Compensation questions loom for Air Canada customers with cancelled flights
Consumer rights advocates are demanding Air Canada provide compensation to many of the hundreds of thousands of passengers whose summer flights it cancelled - but whether the airline plans to concede remains up in the air.<br/>Canada's largest carrier said Wednesday night it will cut more than 15 per cent of its departures in July and August as the country's flight network sags under an overwhelming travel resurgence. The move will see more than 9,500 flights, or 154 per day on average, dropped from the airline's schedule - already operating at just 80% of pre-pandemic levels. The flights link mainly to the airline's Toronto and Montreal hubs, and run along domestic or Canada-US routes. No international flights other than those to the United States were among the cull. “This Canada Day weekend will be difficult,” CEO Michael Rousseau told employees in a memo dated Thursday. “I wish I could promise you that the measures we are taking will mean an easy summer ahead. While they will certainly provide some relief, it will take time and effort and we likely won't see the full benefit until the latter part of July.” Sylvie De Bellefeuille, a lawyer with Quebec-based advocacy group Option consommateurs, says many customers are “absolutely” owed compensation under Canada's passenger rights charter. The Air Passenger Protection Regulations (APPR), which took force in 2019, require compensation - distinct from refunds - of between $400 and $1,000 for a cancellation or significant delay that is “within the carrier's control,” should the traveller opt to reject the rebooking, and in some cases when they accept it. “I believe it is the decision of Air Canada to cancel the flights,” De Bellefeuille said. “Therefore people should have a right of compensation.” While Rousseau apologized for cancellations and “customer service shortfalls,” the CEO also said in an email to travellers the schedule reduction stemmed from strains on the “global aviation system” - which falls outside Air Canada's control - calling them “unprecedented and unforeseen.”<br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2022-07-01/star/compensation-questions-loom-for-air-canada-customers-with-cancelled-flights
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Compensation questions loom for Air Canada customers with cancelled flights
Consumer rights advocates are demanding Air Canada provide compensation to many of the hundreds of thousands of passengers whose summer flights it cancelled - but whether the airline plans to concede remains up in the air.<br/>Canada's largest carrier said Wednesday night it will cut more than 15 per cent of its departures in July and August as the country's flight network sags under an overwhelming travel resurgence. The move will see more than 9,500 flights, or 154 per day on average, dropped from the airline's schedule - already operating at just 80% of pre-pandemic levels. The flights link mainly to the airline's Toronto and Montreal hubs, and run along domestic or Canada-US routes. No international flights other than those to the United States were among the cull. “This Canada Day weekend will be difficult,” CEO Michael Rousseau told employees in a memo dated Thursday. “I wish I could promise you that the measures we are taking will mean an easy summer ahead. While they will certainly provide some relief, it will take time and effort and we likely won't see the full benefit until the latter part of July.” Sylvie De Bellefeuille, a lawyer with Quebec-based advocacy group Option consommateurs, says many customers are “absolutely” owed compensation under Canada's passenger rights charter. The Air Passenger Protection Regulations (APPR), which took force in 2019, require compensation - distinct from refunds - of between $400 and $1,000 for a cancellation or significant delay that is “within the carrier's control,” should the traveller opt to reject the rebooking, and in some cases when they accept it. “I believe it is the decision of Air Canada to cancel the flights,” De Bellefeuille said. “Therefore people should have a right of compensation.” While Rousseau apologized for cancellations and “customer service shortfalls,” the CEO also said in an email to travellers the schedule reduction stemmed from strains on the “global aviation system” - which falls outside Air Canada's control - calling them “unprecedented and unforeseen.”<br/>
