Just back from the Valor....luggage issue~anyone deal with this before?

[rexy69]

My apologies if this is the wrong place to post, but I don't know where to start with this issue. Our cruise on the Valor was amazing, by the way. But the reason I'm asking for help is because we had an issue with the airline accusing my SO of having an overweight checked bag, which it wasn't. My sister has been a member with Spirit Airlines for the last 5 years and since we were travelling with her and her husband, she booked all of our flights through her discounted membership. So, on our day of travel, back on July 1st, my SO & I took our luggage up to the counter, put them on the scale, they tagged them and put them on the conveyor belt and we were on our way. Same exact process on the way back on July 9th. Just a couple of days ago, my sister checked her Credit Card online and saw that Spirit charged her card with an overweight charge of $100!! It named my SO's bag as the luggage. His bag was not overweight. How can they justify charging peoples' credit cards with bogus fees? If it showed overweight on their scale, shouldn't they have said something to us at that time? I recall back in the day, when peoples' bags were overweight, they would take their luggage off to the side and start switching some of the contents over to their partners bags, to even out the weight and lessen the heavy one. If we had've been told his bag was over, we could have done that. Plus, on Spirit's website, they show that the first 10 lbs is an extra $25 fee and it goes up from there....where on earth did they pull a $100 fee from? On the way back, we actually did watch the scales as we put the bags on and my bag came to 35lbs (the limit is 40lbs) and when my SO put his bag on, the number went up to 79lbs, which means his bag was 44lbs. On the flight back his bag was the exact same, only he had a bottle of Rum in it...so it would've actually been that much less on the way there. Even so, 44lbs =4 lbs overweight should be just a $25 extra charge.....where do they get off charging $100. We just weighed the bottle of Rum and it weighs 6lbs. That means his luggage was 38lbs going and 44lbs coming home. My sister dealt with Spirit over the phone and got nowhere with them. They offered her a credit towards a future flight. She doesn't want that. Their only answer was to file an online dispute, which is now on our shoulders, as it was our luggage. How can a business, that you trust with your credit card number, just start charging people with unjustified charges? Sorry for the long rant, but I just wanted to know if anyone else has had this happen and what can we do about it, short of trying to defend ourselves through an online procedure? Also, why did they weigh both of our bags at once? They told me to put my bag on the scale, it came to 35lbs, then they kept it on the scale and told my SO to put his bag on and they number jumped up to 79lbs. That number was a combined weight of both bags, right? Thanks in advance, for any advice or feedback.

[loubetti]

Friends don't let friends fly Spirit. This is nothing new. I would rather take the bus than fly Spirit. They are not the worst rated airline in the USA without good reason. You were looking for a cheap fare, and you got what you paid for and then some- sorry!

[TerReuv]

Friends don't let friends fly Spirit. This is nothing new. I would rather take the bus than fly Spirit. They are not the worst rated airline in the USA without good reason. You were looking for a cheap fare, and you got what you paid for and then some- sorry!

 

Exactly! My boss and co-worker found that out when they flew Spirit one time. Fees are outrageous! They make it seem that the flight price is so low, but hit you for a fee for pretty much everything. Probably costs $10 to pee on the flight!

 

Your sister should put in a dispute with the CC company until you can verify the charge is correct.

Edited July 14, 2016 by TerReuv

[dulcimergirl]

Am I missing something? Why would they weigh the bags together. They have always weighed each bag seperately to my knowledge. Just curious, hope it gets resolved in your favor.

[winddawn]

My apologies if this is the wrong place to post, but I don't know where to start with this issue. Our cruise on the Valor was amazing, by the way. But the reason I'm asking for help is because we had an issue with the airline accusing my SO of having an overweight checked bag, which it wasn't. My sister has been a member with Spirit Airlines for the last 5 years and since we were travelling with her and her husband, she booked all of our flights through her discounted membership. So, on our day of travel, back on July 1st, my SO & I took our luggage up to the counter, put them on the scale, they tagged them and put them on the conveyor belt and we were on our way. Same exact process on the way back on July 9th. Just a couple of days ago, my sister checked her Credit Card online and saw that Spirit charged her card with an overweight charge of $100!! It named my SO's bag as the luggage. His bag was not overweight. How can they justify charging peoples' credit cards with bogus fees? If it showed overweight on their scale, shouldn't they have said something to us at that time? I recall back in the day, when peoples' bags were overweight, they would take their luggage off to the side and start switching some of the contents over to their partners bags, to even out the weight and lessen the heavy one. If we had've been told his bag was over, we could have done that. Plus, on Spirit's website, they show that the first 10 lbs is an extra $25 fee and it goes up from there....where on earth did they pull a $100 fee from? On the way back, we actually did watch the scales as we put the bags on and my bag came to 35lbs (the limit is 40lbs) and when my SO put his bag on, the number went up to 79lbs, which means his bag was 44lbs. On the flight back his bag was the exact same, only he had a bottle of Rum in it...so it would've actually been that much less on the way there. Even so, 44lbs =4 lbs overweight should be just a $25 extra charge.....where do they get off charging $100. We just weighed the bottle of Rum and it weighs 6lbs. That means his luggage was 38lbs going and 44lbs coming home. My sister dealt with Spirit over the phone and got nowhere with them. They offered her a credit towards a future flight. She doesn't want that. Their only answer was to file an online dispute, which is now on our shoulders, as it was our luggage. How can a business, that you trust with your credit card number, just start charging people with unjustified charges? Sorry for the long rant, but I just wanted to know if anyone else has had this happen and what can we do about it, short of trying to defend ourselves through an online procedure? Also, why did they weigh both of our bags at once? They told me to put my bag on the scale, it came to 35lbs, then they kept it on the scale and told my SO to put his bag on and they number jumped up to 79lbs. That number was a combined weight of both bags, right? Thanks in advance, for any advice or feedback.

In that position I would dispute the charges with the credit card company. And that places the burden of proof back on Spirit Airlines to disprove your claim.

 

If they placed unauthorized charges on the card, you shouldn't have any problem getting it credited back.

 

As others have stated, the best approach is to do business with reputable companies.

 

I'm sorry this put a damper on your otherwise great vacation.

[simplelife]

I agree. Your best option is to have your sister dispute the charge with her credit card company. They may have more leverage.

[simplelife]

I have flown Spirit a few times and never had a problem. Their rates are wonderful, but you have to be careful about baggage. Always pay for a checked bag at time of booking -that is the cheapest way. Watch when it is weighed (I do this with every airline -I also watch to verify that the correct tag is put on the luggage and that it is actually placed on the conveyer). Be sure your personal item that you carry on fits the measurements they post (SMALLER than most). Having to check at the gate or pay for carry on because it exceeds size is costly. Many the complaints about Spirit (not this one) are because people did not read and/or follow the guidelines. Or they think they can "fudge" just a little and aren't allowed to. The cheap fares come with a need for extra vigilance and compliance.

[E&B]

Sounds to me like they took the weight of both bags and assigned that weight to just the second bag? Wrong yes, but it possibly explains how it happened.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[lizardhowson]

Why didn't you address this when dropping off your checked bags ?

Obviously you were aware of the scale reading 79 lbs.

Edited July 14, 2016 by lizardhowson

[Sabalon]

Why didn't you address this when dropping off your checked bags ?

Obviously you were aware of the scale reading 79 lbs.

 

The 79lbs was a combined weight of both bags. Based on what she said, her bag was 35lbs and hubbys was 44lbs. So he should have been charged at most $25 for being over the 40lbs max. Though if it's all about fuel costs, they both combined weighed less than 80lbs allowed for two bags, but we know it's harder to get your extra money if you're nice to the consumer :)

[simplelife]

Spirit charges $100 for bags over 63 linear inches. Could this be the explanation?

Edited July 14, 2016 by simplelife

[rexy69]

Sounds to me like they took the weight of both bags and assigned that weight to just the second bag? Wrong yes, but it possibly explains how it happened.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

I'm wondering the same thing.....

[rexy69]

The 79lbs was a combined weight of both bags. Based on what she said, her bag was 35lbs and hubbys was 44lbs. So he should have been charged at most $25 for being over the 40lbs max. Though if it's all about fuel costs, they both combined weighed less than 80lbs allowed for two bags, but we know it's harder to get your extra money if you're nice to the consumer :)

 

Thank you, that's exactly correct

[rexy69]

Am I missing something? Why would they weigh the bags together. They have always weighed each bag seperately to my knowledge. Just curious, hope it gets resolved in your favor.

 

I have no idea.....I haven't travelled in a while and even so, I don't usually question an employees actions if I don't know their job. It just all happened swiftly and we were on our way.....you'd think if there was an issue (overweight bag) they would've/should've let us know?

[rexy69]

Wow, thanks for everyone's response.....I had no idea that people thought so poorly of Spirit. The general consensus shocks me, as we've flown with Spirit for many trips in the years past, and never thought once that they were inadequate in any way. Maybe we've just been lucky.....

But now that we are aware, we will definitely be looking into other airlines for future travels and I also appreciate the advice of watching every action throughout the luggage check-in process, from the scale weights to the conveyor belt. I guess our luck has just made us take it all for granted. Awareness is good and I will definitely be watching more closely from now on. :o

[bondsman]

Sounds to me like they took the weight of both bags and assigned that weight to just the second bag? Wrong yes, but it possibly explains how it happened.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

This is exactly what happened. The following comes from their website. Bags weighing 71 to 100 lbs. cost $100.00.

 

 

OVERWEIGHT OR OVERSIZED BAGGAGE Per Bag

CLOSE

41 – 50 lbs. (18 – 23 kg) + $30

51 – 70 lbs. (23 - 32 kg) + $55

71 – 100 lbs. (32 - 45 kg) + $100

63-80 linear inches (158-203 cm) + $100

Special items over 80 linear inches (203 cm) + $150

[quickrate]

I have flown Spirit a few times and never had a problem. Their rates are wonderful, but you have to be careful about baggage. Always pay for a checked bag at time of booking -that is the cheapest way. Watch when it is weighed (I do this with every airline -I also watch to verify that the correct tag is put on the luggage and that it is actually placed on the conveyer). Be sure your personal item that you carry on fits the measurements they post (SMALLER than most). Having to check at the gate or pay for carry on because it exceeds size is costly. Many the complaints about Spirit (not this one) are because people did not read and/or follow the guidelines. Or they think they can "fudge" just a little and aren't allowed to. The cheap fares come with a need for extra vigilance and compliance.

I agree. I fly Spirit airlines from Fort Lauderdale to Myrtle Beach to visit my daughter a lot-flight is cheap and it is nonstop. Once you learn how to fly Spirit, no issues. I use either a duffle bag or backpack if only going for a few days and there is no charge. Can't beat the fares!!

Pat

[babyclaytonmom]

Friends don't let friends fly Spirit. This is nothing new. I would rather take the bus than fly Spirit. They are not the worst rated airline in the USA without good reason. You were looking for a cheap fare, and you got what you paid for and then some- sorry!

 

Couldn't agree more! Would never fly Spirit.

[JLee1973]

Dispute the claim with the credit card company. Also never fly Spirit.

 

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk