Air Canada, WestJet Unfairly Deny Compensation for Passengers

Lesley Lowe believes Air Canada is not following the rules.

Last month, the airline canceled a return flight from New Orleans to Toronto — five hours before her scheduled departure. Her rebooked flight didn't depart until the next day. 

After her trip, Lowe applied for compensation for her delay, adding her US$394 plus additional costs she spent on hotels.

Air Canada responded that Lowe was not eligible to receive cash. Instead, the airline emailed her — saw it on CBC News — The email included a recent surge in travel, including long lines, baggage handling issues, and flight delays. described the challenges facing the company.

However, the email omitted important details. That's why Lowe's flight cancellation didn't warrant compensation. 

She "I don't think they have a good reason," said Lowe, who lives in Whitby, Ontario. "If they were really honest and transparent about what happened...they knew they had to take responsibility and compensate the passengers on the plane.

Lowe claims many airlines were unfairly denied compensation during this summer's massive flight delays and cancellations. One of her passengers. 

Will the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) take action against non-compliant airlines despite calls from them? Not yet confirmed — Passenger rights experts say it's time for tougher penalties.

"These [air passenger regulations] are not properly enforced in a rigorous manner in practice," said a consumer advocate and Toronto-based business attorney. One Daniil Tsai said: Under

Federal Regulations, airlines must only pay compensation — up to $1,000 — flight delays or in case of cancellation is under the control of the airline and is not required for safety reasons. Airlines must also cover accommodation costs for flight disruptions within the airline's control. 

WestJet and Air Canada first sparked customer outrage after continuing to refuse compensation for flight disruptions due to crew shortages } — CTA Clarification Staffing shortages are generally within the control of airlines and warrant compensation. 

Now some passengers have raised another concern. The airline did not provide a good explanation as to why the compensation was denied. 

According to the CTA, theairlines "have sufficient details" I need to explain the reason for the flight confusion. Reason for no compensation. 

However, Lowe said Air Canada never provided an explanation, even when asked to write back. 

"They just closed my case," she said. They "do not respect me as a customer when they answer my questions."

"Vague" explanation

Still awaiting a clear reason why WestJet denied him compensation for the delay in  from Vancouver to Toronto in June.

WestJet's only explanation was that the disruption was "due to post-departure delays beyond WestJet's control," according to emails seen by CBC News. However, according to his FlightAware for flight tracking service, the delay occurred before departure.

"The facts are that he doesn't match what WestJet says," he said, Mr Bhatti.

In addition, WestJet did not explain why the delay was out of control.

"You can't try something so foggy," Batty said. "I find it disturbing to anyone on the level of justice to give you such a vague, vague, inexplicable response." 

WestJet and Air Canada declined to comment on individual cases. They each told CBC News they were following the Federal Air Passenger Regulations, and a 2020 CTA investigation found evidence that airlines deliberately misled passengers when denying compensation claims. pointed out that was not found. 

"The complaint does not imply misconduct by the airline. It is simply a disagreement on the interpretation of these highly complex and contextual regulations." , an Air Canada spokesperson said in an email. "This is why the CTA has a complaint procedure."

Passengers who feel they have been denied compensation in error can file a complaint with theCTA and can solve the problem.

Federal transportation regulators are currently addressing18,200 air passenger complaints . Thanks to the recent surge: In the four months from April to July, the CTA said he received 7,500 new complaints. This is a significant increase from last year . Fines higher than 

.

Transport Canada spokesperson Laurel Lennox said in an email that the department will give CTA an additional $11 million to backlog complaints. It said it would help clear and "make sure the airline is operating within its regulations."

This cash injection was first announced in his April 2022 federal budget, but Lennox gave no indication of a new implementation plan.

To date, the CTA has not fined airlines for unfairly denying compensation. In an interview last week, the agency hinted that penalties, including fines, could apply.

"We are actually looking at all available execution options. ," said CTA spokesperson Tom Oommen. He declined to elaborate.

Consumer Advocate Daniel Tsai supports fines, but The current maximum fine per violation is $25,000. may not be much of a deterrent because

It's just a cost."

Tsai recommends that the CTA impose fines of at least $250,000 for each violation, plus millions of dollars for repeat offenders. increase. 

"This will make airlines really think twice before trying to push the blame on consumers," he said. 

In its annual report for 2020-21, the CTA also raises the maximum fine for companies to $250,000, showing the current cap. "Outdated as settings are from 1996."