Jetstar has denied its scales are ‘dodgy’ after numerous complaints from passengers who were slugged with extra charges as they boarded flights.
Flyers said they received different weight readings from different sets of scales at Wellington Airport and were forced to pay extra just before boarding.
Some passengers reported being within the 7kg carry-on baggage limit, only to find their bags suddenly weighing over the threshold when rechecked at the gate on portable scales.
This meant they were hit with a $65 excess baggage fee.
Arron Paul, who flew from Wellington to Auckland, weighed his carry-on bag at 5.44kg when he checked in and again in the boarding lounge at 6.18kg.
But when he reached the portable scales at the gate, his bag came in at 7.5kg – forcing him to pay a surcharge.
‘I asked to speak with the supervisor and the supervisor came out and just handed me an EFTPOS machine,’ he said.
Lauren Wessels had a similar experience after flying with the same airline.
A customer shows the difference in weight for the same luggage
Jetstar passengers in New Zealand say the scales are dodgy and they’ve been forced to pay extra to board flights
After twice coming in under the limit, the portable scales at the gate weighed her bag at 7.5kg.
‘They said I’d have to pay the $65, and I said, ‘No, that’s not happening,’ she said.
Wessels was forced to repack her bags to avoid the fine.
‘I didn’t lose money, but for me it’s a matter of principle. These scales are either out of calibration or there is something wrong with them,’ she said.
Another couple, Sarah and Cav, said the gate scales showed their luggage was 1.6kg heavier than a set of scales in the main airport building.
‘We got it to 6.9kg [in the downstairs terminal] and then up here it was supposedly 8.5kg,’ Sarah said.
Jetstar told Stuff there was no problem with its scales.
‘We employ a contract company that services, maintains and calibrates our baggage scales throughout the country every year,’ cabin manager Simon Davey told Stuff.
The airline says its scales are working well and are consistent
‘We also have a ground team who specifically check the scales every day pre-use to make sure things are working as they should.’
Davey said the inconsistencies were due to user error.
‘The majority of our customers will be self-weighing, and we can’t monitor everyone who is self-weighing,’ he said.
A Jetstar spokesperson told Daily Mail: ‘All of our portable baggage scales across New Zealand are regularly checked, serviced and calibrated in-line with industry standards and guidelines. This work is carried out by independent specialists.’
‘Our ground crew also do daily checks before use to make sure our mobile scales are working correctly,’ they said.
All trade-use scales are governed by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment and are trade-approved and certified by a technician.
‘We can offer a guarantee that our scales are accurate,’ Davey assured.
Ms Wessels, however, has taken up the matter with the Commerce Commission and also lodged a complaint with MBIE.
Earlier this year, a British expat slammed Jetstar’s carry-on baggage policy after she was forced to remove 3kg from her luggage prior to takeoff – only to then carry the items on board by hand.
The traveller was flying from Brisbane to Melbourne when she was asked to weigh her bags.
Jetstar staff told her she would be charged $70 since her bags exceeded the 7kg carry-on limit.
Instead of paying, she discovered a ‘ridiculous’ way travellers can get around the fine.
As staff looked on, the woman emptied her bags until they were within the weight limit. Once verified as light enough, she was allowed to board.
What she found unbelievable, however, was that she was still able to carry her extra items on her person in order to keep her bags under 7kg.
‘Have you ever heard anything so ridiculous,’ she said on social media. ‘Tell me how that makes any sense whatsoever.’
