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Hi there
Was wondering if there was a policy on being able to check in my hand luggage on a zero hold Basic fare?
I’ve always been able to in the past but not sure if that was because I wa higher than my now Bronze status
I can’t see why not as I’m not adding any weight to the plane and making things easier in the cabin.
Does anyone know if this can/will be refused or charged?
Thanks!It certainly could be refused or charged, as by definition there is no entitlement to it. Equally they often invite people to do just that so probably likely to be OK, as long as you don’t assume, expect or demand.
As above, if your flight is busy you would probably be greeted with open arms for voluntarily offering up your cabin bag, but if you are not checking anything else in, why would you want to do this?!
On busy routes you often get an email offering free check in on a HBO fare, but it will be luck if they let you otherwise. It’s worth a punt though – just be prepared to have to go through check in if rejected. I was rejected once but I think it was because missed the cut off, and had to leave behind a nice (but luckily not expensive!) bottle of wine at security!
BTW, the weight is not what makes a HBO fare cheaper, it is not have to use all the expensive machinery and people to process and handle the bags!
If you are group 4 or higher you will almost certainly be invited to check in hand baggage.
Since start of year not a single short haul flight has not had an invite to do this at checkin and on every flight they have taken more at the gate.
Dodging BAs stupid hand baggage policy also come with the added benefit of group zero boarding!!
If you are group 4 or higher you will almost certainly be invited to check in hand baggage.
Since start of year not a single short haul flight has not had an invite to do this at checkin and on every flight they have taken more at the gate.
Dodging BAs stupid hand baggage policy also come with the added benefit of group zero boarding!!
What is the point of boarding first if you have no luggage?
I have only done one BA shorthaul (LHR-MAD) in 2025 and was group 9, but my large wheely bag and large backpack were not taken away and I didn’t hear any announcements about it. Maybe they took enough bags away from group 4 though.
My experience is that it depends on the route/day/TOD – popular commuter routes are full of carry-on; holiday routes less so (but still busy). I’m sure there is a handling cost to checking in bags, so not sure airlines will offer it unless needed.
Personally I don’t check-in bags unless absolutely necessary – apart from them getting mislaid, I want to be out of the airport as quickly as possible.
@BenM, just for clarification are you talking about checking your bag in before security or at the gate?
The other day, I was travelling on a hand luggage only fare. The gate agent was offering free check in at the gate to everyone due to busy flight. Which I took up the offer.
Just like everyone said here, it is up to how busy the flight is.
Interesting. Whenever I travel short haul, they *force* everybody in groups 4 and higher to give up their luggage at the gate. I hate this, as it costs me valuable time at the destination where there is one train per hour to reach my final destination and at LHR where it usually takes up to an hour to get your luggage whenever I travel. That’s why I love my RJ status at the moment.
@BenM, just for clarification are you talking about checking your bag in before security or at the gate?
Indeeed this is the 64,000 avios question
I have been on flights where I’ve been emailed about checking carry on bags in advance. And when it hasn’t
I’ve been on flights where the request has been made at the gate. And when there has been no request.
Of course neither is guarenteed.
If someone is hoping to check in a bag because they are carrying large amounts of liquids that could be confiscated if they were taken through security then it’s big gamble to take.
Interesting. Whenever I travel short haul, they *force* everybody in groups 4 and higher to give up their luggage at the gate. I hate this, as it costs me valuable time at the destination where there is one train per hour to reach my final destination and at LHR where it usually takes up to an hour to get your luggage whenever I travel. That’s why I love my RJ status at the moment.
The trouble is that too many people travel with excessive amounts of hand luggage which significantly slows down boarding (and security) which is bad for everyone, so confiscation is a public service. Hopefully BA will either start to charge or get stricter.
In our experience, saying “up to an hour to get your luggage” is rather like ‘up to’ 70% off offers, not many are at the top of the range. 20-30 mins from gate arrival is more normal, even at Heathrow. We arrived from Nice this week (admittedly landing at C Gates) and the luggage was already on the carousel when we got to the luggage hall, within 15 mins of arrival at the gate. Not being encumbered with hand luggage and not contributing to delay seems a small price to pay for a short wait.
Of course this could be avoided if they would fit the bigger overhead lockers on all short haul aircraft!
Well they have to some short-haul (A320s I think) so you can fit bags in vertically. I won’t check in bags because it contains:
a. medication
b. expensive tech given neither BA nor my insurer will cover if it’s checked in
c. Li-ion batteries that I would also need to removeSorry, you’re going to have to fight the bag off me (verbally) – and chances are it will delay the flight. Not being rude, but normally fly CE and consider it a given.
Quiet flight today, no one was asked
Sorry, you’re going to have to fight the bag off me (verbally) – and chances are it will delay the flight. Not being rude, but normally fly CE and consider it a given.
Stop being over dramatic
Getting into an argument with the gate staff won’t delay the flight because you won’t be on it as they’ll just refuse to board you.
The people being asked to gate check bags are going to be in economy not club
If someone is hoping to check in a bag because they are carrying large amounts of liquids that could be confiscated if they were taken through security then it’s big gamble to take.
Yup, packed a larger bottle of sunscreen, tried to volunteer to check my 55*45*25 cabin bag and they were having none of it.
Got gate checked.
What did you do with the sunscreen?
Well they have to some short-haul (A320s I think) so you can fit bags in vertically. I won’t check in bags because it contains:
a. medication
b. expensive tech given neither BA nor my insurer will cover if it’s checked in
c. Li-ion batteries that I would also need to removeSorry, you’re going to have to fight the bag off me (verbally) – and chances are it will delay the flight. Not being rude, but normally fly CE and consider it a given.
@lhar – I can’t see why you need some cumbersome wheely bag to fit those items; presumably they would easily fit in your man bag. You are more likely to be offloaded if you would really make such a fuss.
The new larger bins regrettably don’t seem to speed up boarding. The problem is that some seem to think it’s OK to have a jumbo wheely bag plus a ridiculously sized ‘handbag’ and outsized outerwear they take off very slowly. They can’t really manage it all and selfishly delay everyone. Their time is clearly more important than everyone else’s.
Well they have to some short-haul (A320s I think) so you can fit bags in vertically. I won’t check in bags because it contains:
a. medication
b. expensive tech given neither BA nor my insurer will cover if it’s checked in
c. Li-ion batteries that I would also need to removeSorry, you’re going to have to fight the bag off me (verbally) – and chances are it will delay the flight. Not being rude, but normally fly CE and consider it a given.
@lhar – I can’t see why you need some cumbersome wheely bag to fit those items; presumably they would easily fit in your man bag. You are more likely to be offloaded if you would really make such a fuss.
Sorry I missed the 😁 emoji. I am nothing but polite and grateful to all staff! But you’d be surprised how much tech we have to take for a short holiday. Of course everyone’s bag won’t fit if we all take a wheelie on board, but I was recently asked to check in a bag (and then accused of it being over-size) just before boarding – the baggage handler obv couldn’t see I both have status and travelling Club.
What did you do with the sunscreen?
Had to dump it.
Sorry I missed the 😁 emoji. I am nothing but polite and grateful to all staff! But you’d be surprised how much tech we have to take for a short holiday. Of course everyone’s bag won’t fit if we all take a wheelie on board, but I was recently asked to check in a bag (and then accused of it being over-size) just before boarding – the baggage handler obv couldn’t see I both have status and travelling Club.
It happens – I recently travelled CE with Gold status and the agent at the checkin desk insisted she take my cabin bag off me to put in the hold. When I asked why she insisted on first weighing it, and then putting it into one of those bag size checker frames. She seemed quite annoyed that it was all within regs, having a bad day I guess.
They have a tough job and getting away on time is money! At the same time, they should check who’s making the profit for the flight! I don’t want to get into the whole “Ryanair – pay to take a bag on board” palaver, but anyone in Club or Silver+ should be carte blanche even for a slightly oversized bag.
They have a tough job and getting away on time is money! At the same time, they should check who’s making the profit for the flight! I don’t want to get into the whole “Ryanair – pay to take a bag on board” palaver, but anyone in Club or Silver+ should be carte blanche even for a slightly oversized bag.
The trouble is, where does “slightly oversized” end? Unfortunately, some status holders or Club travellers are the worst offenders because they rather selfishly think they can be. Some people seem to have so much clobber with them that they can’t really manage it all and create issues at each stage of the journey. It’s probably something of an 80/20 rule problem and if airlines clamped down a bit more, everyone’s journeys would be smoother and punctuality improved. Staff are (rightly) trained to avoid confrontation/conflict, which is why automated processes like a gate rejecting the wrong group passenger boarding is ideal.
“Slightly oversized” such as where the wheels add an extra 2cm. Most seasoned hand-baggage travellers I know have lightweight cases that meet the requirements. As for “gate lice” (to use the USA term), they just need to get sent to the back of the queue rather than being allowed to “linger” – solved in a matter of weeks!
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