Checking your luggage at an airline counter or bag drop before a flight at Newark Liberty International Airport? Keep an eye on the baggage scales for phantom weight: You could be told to pay extra for more pounds than you packed.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s because Newark\u2019s weighing equipment routinely gives unreliable readings for passenger baggage that\u2019s bound for jet cargo holds. During the scales\u2019 most recent tests by New Jersey state regulators, the devices gave inaccurate results 27% of the time, according to a review of data by NJ Spotlight News and NYCity News Service.<\/p>\n
No other major New York City area airports\u2019 scales come close to Newark\u2019s rate of wrong readings, public records show. While New York City officials conduct annual weight tests at LaGuardia and JFK airports, the watchdog New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs hasn\u2019t done an examination since 2023.<\/p>\n