USAflyer

I'm flying PHL-LHR-EDI on BA via LHR. Will I need to reclaim my checked luggage at LHR to clear customs, or can it be through checked.

spanishflea

It can be through checked and 99% of the time this works just fine.

edi-traveller

....all fine....and technically you won't even feel as if you have cleared customs in EDI. As you are arriving off a domestic flight you won't go through International Arrivals - the only difference is that your bags will appear on Belt 6 instead of Belt 5 - I have never seen a customs person doing random checks here in all the years I have been travelling.

Aerotec

Harumph, wish I could say the same!

Many times when I have flown back (after too much shopping!) there have been customs agents at belt 6. On a recent arrival they pulled over pax with over sized luggage and took a look through them. On other occassions they ask the odd pax where they have flown in from.

I have seen them on 1000-1200 arrivals as well as 1800 arrivals. I think they must "stroll" up between the larger longhaul arrivals like the New York flights and the AMS flights.

This only started a few years back. Up to then I had never seen anyone at belt 6 since the new reclaim areas where opened.

I have also twice flown up from LHR and ALL pax had to reclaim from Belt 6. Not just international originating pax. I wonder if customs had a hunch about someone and wanted everyone with luggage to reclaim under their suspicious eyes!

Prospero

This was backed up from what I learned from a former EDI based HMCE inspector (my driving instructor if the truth is to be told). Much of the work is done behind the scenes and well out of sight of the gathering crowds at belt 6. HMCE relying on intelligence much more than random inspections.