Hello,

I have a story that may be of interest to Canadian (and possibly other)

dog owners who have transported their dogs to England. I was

overcharged CA$1087 for the transport of my two dogs and have recently

received a cheque from British Airways for over £500. The reason is

that cost for transporting animals in cargo is based on volumetric

weight at a rate of 366 cubic inches=1kilo. The cost for each kilo,

including surcharges, is normally CA$13.88/kilo (from Canada). However,

*if the total volumetric weight is greater than 100 kilos then a

discount applies* which means that the charge should be CA$6.75 per

kilo.

This is how it worked in my case. I had two crates, one sized 36X24X27"

and the other 40X27X30". That's a total of 23328 cubic inches plus

32400 cubic inches = 55728 cubic inches. At 366 cubic inches per kilo,

that's a total of 152 kilos.

I was charged at the rate of CA$13.88/kilo for a total of CA$2113 (plus

some other small charges). However, because the total volumetric weight

was over 150 kilo, I should have been charged at CA$6.75 per kilo for a

total of CA$1026. Quite a difference!!

I know from experience that BA employees in both Canada and England do

not understand this system. It took direct contact with Mr. Bill Glenn,

Manager of Global Customer Service at BA World Cargo to finally concede

to this error. I recommend that if you have any question about how you

were charged for the transport of your dogs on British Airways that you

contact him directly at Tel: 0208 738 4471 (Fax: 0208 738 4986).

Sincerely,

Dr. Philip A. Higham

QUAFF member