I’m flying to Las Vegas for a meeting later this week. I’m flying Southwest.

Yesterday I got an email from them. For $10, each way, I can check in early and get a better seat. I’m annoyed at what feels like being nickle and dimed by the airline. Maybe I should consider myself lucky that I’m not being charged for my bags. Southwest allows me to check my bags for free. American Airlines is charging $100, roundtrip, for two checked bags.

Some airlines are charging $20-$30 booking fees when tickets are purchased in-person or over the phone rather than online. In-flight food runs from $3 to $10. A pet in the cabin can run you $100. A pillow and blanket is $12 on some airlines. Changing your ticket can cost hundreds of dollars. Alcoholic beverages are, of course, extra and Jet Blue gets $10 for “extra legroom.”

These fees have the effect of undermining my trust in the airline. They make it feel a bit like me vs. them. That’s not what you want if you’re an airline and you need me to feel good about you and to trust you.

Is your firm like an airline? Are you still charging extra for items clients expect to have included?

Do you charge for photocopies, faxes, computer assisted legal research? Are you billing for postage? What about staff overtime? Do  you charge for court costs? Couriers? Long distance? Do you charge extra for after hours calls?  How about mileage?

Are your clients feeling nickle and dimed?

Ultimately, you’ve got to measure the impact of these charges on your relationship with the client. My annoyance with the airlines increases each time I pay one of these fees. Do your clients get more annoyed with you each time they receive a bill? Is it worth it to you? What does it cost you in client satisfaction and referrals?

I suspect the airlines are motivated to add these extras the way they do because they assume, correctly, that we buy our tickets based on the price. If they can sneak these fees in after we’ve purchased our tickets they can be the low bidder on the travel websites.

We aren’t faced, yet, with the same competitive pressure. We can roll those extras in to an hourly rate or fixed fee.

I suggest you stop breaking out those fees and build them in to your overall fee structure. In the long run it enhances your reputation and increases the likelihood of a client leaving with a favorable impression.

As an added benefit, you gain back the administrative time required for managing the details of charging back all those costs. That savings alone can more than offset many of these costs.