different scale, or pay the price.

 

[AdivingBel]

..

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Just throw them harder. It appears that is standard practice from the condition of our bags when they arrive.

You mean jump up and down a few more times on them. Rather than place them on the cart, attach a chain so it gets dragged out onto the tarmac.

Honestly, I have always been suspicious if they keep an silverback gorilla in a room where they drive through with luggage, but pause for a certain amount of time to let it do its thing.

 

[DandyDon]

My best guess on the date was Dec 2014. The scale was probably calibrated at install time and has not been checked since?

Yeah, I do not trust their scales, but we seem to have no recourse.

 

[Alaskan Scuba Dude]

Buy an overcoat and fill your pockets with regulators.

 

[mcohen1021]

I've seen discrepancies of up to 2 pounds, but not much more than that that and yes the airline is usually higher