'Smoke screen': Canadian airlines use NDAs to keep a lid on passenger settlements
Colleen Dafoe was at the Halifax airport last December with her husband and daughter when WestJet told her their trip was cancelled.<br/>The airline suggested rescheduling them on a flight more than 10 days later, she said -- well after the end of their planned vacation to the Dominican Republic to celebrate Dafoe's 50th birthday with extended family. They never left Nova Scotia. Dafoe said she asked for a refund from WestJet, which refused and instead offered a vacation voucher valid for one year. Eventually, she turned to small claims court for the $1,200 in compensation she believed her family was owed under Canada's passenger rights charter. Only after she launched the legal action did a WestJet lawyer offer to pay them the full amount -- if they signed a non-disclosure agreement barring them from discussing the matter. In the end, Dafoe agree to a settlement that included a confidentiality clause, which bars her from disclosing the amount. WestJet says it does "not comment on NDAs publicly regardless of topic or circumstance." Dafoe said she agreed to settle because going to court seemed "kind of scary -- we didn't know if we could navigate the system well enough against a full-time lawyer and not come out losers." Her case fits into an apparent pattern where Canada's two biggest airlines initially proffer vouchers -- often worth between $150 and $300 -- if a passenger complains. Then, should the customer decline and proceed to file a court claim, Air Canada and WestJet eventually offer up to as much as the original request, or sometimes more, after a protracted back-and-forth -- so long as an NDA is inked. The Canadian Press communicated with more than 20 passengers of Canadian airlines who faced scenarios comparable with Dafoe's. Some spurned the offers, while others agreed to settlements they said topped $1,000. Consumer rights advocates warn that confidentiality agreements between big companies and individual customers are far from routine in most sectors, and that the policy amounts to a power play by airlines to avoid setting legal precedents or letting word of payouts spread. Story has more.<br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2023-12-18/general/smoke-screen-canadian-airlines-use-ndas-to-keep-a-lid-on-passenger-settlements
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'Smoke screen': Canadian airlines use NDAs to keep a lid on passenger settlements
Colleen Dafoe was at the Halifax airport last December with her husband and daughter when WestJet told her their trip was cancelled.<br/>The airline suggested rescheduling them on a flight more than 10 days later, she said -- well after the end of their planned vacation to the Dominican Republic to celebrate Dafoe's 50th birthday with extended family. They never left Nova Scotia. Dafoe said she asked for a refund from WestJet, which refused and instead offered a vacation voucher valid for one year. Eventually, she turned to small claims court for the $1,200 in compensation she believed her family was owed under Canada's passenger rights charter. Only after she launched the legal action did a WestJet lawyer offer to pay them the full amount -- if they signed a non-disclosure agreement barring them from discussing the matter. In the end, Dafoe agree to a settlement that included a confidentiality clause, which bars her from disclosing the amount. WestJet says it does "not comment on NDAs publicly regardless of topic or circumstance." Dafoe said she agreed to settle because going to court seemed "kind of scary -- we didn't know if we could navigate the system well enough against a full-time lawyer and not come out losers." Her case fits into an apparent pattern where Canada's two biggest airlines initially proffer vouchers -- often worth between $150 and $300 -- if a passenger complains. Then, should the customer decline and proceed to file a court claim, Air Canada and WestJet eventually offer up to as much as the original request, or sometimes more, after a protracted back-and-forth -- so long as an NDA is inked. The Canadian Press communicated with more than 20 passengers of Canadian airlines who faced scenarios comparable with Dafoe's. Some spurned the offers, while others agreed to settlements they said topped $1,000. Consumer rights advocates warn that confidentiality agreements between big companies and individual customers are far from routine in most sectors, and that the policy amounts to a power play by airlines to avoid setting legal precedents or letting word of payouts spread. Story has more.<br/>
