Cos Airport, are they scamming us?

Cacran

My daughter her OH went to Kos during the school holidays. Their baggage was slightly underweight on the outward flight from UK. They bought nothing. Their baggage should have remained the same weight, but they were charged excess baggage on the return flight.

I spoke to a friend who told me he had been to Kos this Summer. He was charged excess baggage and had bought nothing, so luggage should have been the same weight. The people in the queue behind him were complaining to him about holding up everyone. Guess what. They were charged for excess baggage, too.

Is Kos scamming us?

hollydays

From tripadviser-admittedly a few years ago

"kos airport scam
21 September 2008, 18:19
Just returned from a wonderful holiday in Kefalos, Kos. Be warned - on our way to Kos Airport for our trip home the Thos Cook rep told us that the airport is very keen on excess baggage charging 11 euros for every 1Kg over the allowance but that they don't check hand luggage (would have been useful to have known this earlier in the holiday!).

We had 1 piece of hand luggage between us having packed everything in the suitcases. Our friends put their cases on the check-in and it registered 47.6Kg, followed by our cases at 48.6Kg. We were told to go to a desk and pay 165 euros - which we had no choice but to pay. We spoke to the rep who said the airport did not allow them to argue on behalf of clients and that the reps had been threatened with a ban from entering the airport - obviously happened before then.

On returning home we weighed the cases - 42.6Kg and 43.6Kg - OK, slightly over but could have spread the weight into hand luggage had we been told. Some other people said they had been 'done' last year, having to pay 99 euros and had brought a hand weighing device with them this time to prove that they were not over the allowance.

Be warned - use the hand luggage allowance - we certainly will in future!"

Pollycat

Did they notice if the scales were set to zero before they put their cases on?

We came through Kos airport in 2009 and weren't charged for excess baggage.

lea2012

We came through Kos in 2012 and weren't charged any excess baggage even though we were probably slightly over having bought a few gifts etc.

Don't forget that things such as wet towels and costumes can add weight to your case, and half a bucket of sand that usually finds it way into your suitcase somehow!

On a more serious note though, I used to be a rep in Turkey and the scales at Dalaman were always calibrated wrong and it was well known that you would be charged extra at check in with the money being split between the check in agent and the airport!

sillygoose

Its bad isn't it!

If my luggage had suddenly 'gained weight' I would be terrified that someone had concealed something in it and I was going to be chased by the sniffer dog and 3 coppers with guns across the lounge at Birmingham!

I always carry my digital luggage scale in my hand luggage and I know it reads spot on so they would have a fight with me if they tried to overcharge!

Cacran

I will tell my daughter to take her scales, next time.
Isn't it awful that we cannot really trust an airport to be run honestly. I could not imagine anything like that happening in UK.