corporate-wage-slave

OK I got confused by what the last leg looked like, unless that really is SFO-LHR......

You seemed to have been poorly served by your travel agent, unless it was an online travel agency, in which case this is par for the course. Though you can mix Standard and Basic on the same ticket, you can't have some passengers Basic and some passengers Standard on the same leg, without splitting the ticket. The better way to do this is to have 2 reservations (with all the usual issues) with one adult, one child on each. One fully HBO, one fully Standard. SFO is a main BA station, so you may well be able to get 32kgs, but you won't get 2 bags, that was incorrect advice.

windowontheAside

It sounds like your TA made a mistake if they didn't carry out your instructions. I'd be trying to get them to make it right if you can prove what you asked them to book.

Was it an OTA or a traditional TA?

Wadge

It was our corporate, proper travel agent, not online. I think so too it was a bit mishandled... if it were a business trip I would just expense it if they charge me a lot on the airport but as it is a private trip I will have to handle the extra fees I am afraid.

Wadge

By the way, I saw once a banner saying "increase your luggage with Avios", how can I do that? I don't see anywhere such option.

pennineuk

Globaliser

Do you mean one e-ticket, or do you mean one reservation?

I'm wondering whether the TA has booked BUD-LHR-BUD on a Basic fare issued on a separate ticket from LHR-JFK-SFO-LHR, but with everything booked in one PNR.

An e-ticket has a 13-digit number, probably starting with the digits 125. Each passenger must have a separate e-ticket. So there must be at least four ticket numbers, but possibly eight.

TTmex

Is this last segment on AA?
I'm wondering if that is why it appears as HBO and in fact the silver benefits would apply to all on booking.
I'm not an expert here, so just throwing that out there to see if it might help

Wadge

I guess you are right...

Wadge

No, it is also a BA segment, nothing to do with AA.

Wadge

Hi Globaliser,

no, it is one booking, one booking reference number under BA and 4 pieces of e-ticket for each of us staring with 125-.... so all BA tickets.

BUD - LHR - BA code, BA aircraft - 2 luggage per passenger
LHR - JFK - BA code, AA aircraft (BA codeshare operated by AA) - 2 luggage per passenger
JFK- SFO - AA code, AA aircraft but still in the same ticket - 2 luggage per passenger
SFO - LHR - BA code, BA aircraft - HBO fare for everyone
LHR - BUD - BA code, BA aircraft, HBO fare for everyone

So the last 2 legs that is flown in one go is the problem. TA booked them as I requested, checked baggage everywhere for the adults and HBO for children where possible. I saw the booking, it was done that way but when they paid for it and BA ticketed it, the entire booking became cheaper and they made all of us HBO on the last 2 legs saying we cannot have different fares and they advised TA to tell me to buy one extra luggage and I will have my Silver benefit there too for 2x32kg.

I did that, I bought one for me and my wife as it is only 40 pounds each, no big deal but on every segment I can see 2x32kg but on the Inbound part it still says 1x23kg whatever I do... so I started asking around, it depends when you call BA and who picks up the phone they give you different answers. Either encouraging you not to worry, it will be fine, just go to the airport OR no, it wont be fine, you need to buy a second luggage for both of you OR yes, they will be fine for 32kg and not 23kg but then I asked if they can give it to me in writing as booking says 23kg only, no they dont give it in writing... and 24hrs passed, ticket is now final, no way to reissue for a proper standard economy class.... etc.. etc...

You cannot even have that Email Us form as before, nowhere... today the lady told me over the phone when I asked how much is the allowance on the third leg, the domestic AA part she replied "Ask American Airlines..." I cant believe it... really.

JAXBA

So you've already paid for 1 bag per adult. Good.

Instead of paying for a 2nd bag per adult, now buy, or be prepared to buy before OLCI, 1 bag per child - the 1st bag is cheaper than the 2nd, so it's best to assign one bag to everybody before adding a 2nd bag to anybody.

Quote:

From BA.com: https://www.britishairways.com/en-gb...weight-baggage

Our extra baggage charges
For economy hand baggage only (Basic) on long haul flights
Online in advance

• First extra bag Ł40/$55/€45
• Second extra bag Ł60/$90/€70
• Subsequent extra bags (each) Ł120/$180/€140

The option to pay with Avios should be in the same place as paying with money - you'll need to be logged into your BAEC account before you access Manage My Booking though.

Globaliser

Thanks for clarifying that. I think that we were all a bit confused when you originally said this:-What seems to have happened is that the booking has now combined a standard (baggage-included) fare BUD-SFO for everyone with a basic (no checked bags) fare SFO-BUD for everyone. Everyone on the booking must basically be travelling on the same fare on each sector.

I think that the longer-term lesson here is that if possible, you need a new and more competent travel agent. My impression is that the TA seems to have made two mistakes in trying to book you what you'd asked for. You can't mix different fares for different people in the same booking, as BA pointed out. And if the children are to be on different fares, they'd therefore need to be on a separate booking but BA won't allow that, as the TA ought to have known.

Without thinking for more than 2 seconds, it occurred to me that one way of achieving what you wanted with bags was to book you plus one child on standard fares throughout (thus including two bags x 2 passengers, all at 32 kg), and then your wife and the other child on basic fares throughout. This would have had a downside: You would have had two bookings, and if your wife is not also Silver then there would have been a cost for seat pre-allocations which could have ended up costing more than just buying bags in the way that you're buying them. So it may not have been a good idea. But it would have been within the rules. I think that what the TA tried to do was not.

Often1

If this was really booked on one e-ticket per passenger, then US law applies to the baggage allowances as the ticket terminates in the US. In that case, the allowance for the marketing carrier of the first segment applies to all segments. This should all appear on the e-ticket receipt.

If it does not, I would call the TA and have them get you the information.

scubaccr

If OP split booking as i)adult OP+child std tkt ii)other adult+child (can even be a cheaper HBO tkt), the booking does not then fail on unaccompanied minors rule.

Whilst OPs Silver luggage benefit will only apply to two people on ops half of trip, still means 4x 32kg the whole trip outbound and inbound

Wadge

Yes, I was thinking exactly about the same. I figured in the meantime the reason I cannot see this option there to buy luggage for Avios as it is not possible to do that for HBO fare... c'est la vie...

You perfectly summarized it Globaliser, there is a long term lesson to learn here. However, I would have expected a corporate TA to come across such obstacles professionally to the best benefit of the passenger. Now I will lose my Silver benefit that was one of my main reasons to select this route and airline etc... I am also disappointed by the service provided by British Airways here. There used to be a service center in our region with very dedicated BA employees who knew everything. When I travelled to a business conference in the past and I had the chance to take my wife with me I used to by 2 Avios Club tickets for us, I arranged everything for her, seating etc... then I called BA to split up the booking to two separate bookings then I cancelled my part, got money and Avios refunded and the company bought my own Club ticket later with cash. Once I had my own ticket as well I called BA again and they linked our two bookings/tickets together in the PNR saying "Mrs XYZ travelling with Mr XYZ Gold Card Holder under this and that booking" and we were again together. I could fully utilize my Gold benefits and whatever I wanted... where is this service and knowledge today? If you come up with something that is not a plain return ticket booking the system crashes on you. Again, depending on who picks up the phone in this new outsourced customer service system you get different and conflicting answers, no proper help or solution...