JerseySlime

In late May and early June, I will be flying BF from EWR to LHR on UA, transferring to EI for LHR-SNN. Then returning on EI from DUB-LHR, then in UA BF from LHR-EWR.

Now, being both in BusinessFirst for the UA legs and also holding a United Club Visa CC, my receipt shows no charges for the first two bags.

Will I clear C and I in LHR, then have to drop the bags off again at a bag transfer desk? If so, will I be asked to pay whatever EI bag fee that is in effect? Or are my bags checked for free all the way through to SNN? And on the return, will EI charge me for checked bags from DUB-LHR when I check in with them in DUB or do they see that, on one itinerary, that I'm in UA BF and the DUB-LHR bag fees are waived? I know EI charges more for checking baggage at the airport versus OLCI if I have to pay EI for checked bags.

I have read the Baggage T and C's on the UA site a number of times but I didn't answers to my questions above. I searched this forum and the EI forum as well but didn't see specific answers.

lhrsfo

On the outbound, they'll be checked through so the issue does not arise. On the return the Most Significant Carrier rules should apply so, again, no charge.

emcampbe

This is an ex-US trip and the DOT-modified baggage rules apply, not the standard IATA ones. Those rules state charges are based on the marketing carrier of the first segment for all legs on the ticket. So if your ticket has a UA flight number and you are sitting in BF on the outbound, those are the rules that need to be followed. If you are on a standard round trip ticket, EI is obligated to charge you based on the UA BF allowance (and cannot charge you additional at the connection point). That means they can not charge their fees for the return.

The charges for each direction should be listed on the ticket/e-receipt UA sent (at least for the first 2 bags) - there is also a baggage calculator on UA.com where you can log in and it will tell you your allowance, and you can pull up more details, based on the itin listed for both outbound and return.

CC bag fee waiver won't mean anything on this itin, as it doesn't stack with free bags you already receive (IIRC) and it only applies if you are checking in with UA, which you aren't on the return. Also, any extra allowance you might get as an elite from UA doesn't necessarily apply when checking in with another carrier. I'm not sure how that works exactly according to the IATA/DOT rules, but I've never been able to get a solid answer to that.

Often1

Forget the IATA MSC stuff. It's outdated.

On tickets originating in the US, the baggage allowance for the marketing carrier of the first segment applies to the entire ticket. Thus, the allowance for UA EWR-LHR will apply to the onward and return segments.

The same DOT rules require that the allowance be printed on the passenger's e-ticket receipt. It sounds as though you have that. You may need that for EI on the return, but it is almost certain that the allowance will pop up on the EI agent's screen at check-in on the return.

Two cautions. This applies to the premium allowance. The CC, if it provides anything additional is a waiver not an allowance and won't bind EI. Second, the simple system sometimes does not work. IT systems are imperfect. If EI insists on a fee, pay it with a CC and submit the payment for refund to UA on return (and file a complaint with DOT). But, plan on this going smoothly.

OrlandoFlyer

We just did a similar trip as you are going to do, which was a BF R/trip to Dublin via UA TATL, and EI on the DUB/LHR sections. Our bags were checked through MCO/DUB both ways, except where we had to collect them to clear US C & I at EWR, and the recheck them to MCO. Our baggage allowance both ways was as per UA's rules. At LHR T-2 when you arrive there you will go to the transfer facility, clear security and British immigration, before you board you EI flight to Dublin. At DUB you will Irish immigration, collect your bags and clear Irish Customs. The procedure is the same coming back from DUB, except you do not clear through British immigration as you are already in the EU.

The only issues we had was the nasty UK security checkpoint personnel, which is a well known, and that LH would not let us in their lounge upon arrival at T-2 even though we were both *gold. They claimed it was a departures lounge only, but there is a Premier Plaza Lounge a short distance away from there and we managed to get in their using D/Club membership. It is a really nice lounge with good food and drink, so that worked out OK.

One last point, the EI DUB checkin agent could/would not put UA Priority Tags on our checked bags. She claimed they did not have them, was not allowed to put them on, etc. You might want to have a few spare one with you when you checkin at DUB and ask them to put them on.

JerseySlime

Thanks for the replies. My receipt shows $0 bag fees for Bags 1 and 2 for both EWR-SNN and DUB-EWR, both directions via LHR. I'll make sure I have that receipt ready if "requested/required" by EI to pay the baggage fee. I figure if it happens, it will only be in DUB at the start of my return. I thought about going over to the UA counter in DUB and asking the agent for a couple of Priority bag tags to bring over to EI Check-in, but I'm sure EI won't put a UA/*A tag on a bag flying in their metal. But then again, the worst that could happen is that they laugh at me, then so no.