I don’t remember the last time I paid for a checked bag on a plane. Granted. I’ve paid for carry-ons while flying Allegiant — but, in the cases where I have elected to check a bag in recent years, it’s been a free gate check since I occasionally volunteer to part with my bag early rather than fight for overhead bin space. Well, on my most recent trip, I had an experience that got me thinking about how you might be able to check a bag for free, even if you didn’t really intend on carrying it on. Let me explain.
As I may have mentioned before, I’m a big fan of having a paper boarding pass whenever possible. So, when I got to the airport, I headed to the Delta kiosk to print them off. While going through the process, after saying I didn’t have any bags to check, a prompt asked me if I wanted to voluntarily check my carry-on for free. I didn’t, but I made a mental note of this.
Sure enough, on my way home, the same thing happened. This made me realize that, in theory, you could basically use this as a way to score a free checked bag. After all, you could just say you don’t have any bags, wait for the offer, and then take them up on it. Or, if you’re on a lighter flight and no prompt is necessary, you could always just go back and pay the fee. No harm, no foul.
Of course, this raises some moral and operational questions. Starting with the former, would it be wrong to employ this trick and save the fee? After all, you are entitled to a carry-on, so what’s the difference if you then decide to check that carry-on instead?
That leads to the operational questions. If you were to take this free checked bag offer and then went to the counter with a piece of luggage that was clearly not carry-on sized, would the agent rebuke you? Similarly, what if you had more items that you were allowed, also suggesting that you were going to have to check something anyway? I don’t know these answers… and I’m not sure if Delta does either.
Personally, as a self-proclaimed rule follower, I’d be hesitant to game the system and take advantage of this offer and would only ever use it as intended. After all, this option may be better than waiting for a potential gate check situation. I’m sure that’s the whole idea behind Delta’s move here — and I’m guessing that the efficiency gains they get from doing this outweigh the downsides of some sneaky passengers pulling a fast one on them.
Either way, I’m curious to hear your thoughts on this dilemma, so be sure to let me know. No judgement.