We have pre-check, niece doesn't

JeanfromBNA

"Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming!"
Joined
Jun 1, 2006
We are traveling to WDW from Nashville, TN on Saturday and returning in a week. My DH and I have TSA pre-check. Our 12-year-old niece, who is traveling with us, doesn't. Will we have any trouble if she accompanies us in the pre-check security queue? Should we just go through the regular line?
 
Children 12 and under can tag along with an adult in the PreCheck lane. At 13, they have to go through the regular line unless PreCheck is on their boarding pass.
 
I have Pre-check and my wife and daughter do not. They always accompany me through the pre-check line (and DD is 15)
 
I have Pre-check and my wife and daughter do not. They always accompany me through the pre-check line (and DD is 15)

How many times have you done this and at what airports? Have they said anything to you? I never even asked when only one of us got the pre-check.
 
How many times have you done this and at what airports? Have they said anything to you? I never even asked when only one of us got the pre-check.

my husband has never been able to go with me when I get pre check and he didn't. We asked at IAD and MCO and told no. We both signed up for precheck last year because we got tire of only one if us getting it. I also asked if my adult daughter could go through with me once and told no. At BWI we have seen many folks get turned away when they didn't have it, but companion did. My grandkids always go through with us. My oldest just turned 12, so know she needs to sign up on her next birthday. All my adult children have since signed up fir pre check
 
My kids go with me. DH is on his own because he won't sign up for pre-check. They never allow him to come with us.
 
I have Pre-check and my wife and daughter do not. They always accompany me through the pre-check line (and DD is 15)

Either...

you are very very lucky with the agents you get, or...

they have Pre printed on their boarding passes and you don't realize it.

The latter happens when everyone is on the same reservation (and, as we discovered in December, as long as you're not flying Southwest, apparently, as they stated firmly that they don't do that). DS and I both now have NEXUS, but before that when we were all on the same reservation our boarding passes would all match DH's (he has Global Entry...that and NEXUS both give you Precheck). Except for on that southwest flight.



OP, your niece is 12, and if she doesn't have it printed on her boarding pass she can still go with you.
 
On our way to Disney, DH had the pre-check but DD and I didn't and on the way back, DH and I had it but DD didn't. We ended up going through the regular check and it wasn't so bad. Lines went quick.
 
I have Pre-check and my wife and daughter do not. They always accompany me through the pre-check line (and DD is 15)
When I book all of us on the same itinerary, dh and dd usually get TSAPrecheck, because I have it. But, if, for some reason, they are booked on their own, and they end up traveling with me? Nope, they don't get it and aren't allowed in the line with me.
 
I have Pre-check and my wife and daughter do not. They always accompany me through the pre-check line (and DD is 15)

Sounds like you are lucky or at a fairly quiet airport. My experience has been if one of us has Pre Check and other(s) don't, we have to split up. If what you said was the norm, you'd get people signing up and paying for one Pre Check and letting the rest of the family ride their coattails.
 
The airport I've used numerous times is MIA, which is one of the busiest airports in the country. I've used it returning from Charleston, SC, PHL, DCA, PHX, ORD, ATL.

The whole family is booked on the same itinerary, but do not have Pre-check on their boarding passes.

However, we had a non-family member flying with us to and from DCA last October and he had to go through regular security. He is a foreign citizen with permanent resident status -- but we told them that.

I'm sure it's variable with the airport and the TSA personnel and many other factors. We're pretty obviously a family, same last names, same itineraries, etc.
 
We're booked on the same itinerary, so we'll see what happens on the boarding passes. Even if she doesn't have it on her boarding pass, we'll take her with us in the pre-check line. Y'all confirmed what I had read, but I wanted to make sure that I hadn't missed anything, so, thank you.
 
I have a free precheck with my cc, but haven't bothered getting it, b/c ds will have to go in a separate line anyway so it won't save me any time at all.... he's well over 12
 
I have a free precheck with my cc, but haven't bothered getting it, b/c ds will have to go in a separate line anyway so it won't save me any time at all.... he's well over 12

You could get precheck for him...


ETA...as some of us have said (and experienced, which is why we say it), generally if you're on the same reservation with someone with precheck, you will also get it on your boarding pass. So if you got it, and had it in your airline account, and he's booked on your reservation, he might very well get it on his boarding pass as well.
 
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This is why I don't fly. Don't get me wrong. I love to fly, but the hassles. The TSA, Pre-Check This liquid okay, that one not.... Etc.. Etc....

I think it's a racket anyway.... You have to pay for all the "Security" on your ticket... OR.... You can pay even more to avoid it with "Pre-Check"
 
This is why I don't fly. Don't get me wrong. I love to fly, but the hassles. The TSA, Pre-Check This liquid okay, that one not.... Etc.. Etc....

I think it's a racket anyway.... You have to pay for all the "Security" on your ticket... OR.... You can pay even more to avoid it with "Pre-Check"

All non-flammable liquids are OK. They just need to be in certain sized containers if you're carrying them on.

The security fees are, what, $5 per flight segment, if that? That pays for the people and the equipment. Paying for precheck, Global Entry, or NEXUS pays for the personnel to do the background checks and the interviews. NEXUS has been *well* worth it for me and my son, IMO, and it's the cheapest (though hardest to get, longest to wait for an interview in general, and it's a thorough interview with both US and Canadian officials!).
 
I always make our plane reservations. Before we had PreCheck, my other half would almost always get PreCheck on his boarding pass while I wouldn't.
 
I always make our plane reservations. Before we had PreCheck, my other half would almost always get PreCheck on his boarding pass while I wouldn't.

That's us too. I made all the reservations under my name and everyone was on my itinerary, but only I got precheck. Same names. Now we are all signed up for precheck so it's all good. Well worth the $17 a year.
 
They just need to be in certain sized containers if you're carrying them on.
And herein lies (part of) the problem.

I drink a LOT of water. That said, I cannot stand paying the "Outrageous" prices of Bottled water. Upwards of $3.00 for a 20 ounce bottle (not just at airports though... many other places too.) So I like to bring a bottle of water with me... Oh but wait.... I cannot take it through the security. Instead I have to ditch it and BUY one on the other side. Really?

So how much Sun Screen do I bring? 3 Ounces is NOT enough for a week long trip. Oh, wait... I can buy it at the destination. (usually tourist areas so it's more expensive too.) Then when we leave.... I have to throw the excess away. Same could be said about many other items. (Shampoo, body wash, mouth wash, bug spray, on and on and on...)

It's just more hassle (for me) then it's worth. When I travel alone (like for work) it's much easier. I don't have allergies, and I will use the hotel's soaps/shampoo and the like, but with the family? Not happening. Not to mention that my wife doesn't like to fly anyway.
 

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