Money Moral Dilemma: Should Andy complain about the Big Bob on his flight?

ho4701

mrc2 wrote: »

I think everyone should be charged on the basis of their BMI body mass index, this way you pay for your excess 'bagage' ! people who are overweight already cost the taxpayer too much through the health service costs..self abuse should cost the abuser no others

Thats wrong completly im 12 stone and 5ft6 yes thats a bmi of about 29 but im a rugby player and have a 40inch chest that means yes i have a large bmi but im not a hinderence on others.

Also TUI fly do this thing where you can buy an extra seat on flights for yourself for 20 euros

kathy206

puddings wrote: »

I feel sorry for anybody that is put in a seat next to me on a plane. I do try very hard not to overspill waist/elbows/shoulders into their seat and frequently apologise if I do.
On my last flight, I had to ask for an extension to the seatbelt, my thighs continually pressed the button that reclined the seat and I couldnt pull the drink/food tray down.
The point that i'm trying to make is that it's as uncomfortable for the fat person as for the unfortunate passenger next to them. If there are any spare seats on the plane, then after take off I ask if I may move. If the flight is full, then I grin and bear it.

As far as being smelly: there's no excuse for bad personal hygiene. Being sweaty isnt the same as being smelly and there are a lot of skinny smelly people out there.

Please try to see the argument from both sides.

Agree totally that's why me and DH won't fly until we've lost weight.(BTW neither of us sweat excessively or smell) Don't see why people have to be nasty about it though
DH and I upgraded 2 years ago to premier class when we went away, loads of room in seat but seatbelts same ruddy length!!! :mad:

Chollita

I don't want to embarrass or offend anyone, but my seat is my space ... I am claustrophobic, not to mention physically tiny, and I would find it intimidating if a 'neighbour' was encroaching into my space.

funschine

With our society getting heavier all the time, airlines, should be able to accommodate larger people just the same as they have facilities for wheelchair access. Some people are overweight due to medical reasons out of their control and the government should be doing more to takle obesity and not label them as lazy.

Hey_Dude

I have no problems with fat people - indeed I have many fat friends and the fact that they eat too many pies does not bother me.

Let's imagine that Bob is actually thin but decides to light up a cigarette (I'm a non-smoker) - I'm sure that most here would condemn Bob.

Fat people - whether their fatness is due to a medical condition or eating too many pies - who spill their excess 'baggage' onto the seat next door should pay for 2 seats.

Would it be fair for Andy to have smoke in his face? No.
Would it be fair for Andy to have someones excess fat in his lap? No.

I feel that fat people should actually ask to pay for 2 seats if they know that they are literally going to invade some poor sod's personal space.

Dude

PS What about Gingers?

sinbinjack

I think he should complain ,if only to register the complaint so that when he then asks for some money back he has a record of his complaint.I am also dismayed at the lack of tact shown by some on this thread, I am a fat bloke who got fat by eating too much ,so what I am still a person and until the rules change I am as entitled to a seat on a plane as all the skinny gits out there get over your selves .I still think it would be annoying if someone spilled over the seat and disturbed me or made me uncomfortable but, this only ever happens on charter flights where the airline puts too many seats on the plane ,thats why I no longer fly on charter airlines .

jennylichfield

I believe the problem not to be with Big Bob's obesity but rather with the airline not weighing individual passengers. I weigh less than 7 stone and believe I should be allowed extra luggage allowance, alas as you have predicted the airlines I have enquired to (there have been many!!) have said 'no!'.

As to the question of Average Andy's discomfort yes he should definitely make a claim.

milady_2

I think we're on really dodgy ground when we start segregating society and demanding that we are protected from offence or discomfort.
Whether someone is fat, smelly, noisy, annoying, too tall, too small, has children, or twitches constantly is surely just part of life? If we prefer not to associate with "annoying" people we can usually buy a better alternative (first class, private jet etc).
Many of the arguments in favour of weighing people along with their luggage seem to stem from a feeling that fatter people should pay more (or take less luggage) to enable thinner people to feel they aren't compensating for fat + baggage. How does this stop a fat person sitting next to them on the flight? How ironic to gleefully watch an overweight passenger getting weighed at check-in, only to find him sat next to you! D'oh!
It's really clear what the baggage allowances are and if you go over then you should reasonably be expected to pay, per the contract. Also, excess baggage incurs extra labour for baggage handlers. I'm not aware (though I could be wrong) that overweight people require such attention as a matter of course.
If the argument is about comfort, then as far as I'm concerned you get what you pay for on an economy flight, just as you do on the tube, train, football stadium or whatever.
I think the only restriction to flying we can genuinely give is one of medical fitness - is the person medically fit to fly? Can they comply with safety requirements? If not, they don't fly. Interestingly, at some of the American theme parks they have a "test seat" near some of the rides so that you can see if you fit safely into it before joining the queue. There may be an argument for refusing someone a flight if they can't physically fit in the seat (and can't be booked something bigger in advance), but if their bum fits in the seat then it's fair that they fly.
No, if we go down the line of weighing passengers then I'd have to also insist on having everyone sniff-tested at the boarding gate and the stinky sweaty ones (whether thin or fat) are turned away!

Xenos

I think airlines should be organised about this. Their booking policies should CLEARLY state that if your hips, or chest, or height exceeds x measurement, then you either have to buy two seats or pay for a seat in business class.

Arguably this is health and safety; if someone is too big to fit comfortably in a seat then they are not going to be able to get out of it quickly in an emergency.

Weight has no relevance; it's size (and hence ability to fit into the actual seat) that matters. People can be heavy but not actually that wide.

The airline's booking policy could very clearly state that if the member of staff booking you onto the flight suspects that you are oversize then you will be asked to step into a private room and measured, and that if you object to this you should either buy two seats or a seat in business (etc) class.

None of this would cost a lot of extra money, it just takes a little bit of organisation on the part of the airlines.

elisebutt65

Actually if you're travelling within the states with Southwestern airlines - they do have a 'dummy' seat that they use for POS's (I love that acronym - LOL!!!!)
Basically if the checkout person sees that you may be (ahem) too large to fit into a standard seat then you are taken aside to a private area and you sit in the dummy seat and if you overspill then you have to buy another seat.