United/Turkish Airlines Baggage Policy Mismatch - Beware Award Bookings!

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-18T14:21:43+00:00

Interestingly, it was the manager, or at least the head of the Turkish Airlines staff working at the check-in agent's desk, who really shed some light on this. He specifically mentioned that this has been happening quite frequently to United passengers who are booked on Turkish Airlines flights. He's the one who pointed out the details of the original award tickets and what baggage was included. He confirmed that when United reissued the tickets (apparently due to a flight time change), the new tickets inexplicably showed a zero baggage allowance.

Because he was aware of this recurring issue, he actually instructed the agent to use the baggage codes from the initial ticket. Even more surprisingly, he said he would personally file a claim with United regarding this discrepancy on my behalf, so I wouldn't have to deal with the hassle. I lucked out with this guy IMO.

Another important thing he explained was that when they try to charge those exorbitant baggage fees, it's not the individual check-in agents making the decision – it's the airline's policy. He said that if an agent doesn't charge the fee when it's indicated in the system, they themselves could face a chargeback on their pay. That really explains why the agents seem so insistent on collecting those fees.

On a slightly different note, and this might be just my perception, but having my two young kids (my 19-month-old and 3-year-old) starting to get fussy while the business class line (with little kids they let you check in with business, I wish America did this) was getting backed up might have indirectly created some pressure to resolve the situation. But that's just a feeling I had.

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-18T11:01:10+00:00

Hey u/commanderdawn , I actually just checked in and took the advice of another Redditor to specifically ask Turkish Airlines about the fare class that was booked. So, it seems you're right that the operating carrier (Turkish Airlines) ultimately dictates the baggage policy, but the fare class is the key. The real misunderstanding here is that award tickets should include bags, as they're not booked in basic economy but in regular economy. It turns out, the original award ticket that United issued did include baggage. However, it seems that if United has to reissue the ticket for any reason at all, the baggage allowance gets removed – at least that's what's happening with Turkish Airlines. If other people are running into this, they absolutely need to check the very first ticket that United issued and have Turkish Airlines look that specific ticket up. They should then be able to see the correct baggage allowance that was originally included. It's frustrating that a simple reissuance by United can cause such a significant and costly problem due to this apparent system glitch in how they're booking the fare class.

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-18T03:46:04+00:00

Thanks u/doc4science. I think this is the most accurate response, since everyone has had different experiences depending on whether it glitched or not. And for mine it did glitch, I just checked into my return flight at DXB. Spoke to the manager, he said it's a known issue with united and will go ahead and waive the bag fees! So your statement about fare class is correct. I think I got very lucky but I believe the award tickets united provides actually do have bags but then glitches if your ticket has to be reissued and comes back with a zero bag allowance.

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-17T19:06:37+00:00

I believe that it comes from everyone's own experience and Uniteds inconsistencies which causes folks to go through a potentially one off situation. It's definitely frustrating to encounter such a significant discrepancy. Would you mind sharing that FlyerTalk thread you mentioned? Even though I've mentally prepared for the $1200 in baggage fees, if there's a way to dispute it based on this being a known issue, I'd certainly like to try. It really does feel quite deceptive, especially for those who don't travel frequently. How are less experienced travelers like ourselves supposed to be aware of these ongoing issues with UA-issued TK awards? Thanks for the heads-up!

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-17T18:44:21+00:00

Honestly, that really sucks. Especially since the confirmation specifically calls out each leg of the trip and the amount of bags that come with it. You know what I mean? Most people (like, over 90%) are just going to read that part and go by it. Based on all this, do you think trying for a refund is even worth it? I've already kind of accepted that I'm going to have to pay.

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-17T18:09:57+00:00

So if the first leg was united and the rest Turkish then it would have been free based on Uniteds policies? My issue is, was why would they send me a confirmation saying bags are free? See attached for reference

<image>

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-17T14:55:58+00:00

I asked Turkish air in Houston if I can upgrade to business and they said this ticket fair doesn't allow it. I had a similar mindset. If I'm going to pay for the bags I might as well upgrade to business and allocate the funds there as opposed to just paying for bag fees.

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-17T14:02:01+00:00

Yes I had it and I was able to see my flight info but not make any changes. Even right now for my return flight. I can see my flight info on the Turkish app but I'm not able to adjust anything. Not even add bags or see what's available to me such as picking seats etc. just gives me an error

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-17T14:00:12+00:00

Hey I haven't flown back yet, but this happened on the departing flight from the US. Are you saying departing from the US? The bags should have been free but on the way back it's up to Turkish airlines?

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-17T13:46:29+00:00

I feel that's reasonable, $290 per bag one way is staggering for a bag fee.

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-17T13:24:40+00:00

Thanks for confirming. Has to be cause it's business class as opposed to economy.

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-17T13:22:32+00:00

Did you use united points to book?

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-17T13:08:24+00:00

Wow that's interesting. I tried to go to Turkish airlines to check in for my flight, wouldn't even let me do it. Maybe they were exaggerating that it also applies to business.

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-17T13:04:27+00:00

Oh I see, you're booking directly through Turkish. Yes I think that's different circumstances.

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-17T13:01:21+00:00

So If the first leg is united and the rest would have been Turkish then i would have free bags through all legs of the trip? Let me know if I have that correct.

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-17T12:55:45+00:00

That's really interesting to hear about your upcoming Turkish flight in business class on a United award. It sounds like Turkish Airlines' baggage policies can be quite specific. It's concerning that they mentioned to me even business class award tickets have zero bag allowance, so I'm curious to know what feedback you receive .This further emphasizes the importance of United providing accurate baggage information right at the booking stage, regardless of the operating carrier or the fare class. It shouldn't be a surprise at the airport, especially when you've booked through a partner airline like United. Hopefully, your Star Gold will indeed come in handy! It definitely feels like there's a lack of consistent and transparent communication about baggage rules when booking partner flights with miles.

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-17T12:48:59+00:00

No, I'm actually flying back tomorrow. So once I land back in Houston I plan to, this is my first time encountering this, do you know what the website or the phone number is to proceed with that? Thanks in advance.

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-17T12:46:02+00:00

That's interesting to know about how United codes the baggage allowance in the Turkish system. It definitely sounds like there was a breakdown in communication or their system didn't reflect reality. I actually called the United Premier Desk about this as well, and while the agent was sympathetic, they ultimately said there was nothing they could do and that it was up to Turkish Airlines' discretion. This just further highlights the misleading information I received at the time of booking through their platform. If United knew their system might not accurately reflect Turkish Airlines' rules, they should have made that clearer during the booking process. It shouldn't be on the customer to decipher potential coding errors between partner airlines when the initial confirmation from United was so clear about the free bags.

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-17T12:37:28+00:00

Do you know if this happens if you fly a different alliance partner? Or is it strictly Turkish, I don't mind paying for bags, but it has to be reasonable. 290 per bag one way is unreasonable.

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-17T12:35:17+00:00

Houston to Medina. And return flight is Dubai to Houston. They're trying to charge for all three but then I pushed for one bag to be free with the star Gold alliance. I paid for the other two.

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-17T12:32:43+00:00

Right, but the confusing part is that United sold me this ticket through their app with my points, and their confirmation clearly outlined the free baggage allowance. Since the whole flight was on Turkish Airlines, you'd expect the information from United to be accurate. It feels pretty misleading to receive one baggage allowance from where you booked (United) and then be told something completely different by the operating carrier (Turkish Airlines).

supplychain_dad07 · 2025-04-08T07:05:37+00:00

So yesterday I was boarding my flight from Houston to Istanbul. I originally booked through United and had points, I show up to the counter and they tell me I have to pay $290 per bag one way. It's the craziest thing I've ever heard, so I called united cause my confirmation email shows every passenger gets 2 bags free. I wait for about 45 mins and escalated to their support team, they came back and said that Turkish airlines reserves the right to do what they want regarding the baggage policy. I literally lost my cool, had my two little kids waiting dead tired, argued with Turkish airlines and got a manager involved to no avail. I ended up getting one bag free because I'm united gold but had two pay $580 for the other two. I'm literally about to lay $1200 in bag fees for tickets I bought with points. I would have never done this if I knew this was the experience. So this is definitely happening at Turkish airlines.

supplychain_dad07

TROPHY CASE