Feeling uncomfortable after sharing a seat with a very obese passenger

[Bayleaftree63]

On public transport earlier. A very large woman sits nexts to me. She couldn’t get the seat belt
round her. Her body spilt over into my seat, leaving me squashed with what little space there was left.

On the journey I couldn’t help be annoyed at the lack of space I was left with and questioning how do people let themselves get to that size. Talking morbidly obese, not just larger - whatever the medical
term.

This isn’t about shaming, more I’m in disbelief people being that big are happy? Why wouldn’t you want to loose some weight for a healthier lifestyle.

It's basic health and safety that is missing from the airlines side.

Cost does not come before health and safety. You have to make reasonable health and safety provisions.

As I said - we had a very large man start working at my company. He couldn't fit into the desk chair. Instead of insisting that he squeezed into it and injured himself, we followed health and safety regulations and bought him a larger chair.

That's a bit of a 'You kicked my foot with your nose,' comment.

It probably wasn't comfortable, but that's not the OP's problem. The airline should deal with these situations, but they don't always. Would the comments be different if it had been an obese man, I wonder?

@Mumbles11 Transport providers should be more generous with seat sizes and spaces in the first place, but that’s not going to happen because of costs/economy. On planes where seats are allocated it should be a condition of carriage that you are not too large to fit in the seat with the armrests down. It’s as simple as that.

If you don’t fit you have to buy premium economy, business or first class. What would happen if you were seated on a plane between two huge people who overflowed into your seat so you couldn’t sit in it? How would you deal with that?

If only it was that simple

They do, premium are larger than economy, some airlines have more room on all their seats, you just need to research different flights, super budget airlines with fixed armrests are not suitable for anyone, they are just money making.

The comment would be the same, how would you feel and react if you'd paid for a seat but were squashed throughout the whole flight.

Baring any other medical conditions, the physical mechanism for weight gain is the same. She is over weight because she eats more than she burns. If she is disabled, that obviously restricts her mobility, hence she burns less, so needs to eat less. That said, if she cannot fit into a specified seat, then yes she needs to buy two. Does she claim PIP? Isn’t that what PIP is meant for? Additional costs in relation to a disability?

@Mumbles11

Cost does not come before health and safety. You have to make reasonable health and safety provisions.

Go and have a look and see how H&S applies in the aviation world and on-board aircraft...it may not work in the way it does in an office.......

FWIW probably the most aggressive championers of passenger rights reside in the US and even the US Air Carriers Access Act doesn't have an answer to this issue, even States side it's often a case of "consider buying two seats"......

Yes. I have been bed bound for nearly nine years trying to get the NHS to put a botched spine surgery right. In that time I have only gained five kilos which I am now losing because I am back on my feet.

Because I was using bugger all calories, I ate very low carb and I learned to fast too because I knew if I kept eating how I did when I was working and on my feet 12 hours a day, I would get so huge I would be disabled as a result of weight gain as well.

We are all our own managers when it comes to what we put in our mouths and the consequences of it. Other people should not have to suffer as a result of other's bad choices.

Sometimes even a single seat isn't available, how is any of that pertinent? What's wrong with the airline saying we sell seats, which are x amount of space for x amount of money, and if someone needs 2x amount of space they have to buy another unit of space?

Dancing down the aisle offering coffee and tea when mini skirts in style back in 63
Now it's hard to get by when your arse is the size of a small country..on the National Express.

They do, it's on websites

I don't get the reference, sorry!?

It's a song by the Divine Comedy.

They're song lyrics

It was a song by Divine comedy 90s National Express.

I think you’re being a bit unfair there. Whilst it’s not the fault of the overweight person, you can’t say that it doesn’t impact on the person next to them. I have chronic arthritis and had to sit next to a very overweight man on a flight once. Sitting awkwardly meant neck pain for the duration of my break.

In the 1970s–1980s, many economy seats were around 18–19 inches wide.

Today, some aircraft have economy seats as narrow as 16.5–17 inches, particularly on certain narrow-body jets.

All to fit more people into planes

Seats are measured by hips not shoulder width and shoulder tend to be wider so yeah you are gling to encroach on people's space regardless. As I said even commuting on trains regularly you see regular sized folks not having any wiggle room. Not everyone can get down to slim builds either.

Its time they updated seat sizes. Infact oe airline I heard is now going to be offering wider seats because they recognise an untapped market.

Which one?

It will be interesting to see if people are willing to pay more for wider seats. What people say they will buy and what they actually do buy are two different things. I suspect a lot of people will continue to buy the cheaper fares and then just muddle through when it comes to the actual flight if there's a problem, but it'll be interesting to see what the market does.

I can’t believe how insensitive and misinformed your post was.

Of course most (not all) larger/bigger people are not happy.

You won’t know of the struggles of finding something to wear that ‘hides’ any unflattering angles. That isn’t too tight. That is comfortable.
Worried about how others view you.
I’ll bet that lady spent the entire journey feeling embarrassed that her belt didn’t fit and more than likely knew she took up more space than just her seat.

I am by no means a large/big or skinny person myself but have seen the effects and treatment differ to being on either side of the scales.

Try being more understanding next time, it wasn’t just you who was uncomfortable.

Anyone who really has flown a lot with a decent number of airlines will testify that wider seats have been available for years, but there seems to some reluctance by some posters to accept that.

It's most certainly not an untapped market.

I suspect what people really want to do is to force their chosen LoCo on their favourite route to offer wider seats, but of course they won't accept that that would come at a cost...

And I and I know the marketers would agree with @ThatCyanCat "'s comment that:

"What people say they will buy and what they actually do buy are two different things."

Jet blue already added an extra amount to their seats. United is overhauling its entire fleet and will offer more spacious seats.

Most American airlines are following suit it seems their data tells them more people are paying for premium seats then standard...makes sense people are happy to pay more for better seats.

We arent talking business class or first class here which is unaffordable for many people. Not even premium economy is that much bigger.

There needs to be more of a middle ground where you can pay for wider seats without being priced out completely.

I'm not saying it isn't a problem or doesn't impact on others, it clearly does, and as others have said it would be good for bigger seats to be available. I was commenting on the derisory way the OP spoke about this woman.

I had an unpleasant flight recently because I was sitting next to a young man who was either lolling over the armrest into my space or leaning into the aisle with his knees wedged, into my space, against the back of the seat in front. It took all my restraint not to slip into "mother mode" and tell him to sit up straight but I would not speak about him in the negative way the original post was made.
Sadly for those of us who fly short haul from Northern airports our only choice is which cattle class airline is the least awful