Hi there.
I am currently on my holiday and have bought too much that I'm going to be over weight when I go back home to oz. I can't believe my allowance is only 20kgs now. Anyway what is the best way to send the excess? I read something about companies being at heathrow anyone used these? Or should I send it via sea mail from post office? I'm nor sure how much over but I reckon atleast ten kilos.
Thanks for your advice

cheapskate solution:

- Wear *lots* of layers to the airport and through check in
- Wear a nice big coat with big pockets.
- Fill those pockets with your heaviest clothing
- Fill your carry-on bag with more clothes... (and no heavy books or drinks)

10kg may sound like a lot - but you can easily wear 2 or 3 kgs or clothing, and squeeze an extra 5 or 6kg into your carry on with a bit of effort. Beofre you know it you're only 1kg over and the checkin staff will probably let you off (with an appropriate smile and the right apologetic attitude).

Until airlines wake up and start charging people for TOTAL weight (i.e. including body weight) then theres nothing to stop you from 'overdressing' for a flight to reduce your checked in weights - Of course as soon as you're on the plane you can strip down to comfortable clothes again and take off the 6 t-shirts, 2 jumpers, heavy winter coat, 4 pairs of socks and heavy walking boots!

(I did hear story of someone who dediced to wear his scuba diving weight belt on the plane because checking it in would leave him squarely into excess baggage territory!)

Not sure if that would be feasible in the UK, but we've just come back from France and - as usual - ended up with way too much stuff. So I did as I have done every time we visit, I went to the post office, bought two pre-paid 7kg international parcels for 43€ each and hey presto, my stuff arrived 5 days after we did. We tend to fill the parcels with small heavy things such as toiletries and books as the boxes are not very large, and it means we have 14kg less in our luggage which beats the US$60 per kg that Singapore Airlines charge for excess baggage.
Again, this was in France but it could be worth checking with the Post Office or Parcel Force (I know, same thing...) for their rates...

You could always chance it. We were 25kg over in total when we returned from the UK last year. We checked in online the day before and I think by the time we rocked up at check in they realised they had spare capacity and we weren't charged a bean. That was with Singapore.

Dont forget your carry on allowance as well. You should be entitled to 27 kilos. Are you not able to accesss any luggage scales or I just use the bog standard bathroom scales. I would get an exact weight before I start thinking about paying excess.

BA let's you buy extra allowances in advance for a reasonable amount.

box it up and send it via courier - weight it, order pick up online, fill your customs form in, and hey presto! It will arrive soon after you. I paid just over 100GBP to post 2 parcels totalling about 30kgs last time i was in UK. Just make sure you declare value as less than $1000 or you'll get done for import duty (personal clothing and shoes are exempt).

Also - if you have not already - get a VAT reclaim form from the shops you bought goods from, fill it in, post it at airport and a few weeks later you get your VAT back. Bargain!

I always send my excess (lots more than 10kg!) back now with www.wedelivertheworld.co.uk - very quick, very reaonable, and a lot easier than using Excess Baggage Co from Heathrow - used them a couple of times, but its a hassle picking the stuff up from the airport this end. Wedelivertheworld do door to door - they use DHL mainly, but are much cheaper than booking direct with DHL.

We use www.parcelflight.co.uk. Fairly simple forms to complete and the guys on the phone have always been great.