Dear British Airways

19th April 1994 Mr T Ravenscroft 11 Longlands Rd New Mills STOCKPORT Cheshire SK12 3BL     Ref: CR/940401830/HLE Dear Mr Ravenscroft     Thank you for your letter of 26 March, concerning your recent journey with us. Baggage allowances vary considerably depending upon geographical area. Regrettably, you have omitted your travel details from your letter, therefore, I do not know your destination. The United States and Canada operate a '2 piece' system for journeys into and out of their countries, whereas the general rule elsewhere in the world is a single piece limited by weight. We will not usually weigh a passenger's luggage unless it is comprised of more than one piece, or it is abnormally heavy or bulky. An excess charge will be levied for each kilo above the standard allowances of 23 kilos. We would like to make it clear than an excess baggage charge is not a fine or penalty, but a charge for providing an additional handling service. Liability for excess baggage charges is not related to the number of passengers on a flight or the amount of other passengers' baggage on a flight. The charge for the standard allowance is part of the fare and any passenger exceeding the allowance would have been charged appropriately. I am sure that our check-in agent did not force the gentleman in question to consume the chocolate that he removed from his baggage. We are nevertheless sorry for the problems you experienced on this occasion and hope that you have not been deterred from using our services again in the future. Yours sincerely   Hedy Beecham   Customer Relations Executive