Q Recently, I flew to Mexico on Air Canada and Mexicana Airlines for a business meeting and a vacation. When we checked in for our return flight, we were told that our luggage was about 44 pounds overweight. A ticket agent explained that the domestic weight allowance was less than on international flights.
We were never shown on the scale the actual weight of the luggage. We bought only three T-shirts in Acapulco. I find it difficult to believe that three T-shirts could make our luggage 44 pounds heavier. I also find it interesting that the weight of our luggage was acceptable on the trip from Cancun to Acapulco, but that it now suddenly wasn't.
We were then forced to pay an extra $350 before we could board the plane. The cost of the excess weight of the luggage exceeded the cost of the airline ticket. Unfortunately, I felt as if I couldn't dispute the surcharge while I was there. I was afraid I might be denied boarding.
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After our return to Canada, we contacted our travel agent, who then contacted Mexicana Airlines. The airline phoned us for further information and told us that we would be contacted again in 24 hours. We never heard back.
In all my travels I have never been treated in such a manner. This, in my opinion, is the most dishonest form of ripping off a customer.
— George Ecker, Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada
AIf Mexicana changed its rules to enrich itself, then it did rip you off — and it owes you a refund. Mexicana's weight limits are spelled out on its Web site, www.mexicana.com
For checked bags on international flights, you're allowed two items that may not exceed 70 pounds each. For domestic flights, the limit drops to about 44 pounds.
I checked with Mexicana to find out what happened. Theresa Bravo, a company spokeswoman, said you were flying on two types of tickets — an international and a domestic ticket — so you were subject to two separate luggage-weight restrictions.
"Due to a misconception at our Cancun airport counter, Mr. Ecker was not charged the corresponding administrative fee for excess weight on his flight to Acapulco," she said. "However, on the return flight on Feb. 24, the Acapulco Airport counter charged Mr. Ecker the administrative fee that all passengers carrying domestic tickets are assessed when their baggage weight exceeds the limits."
What happened to you is a common problem for international travelers, not only in Mexico but also on flights to Europe. Travelers will pack two heavy suitcases that meet the looser international weight restrictions. Then, when they make a connection, they suddenly find themselves having to pay a surprise surcharge for bags that are too heavy for a domestic flight.
Next time, read the weight restrictions carefully, remembering that when it comes to luggage restrictions, airlines often draw a distinction between domestic and international flights.
Mexicana made its share of errors, too. It should have contacted you when it promised it would. The airline also took its time getting back to me, responding in about six weeks and only after numerous inquiries. Technically, it should have also billed you $350 in excess luggage fees for your earlier domestic flight.
Instead, to its credit, Mexicana reimbursed your $350 administrative fee collected at the Acapulco airport and forwarded your letter to the airport manager in Cancun to, in Bravo's words, "prevent these events from happening in the future."
