Posted on September 14, 2011 by Fiona Hilliard

Weighty Issue: Baggage Charges

Forget slapping your luggage on the bathroom scales or paying over the odds for bulging excess baggage – British department store Debenhams has stumbled upon a solution to wipe the smile off those pesky budget airline officials.

Rather than splashing out on checked-in luggage fees, savvy passengers are filling their free hand-luggage to capacity and “wearing” the rest of their belongings,  says Debenhams.  According to the high street favourite, passengers could carry an extra ten pounds on top of their body weight, simply by wearing the right coat.

Shop insiders say customers now prefer to pack heavier items such as books, cameras and iPads/ small net books into outerwear with large pockets, to dodge fines of up to £40.

They say sales of J by Jasper Conran (fitted with an astounding 7 pockets) have increased by 135%, while the Maine New England parka jacket (smuggling 6 pockets) has seen sales jump by 29%.

Research reveals that most people who bought the multi pocketed jackets were flying to and from and/or picking up car hire in Leeds, London, Newcastle, Aberdeen and Dublin.

It just so happens that all these routes are served by a prominent no frills airline…hmm.
Vicky Hewitt, spokeswoman for Debenhams, said: “Our sales assistants have even reported some customers coming in with specific items like net-books and paperbacks, to check if they will fit in the pockets before they buy the coat or jacket.

“With the right jacket and trouser combo you can gain up to 11 handy pockets to tuck away holiday essentials; but beware when reaching into pockets so those extra undies aren’t spotted on the floor of Terminal 5.”

Passengers can pay princely sums for going over the luggage weight limits, for instance BMI charges £7 per kg, Thomson up to £15 per kg and Ryanair £20 per kg, for excess baggage.

With winter on the way, a cosy pocket-filled coat sounds like the perfect packing solution -  then again, Debenhams may  just  be looking to offload a crate of post-festival parkas?