Lucian just took a small backpack on his Ryanair flight (Picture: TikTok/@isthatmike03)
There are tons of ways to save on airline luggage fees, whether you wear all your holiday clothes on the flight or sneak them into a travel pillow.
But this man’s supposed hack has raised eyebrows on TikTok, with some questioning its effectiveness and legality.
Lucian, who goes by @isthatmike03 on the platform, shared a clip detailing his cost-cutting strategy with the caption ‘Reduce. Reuse. Recycle.’
In the video, which has been viewed more than 570,000 times, he explains that he paid £10 for a plane ticket with Ryanair, but didn’t add any baggage to his booking in an effort to avoid spending extra.
‘Stop paying those airlines your hard-earned money just so you can have extra luggage,’ said the London-based creator.
Instead, Lucian suggests going shopping upon reaching your destination, then getting a refund before you head home.
He continued: ‘Take all the clothes to your accommodation, plan your looks, and wear a fashionable outfit every single day. And at the end of your trip, just allow yourself a bit of time so you can take everything back and return everything.’
According to Lucian, this tip works ‘even better if you don’t have a credit card, so you don’t have to spend any of your own money’.
Although he tagged the post with #comedy and #satire, there were some serious supporters of the method in the comments.
@franja_54 said, ‘It’s like free clothing rental and generates less waste, while @dimaraap added: ‘You’re onto something.’
Others weren’t quite convinced, however, including @penelope.s.m who commented, ‘Ew what!??,’ and @damilkarojasq who said: ‘So this is why Zara charges €1.90 for returns.’
@kerrigansj also highlighted that it’s not always possible, replying: ‘You can’t do this in every country, some will give you store credit but not your money.’
Some felt the ‘hack’ was unethical(Picture: TikTok/@isthatmike03)
There were also questions about what Lucian does with the tags while he wears the clothes, how he manages to keep them in new condition for returning, and the ethics of doing something like this.
We hate to burst the bubble, but the answers to all of these prove it’s not a good hack to try.
Laws on returns vary between countries, so you could end up wasting cash if you can’t get a refund. Even in the UK you aren’t always entitled to a refund unless you bought online or through mail order.
Additionally, certain shops won’t accept returns when items have had their tags removed or appear to have been worn unless they’re faulty.
Retailers are becoming more aware of the growing trend of ‘wardrobing’, with Asos creating a ‘blacklist for serial returners’ and Harrods taking action to stop people abusing their returns policy.
Returned clothes often go to landfill (Picture: TikTok/@isthatmike03)
Dishonest returns are thought to cost shops in the UK £1.5billion each year, and returned clothes are often binned rather than going back on sale, contributing to the many landfills full of throwaway fashion.
Hussain Ul-Haq from Love The Sales told Mirror: ‘Most retailers have a strict policy on returning goods that have been worn and washed. It’s a huge financial gamble, one we wouldn’t recommend.
‘The real question is why are people returning clothes in the first place? Stemming from fast fashion cycles that are only getting shorter and shorter, too many of us are buying cheaper clothing that wears out after a few outings.
‘If you don’t want to feel guilty about returning the clothes, there are alternatives available. Buying less and better quality is a start.’
Essentially, though you might get away with this hack depending on the shop assistant working that day, the potential consequences (not to mention effort) mean it’s likely better to just fork out for a suitcase.
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”Stop paying those airlines your hard-earned money.’
