European airlines are furious about a proposed new law that would ban them from charging passengers for hand luggage—a practice that is often loathed by passengers but credited with lowering airfares.
On Thursday, the International Air Transportation Association (IATA), an industry trade body that represents the interests of the vast majority of airlines around the world, accused EU lawmakers of ‘meddling’ in matters they know nothing about.
Willie Walsh, the former boss of British Airways and the serving director general of IATA, warned that if the proposal were made law, then airfares would have to rise for everyone, regardless of whether they needed baggage.
“When regulators meddle in commercial or operational issues they don’t understand, they usually get it wrong,” Walsh blasted.
“Our consumer research tells us that the majority of travelers want to pay the lowest price possible for their ticket and buy the additional services they need.”
Walsh explained: “That’s the complete opposite of an amendment that will force airlines to re-bundle their offering. Consumers will be disappointed with higher costs for all, and they will be frustrated with the operational chaos of determining which bags meet the requirements and which do not.”
The new hand baggage rules are contained in a set of amendments to a proposed law that will clearly define certain passenger rights traveling on airlines throughout Europe.
Known by its official title 2023/0437, the law is currently working its way through a European Commission committee known as TRAN (travel and tourism).
The first draft of the law only proposed requiring airlines to agree to set dimensions for hand luggage to avoid the confusion that passengers face when buying bags and comply with myriad different rules set by airlines across the continent.
But lawmakers have cited a ruling in the Court of Justice of the European Union from 2014 that they believe means hand luggage should be included in the base fare of airline tickets.
In that ruling (case C-487/12), the court concluded that hand luggage is “a necessary aspect of the carriage of passengers and that its carriage cannot, therefore, be made subject to a price supplement.”
The proposed amendment reads:
“In accordance with the CJEU ruling in case C-487/12, baggage that is not checked in must be considered, in principle, as constituting “a necessary aspect of the carriage of passengers and that its carriage cannot, therefore, be made subject to a price supplement, on condition that such hand baggage meets reasonable requirements in terms of its weight and dimensions and complies with applicable security requirements”.
Some lawmakers disagree that this proposal should be included in the reworked law, although there appears to be widespread backing for standardizing the dimensions of hand luggage.
How Do Hand Luggage Rules Vary?
Nearly every airline throughout Europe allows passengers to bring a small piece of hand luggage onboard with them. The general requirement is that this item must be able to fit underneath the seat in front of the passenger.
The proposed amendment would, however, allow passengers to bring an additional large item of hand luggage onboard at no extra cost.
These are how airlines stack up at present:
| Dimensions | Cost | |
|---|---|---|
 | Small Item: 40 x 20 x 25cm Large item: 55 × 40 x 20cm | Small item: Free Large item: from €6 to €60 |
 | Small item: 45 x 36 x 20cm Large item: 56 x 45 x 25cm | Small item: Free Large item: from £5.99 |
 | Small item: 40x30x20cm Large item: 55x40x20cm | Small item: Free Large item: from €10 to €75 |
 | Small item: 40 x 30 x 25cm Large item: 55 x 40 x 23cm | Small item: Free Large item: from €18 |
