| Cardiff woman dodges flight luggage fee by posting her clothes Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 03:16, 3rd March 2026 |     |
From the BBC:
I dodged flight luggage fees by posting my clothes
Laura received thousands of likes and comments after sharing her savvy hack on social media
A "frugal" woman has been hailed as a money-saving "genius" after posting a month's worth of clothing for £2.59 to avoid a £30 luggage charge on a flight.
Laura Poole, 33, from Cardiff, squeezed her clothes into a gym bag, which she wrapped in a carrier bag before dropping it off at her local Tesco Express InPost locker.
Laura, who flew from Bristol to Glasgow on February 22 for a month on business, shipped "at least" five outfits including suit jackets and dresses, saving £27.41 on the trip.
The confidence trainer sent the parcel on the Thursday evening before her Sunday morning flight and it arrived safely in Glasgow just after she arrived in the city.
Laura threw suit jackets, trousers and dresses into her gym bag before wrapping it up inside a Lidl carrier bag to post at her local Tesco
Inspired by Vinted and its parcel shipping process, Laura has received thousands of comments since sharing the hack on social media and been hailed a "genius". She said she had "better things to spend her money on than really expensive baggage fees" and had used the travel hack before "so I knew it worked".
"I've always been really frugal," she added. The hack led to others sharing their top tips to save money when travelling, from stuffing clothes into a neck cushion to wearing cargo trousers with large pockets for extra storage.
Laura also packed enough clothes in her cabin backpack to last her two to three days. "I would not post anything that I loved. That stuff goes in my backpack," she said. "My thought process is if anything goes wrong, or it doesn't arrive in time, I've got time to buy new clothes."
Laura, a public speaker and trainer, said her appearance mattered when she was working. "I need to look good. Suit jackets, trousers, all sorts - I threw it all in, dresses as well," she said.
She said she planned to use the same posting method when she returned from the trip, and had been amazed by the reaction to her post. "There are always trolls whenever anything goes that big and people are always negative, but overall I've never been called a genius so much in my life."
Laura received thousands of likes and comments after sharing her savvy hack on social media
A "frugal" woman has been hailed as a money-saving "genius" after posting a month's worth of clothing for £2.59 to avoid a £30 luggage charge on a flight.
Laura Poole, 33, from Cardiff, squeezed her clothes into a gym bag, which she wrapped in a carrier bag before dropping it off at her local Tesco Express InPost locker.
Laura, who flew from Bristol to Glasgow on February 22 for a month on business, shipped "at least" five outfits including suit jackets and dresses, saving £27.41 on the trip.
The confidence trainer sent the parcel on the Thursday evening before her Sunday morning flight and it arrived safely in Glasgow just after she arrived in the city.
Laura threw suit jackets, trousers and dresses into her gym bag before wrapping it up inside a Lidl carrier bag to post at her local Tesco
Inspired by Vinted and its parcel shipping process, Laura has received thousands of comments since sharing the hack on social media and been hailed a "genius". She said she had "better things to spend her money on than really expensive baggage fees" and had used the travel hack before "so I knew it worked".
"I've always been really frugal," she added. The hack led to others sharing their top tips to save money when travelling, from stuffing clothes into a neck cushion to wearing cargo trousers with large pockets for extra storage.
Laura also packed enough clothes in her cabin backpack to last her two to three days. "I would not post anything that I loved. That stuff goes in my backpack," she said. "My thought process is if anything goes wrong, or it doesn't arrive in time, I've got time to buy new clothes."
Laura, a public speaker and trainer, said her appearance mattered when she was working. "I need to look good. Suit jackets, trousers, all sorts - I threw it all in, dresses as well," she said.
She said she planned to use the same posting method when she returned from the trip, and had been amazed by the reaction to her post. "There are always trolls whenever anything goes that big and people are always negative, but overall I've never been called a genius so much in my life."
| Re: Cardiff woman dodges flight luggage fee by posting her clothes Posted by Witham Bobby at 11:25, 3rd March 2026 | |
Highly reminiscent of the old PLA - Passengers Luggage in Advance - system.
You'd take your luggage to the departure station a day or two before you travelled. Dropped it off and paid a not huge fee. Labelled up with the destination station and PLA labels.
When you later arrived at the destination station, your lugage would be waiting for you to claim, at the parcels office at smaller stations, or the luggage office of bigger places
The luggage was conveyed by parcels services. Either dedicated parcels trains (remember those?), or in the guards van of passenger trains
| Re: Cardiff woman dodges flight luggage fee by posting her clothes Posted by PrestburyRoad at 12:00, 3rd March 2026 | |
PLA also included the additional option of collection and delivery, which made it a door-to-door service. I remember using this when I was a student in the early 1970s and my parents had no other way of getting my trunk to and from university at the beginning and end of each academic year. Going further back, my mother used the same service and the very same trunk in the same way in the 1930s. I still have the trunk stored away in my garage.
| Re: Cardiff woman dodges flight luggage fee by posting her clothes Posted by bobm at 14:06, 3rd March 2026 | |
I did a variation of that on my All Line Rover tours, posted my clothes home as used them. In theory it meant my luggage got lighter as I went, in practice the space was filled by souvenirs.
| Re: Cardiff woman dodges flight luggage fee by posting her clothes Posted by Ralph Ayres at 17:55, 3rd March 2026 | |
To me it sort of makes sense that it's cheaper that way. The clothes have several days to be carried by the most cost-effective and efficient means rather than space having to be provided at the same time as the passenger is travelling. It's clearly less convenient though and I'm glad the railways haven't generally tightened up on luggage carrying, although Lumo have started down that slippery slope.
| Re: Cardiff woman dodges flight luggage fee by posting her clothes Posted by Noggin at 12:12, 4th March 2026 | |
I knew a US management consultant who did something similar in the 1990s when he was on road trips in order to travel light.
He'd only pack a few overnight things and spare underwear, FedEx-ing clean shirts to himself at the hotels he was staying in along the way.
Carbon Footprint? We didn't really think of that back then.
| Re: Cardiff woman dodges flight luggage fee by posting her clothes Posted by grahame at 12:13, 6th July 2026 | |
To me it sort of makes sense that it's cheaper that way. The clothes have several days to be carried by the most cost-effective and efficient means rather than space having to be provided at the same time as the passenger is travelling. It's clearly less convenient though and I'm glad the railways haven't generally tightened up on luggage carrying, although Lumo have started down that slippery slope.
I see this morning that Lumo are saying
We’ve achieved a new record in reducing carbon emissions today, operating the highest capacity domestic intercity train in the UK!
The sold-out service had the potential to carry 772 customers in each direction between Edinburgh, Newcastle and London - that’s more than 1,540 people onboard the record-breaking return service.
The sold-out service had the potential to carry 772 customers in each direction between Edinburgh, Newcastle and London - that’s more than 1,540 people onboard the record-breaking return service.
That's a 10 car train - for comparison 2 x class 800 GWR IETs coupled provide 652 seats. I appreciate that Lumo is standard class only and I have not (yet?) tried them - how are they for luggage, cycle, pushchair, wheelchair and seat pitch?
| Re: Cardiff woman dodges flight luggage fee by posting her clothes Posted by grahame at 10:29, 19th October 2026 | |
To me it sort of makes sense that it's cheaper that way. The clothes have several days to be carried by the most cost-effective and efficient means rather than space having to be provided at the same time as the passenger is travelling. It's clearly less convenient though and I'm glad the railways haven't generally tightened up on luggage carrying, although Lumo have started down that slippery slope.
My data feed has brought out complaints about people being "fined" £40 for breaking a "silly rule" when travelling on the train. Turns out to be a grumble about Lumo's policy / system:
https://www.lumo.co.uk/plan-your-journey/onboard-luggage-policy
Here at Lumo, we understand you may wish to keep your luggage close by, and that what you are travelling with is important, but depending on the size this may not always be possible. All customers can bring on board a maximum of ONE Small bag OR Small Holdall and ONE Medium suitcase (63 x 41 x 27cm). Golf clubs and large musical instruments are not allowed onboard, travel will be denied if carrying these items.
Please note that luggage that exceeds these limits will result in a charge of £40 per item OR customers may be refused travel if safe storage of additional items is not achievable due to busy services. Any luggage unsafely stored overhead and not according to the dimensions provided is stored at your own risk and is a risk to others' safety. For safety reasons, luggage cannot be padlocked to the train's infrastructure or doors.
Please note that luggage that exceeds these limits will result in a charge of £40 per item OR customers may be refused travel if safe storage of additional items is not achievable due to busy services. Any luggage unsafely stored overhead and not according to the dimensions provided is stored at your own risk and is a risk to others' safety. For safety reasons, luggage cannot be padlocked to the train's infrastructure or doors.
We would be in trouble there or rather we would have to spend at extra £40 - Lisa's mobility device Henry does fold to suitcase size, but that would leave her no allowance for anything beyond a handbag. Reading carefully, it says it's a maximum for ALL customers - no allowance made in the rule as stated in public for people who need disability aids - and s such potentially discriminatory.
| Re: Cardiff woman dodges flight luggage fee by posting her clothes Posted by ChrisB at 11:01, 19th October 2026 | |
In law, there is a difference between a mobility scooter (mobility aid) and an (electric or manual) wheelchair (disability aid) - which is how carriers can refuse the former but never the latter.
| Re: Cardiff woman dodges flight luggage fee by posting her clothes Posted by grahame at 11:29, 19th October 2026 | |
In law, there is a difference between a mobility scooter (mobility aid) and an (electric or manual) wheelchair (disability aid) - which is how carriers can refuse the former but never the latter.
Interestingly, Chris - the Lumo wording makes no mention of either. There is nothing saying they will refuse either if it fits in their size limitation - but then if the person who needs the mobility aid wishes to bring a suitcase - kching - that will be forty quid please. No refusal to carry.
Where does the (legal) definition boundary lie? Does it relate to whether there's some sort of steering / handle bar in front of the chair user? So it's an electric wheelchair if it has a driving joystick on the arm, but not if a similar joystick is on a column in from of the user??
| Re: Cardiff woman dodges flight luggage fee by posting her clothes Posted by ChrisB at 11:35, 19th October 2026 | |
I think it relates as to whether it has handles to enable manual pushing...although I don't know for certain. But I do know that the definitions are as I state - and that, therefore, Lumo would need to accept the carry-on case along with a wheelchair, but could include a mobility aid as that allowance.
