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United Passenger Extorted For Bribe At Newark Airport Check-In Counter

by Gary Leff on April 13, 2024

Most checked bags in the U.S. are limited to 50 pounds. Anything heavier than that and you’ll pay extra. First and business class passengers, and those with elite status, may be allowed 70 pounds. When you approach the check-in counter, they’ll weigh your bags, and if your luggage is overweight you’ll be assessed an extra fee.

However it’s not always so simple. There’s an unspoken cat and mouse game between airline employees and passengers.

The scales may be wrong. For instance, the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services found half a dozen scales at the Charlotte airport were miscalibrated. This happens all the time. People are slamming heavy suitcases on them all day, every day, and sometimes at odd angles. They need maintenance!
Passengers may use guerilla tactics to avoid overweight bags like supporting the bag with their foot to reduce the weight on the scale.

Pay the airline – or the employee? Airline staff may solicit bribes which are less than the cost of overweight bag fees.
One United passenger reports being extorted for a bribe at Newark airport terminal C when checking a bag for their flight home.


They self-tagged their luggage and went United’s bag drop to have it weighed. The scale “read 47lb then the number started slowly climbing until it went up to 50.5lb.” That didn’t make any sense since the bag was within allowable weight on the outbound portion of their trip.

That’s when things got weird:

The employee says, “ah, don’t worry. I don’t see anything” and gives me a high five. In my naivety I thought, wow that’s so kind. Then he says, “but you can leave my tip right there” pointing to an inconspicuous spot on the counter. I asked if he was for real, he said yes so I left him $5.

I thought something was off but it wasn’t until I walked away that I realized I just got scammed. I couldn’t see his feet so I don’t know for sure but as soon as I got home I weighed my bag and it was 43.7 lb. Also when he took the bag off the scale it read -0.5lb but I’m not sure if that means anything?


United Airlines Newark Terminal C

Airline check-in agents soliciting bribes to ignore overweight bags isn’t, itself, unheard of. What’s different here is the agent making the bag overweight in order to solicit the bribe.


And bribery in the airline industry reaches the highest levels. United Airlines actually lost a CEO in a bribery scandal involving Newark airport. And recently three of the airline’s executives engaged in a bribery scheme involving Newark renovations.

If I knew my bag wasn’t overweight and I was being scammed for a bribe, I’d hit record on my cell phone. I’d call over a supervisor, who might well be in on it (the employee could be kicking up). And I’d insist on checking with a different scale.

I've always wondered how they can charge by weight and not have certified scale. If im only a few pounds over I always try the next scale closest to me .

If they really want to make sense of it all weigh the passenger and their bags together. I weigh 190 with a 45 pound suitcase, a 45 pound rifle case and probably a 20 pound carry on. I see people on the plane alone that probably weigh more than me and my bags together. Probably would hurt people’s feelings but there should just be a max weight per passenger including all their bags.

quote:

Originally posted by Sniper:
If they really want to make sense of it all weigh the passenger and their bags together. I weigh 190 with a 45 pound suitcase, a 45 pound rifle case and probably a 20 pound carry on. I see people on the plane alone that probably weigh more than me and my bags together. Probably would hurt people’s feelings but there should just be a max weight per passenger including all their bags.

Completely agree. Here's what pisses me off to no end - On a recent fishing trip to Guyana, I was told, 44 pounds, all in, carry on included. This was for the in country charter to the river, not the Miami flight.

So, I par may bag down to 43 and change. Keep in mind, thats everything, clothing, camera's 4 rods,4 reels, lures, lead...absolutely everything.

Like you I'm a lightweight. I'm 175# and have a 43 pound bag. EVERYONE else on the charter was 220# PLUS. What a complete crock of shit.

Then, we get to the river and I see the outfitter,(who also was on the charter) had 3 bags that ALL out-weighed mine.

I really had to sacrifice much gear due tot eh 44# limit that seemed to go ignored. Yet, they made it very clear that 44# was it, numerous times.

quote:

Originally posted by Sniper:
If they really want to make sense of it all weigh the passenger and their bags together. I weigh 190 with a 45 pound suitcase, a 45 pound rifle case and probably a 20 pound carry on. I see people on the plane alone that probably weigh more than me and my bags together. Probably would hurt people’s feelings but there should just be a max weight per passenger including all their bags.

So the weight thing on luggage is not about the weight on the plane. Its about the weight the bag handlers have to manage. Workers comp/ insurance related.

As to passengers, maybe just charge by how wide there are, That's where the issues is

chuckle.
one axe handle is 50 extra.
2 handles is two seats..

I don't wanna be known as the 'axe handle' guy down to the airport.

quote:

Originally posted by eny:

quote:

Originally posted by Sniper:
If they really want to make sense of it all weigh the passenger and their bags together. I weigh 190 with a 45 pound suitcase, a 45 pound rifle case and probably a 20 pound carry on. I see people on the plane alone that probably weigh more than me and my bags together. Probably would hurt people’s feelings but there should just be a max weight per passenger including all their bags.

So the weight thing on luggage is not about the weight on the plane. Its about the weight the bag handlers have to manage. Workers comp/ insurance related.

As to passengers, maybe just charge by how wide there are, That's where the issues is

It is actually worse.

I have seen Lufthansa staff take items from passengers hand luggage and putting it in their suitcase!!??

Same weights remain!

[/QUOTE]It is actually worse.

I have seen Lufthansa staff take items from passengers hand luggage and putting it in their suitcase!!??

Same weights remain! [/QUOTE]

Exact same thing happened to us last year leaving Moz on Airlink. I told the ticket agent it was exactly the same weight and she looked at me like I was the stupid one.