Flying Low Cost Airlines? It Really Does Pay To Read The Fine Print.

I’m currently travelling in India.

A decade ago, getting around this vast subcontinent by air was done by the national carrier, catering to those fortunate enough to be able to afford it.  Nowadays,  the plethora of low-cost airlines that have sprung up across S.E. Asia and India have made travel affordable, fast and on the whole efficient.

Living as I do in Indonesia, I frequently use these carriers for short hops, as they tend to travel to destinations that the ‘full service’ guys don’t bother with.

For a journey under three hours, I couldn’t give two hoots about the in-cabin service as really, my sole intention is to get from point A to point B in the quickest possible way and saving a few bucks along the way is an added bonus.

Up until now, I have never had a problem! 

A recent flight from Denpasar in Indonesia to Kolkata in India saw me arrive safe and sound, however, my bag decided that a brief layover in K.L. in Malaysia would be pleasant while it fraternized and exchanged stories with other missing luggage from around the world.

It’s a hassle!

Being India, the situation was compounded by my having to fill out reams of forms in triplicate and then repeating the entire exercise again with another official.  Granted the Airline, in this case, Air Asia had plenty of ground staff all eager to help. The leading gentleman who seemed to be in charge, looked as if he had stepped straight off the set of a Bollywood movie, reassured me with the following speech;

“ Please be assured Mr Paul, I, and my company, this airport and indeed the whole of India will be searching high and low for that pesky bag.” When I asked what would happen when they had indeed tracked down the pesky missing item. “Oh. we will call immediately and then you must then come at great speed to meet your bag’s arriving plane at midnight tomorrow.” 

Now given Kolkata’s airport is 30km from the centre of the city and the traffic conditions are nothing short of gridlock, this can be a three hour round trip!

“Well, why don’t you pop it into a cab and send it to my hotel?”  I suggest. 

“Oh no,” says Mr Bollywood, “ The taxi driver could be a scoundrel and make off with your treasured possessions, and furthermore who is to be paying?”

My bag did in fact arrive and I did take the 60km round trip to retrieve it… all at my expense. 

There it is buried in the tiny fine print on the second page of the E-ticket. Lost luggage? Basically, not our problem, after all it is your bag. !

The fine print on all travel tickets/e-tickets and vouchers was no doubt designed by the fellow whose previous job was writing the Lord’s Prayer on a grain of rice.

Two days later a flight to Varanasi on another of one of India’s low-cost carriers, Jet Airways, was simply cancelled as we were checking in.  150 irate passengers, seeking blood instantly mobbed the poor official who no doubt drew the short straw in having to break the news to the expectant passengers.  The airline’s response was to fling a few Rupees (not many) at the hapless travellers and send them on their way. No cosy hotel to compensate for the overnight delay and maybe, just maybe they could fit me on the next night’s flight.

There it is, clearly written in .005pt type in a font so small it would challenge anyone with 20/20 vision to decipher the text. The airline’s policy on cancelled flights is basically… your problem, not ours!  

So, the next time you fly a low-cost carrier, invest in a magnifying glass and have a good read of the fine print while they are searching high and low for your pesky missing luggage!