Nearly 9 million Canadians have $1.4B in uncashed CRA cheques — could you be one of them?
Good news from the Canada Revenue Agency for a change? Now that’s a treat.
Over the next month, the CRA, Canada’s tax agency, says it will begin sending out reminders to tens of thousands of Canadians to let them know they’ve got money owed to them they haven’t yet claimed.
On Monday, the CRA said it has roughly $1.4 billion worth of uncashed cheques on its books, some of which has been owed as far back as 1998. As of May, 8.9 million Canadians had some sort of uncashed cheque attached to their name. The average amount owed is $158, the tax agency said.
While the CRA handles billions of dollars in taxes and rebates every year, not all of it makes it into the hands of Canadians who are entitled to it, mostly due to people either losing the cheques, or changing addresses, meaning they never received it in the first place.
“We want to make sure this money ends up where it belongs. In taxpayers’ pockets!” the tax agency said.
The CRA said it will soon notify roughly 25,000 recipients of the Canada child benefit and related provincial/territorial programs, GST/HST credit and Alberta Energy Tax Refund if they are owed money, and that another two groups of 25,000 will be notified this November and in May of 2023.
But if you think you may be one of those lucky Canadians, you might want to be a little bit more proactive. Read more
You can check if you have uncashed payments from the Canadian Revenue Agency by logging in to or signing up for an online CRA account. (Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press)
Customers cry foul as Air Canada, WestJet continue to deny certain compensation claims despite new directive
Judging from plenty of anecdotal evidence, flying has been a bit of a headache lately.
Long flight delays and crew shortages have led to mayhem at many Canadian airports.
But a recent Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) decision was supposed to help clear the air on at least once source of frustration: the rules around flight compensation.
When issuing a decision in a WestJet case on July 8, the transport regulator clarified that, in general, airlines can’t deny passengers compensation for flight disruptions caused by crew shortages.
However, the clarification has only ignited fury for some passengers, including Frank Michel, who was denied compensation by Air Canada, and Jennifer Peach, denied by WestJet, due to crew shortages and constraints and safety concerns.
“It’s insulting,” said Michel of Marquis, Sask.
Under federal rules, airlines only have to pay compensation — up to $1,000 per passenger — if the flight disruption is within the airline’s control and not safety-related.
WestJet and Air Canada each declined to comment on individual cases, but both said they abide by federal air passenger regulations. WestJet said that safety is its top priority. Air Canada said airlines shouldn’t be penalized for cancelling flights for safety reasons.
But Michel says the company isn’t playing by the rules.
“CTA has already made it clear that crew constraints is not an acceptable excuse,” he said. “It’s not a safety issue. It’s a management issue. You have to manage your resources.” Read more
Leigh and Frank Michel of Marquis, Sask., were denied compensation by Air Canada after flight disruptions in June left them sleeping on an airport floor. (Frank Michel)
You tip your hairdresser, but what about your mechanic? It might only be a matter of time
You probably tip the person who cuts your hair. Should you do the same for the person fixing your car?
Customers are increasingly seeing a gratuity option on card payment machines in industries where tipping was never previously part of the cost, from auto shops to fast food giants.
The phenomenon, dubbed “tip creep,” is leaving a bad taste for some consumers, who have vented online about being asked if they want to pay an extra 15 per cent or more on top of the price of a takeout pizza, oil change or propane tank refill.
“Tipping is spreading to a lot more places right now, so where we wouldn’t have previously been prompted to tip, now it seems to be a lot more common,” says Simon Pek, an associate professor at the University of Victoria’s Gustavson School of Business who researches tipping practices.
As customers shift away from carrying cash, it’s easier than ever for any business to ask for a little bit of extra money by adding the automatic prompt — what psychologists call a “tip nudge” — to their card payment machine.
Inflation may play a factor, too. Business owners, for example, may see adding a tip button as a way to give in to workers’ demands for higher pay without necessarily affecting their bottom line.
“We’ll still see a lower sticker price, we’ll still buy the product, and then adding 10 to 20 per cent after — it might be frustrating, but people still end up doing it, and that’s often cheaper for a company than having to pay those wages,” said Pek. Read more
With fewer customers carrying cash, companies are shifting away from the traditional tip jar on the counter to add a gratuity option on their card payment machines. Here, a tip jar is pictured at a Vancouver cafe on April 30, 2019. (Jan Zeschky/CBC)
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Have you been travelling recently and noticed that your hotel is no longer providing services they used to, like breakfast or daily housekeeping? We’d like to hear about products and services where you think companies are “skimping out.” Email us at marketplace@cbc.ca
TORONTO – Roots Corp. may have built its brand on all things comfy and cosy, but its CEO says activewear is now “really becoming a core part” of the brand.
The category, which at Roots spans leggings, tracksuits, sports bras and bike shorts, has seen such sustained double-digit growth that Meghan Roach plans to make it a key part of the business’ future.
“It’s an area … you will see us continue to expand upon,” she told analysts on a Friday call.
The Toronto-based retailer’s push into activewear has taken shape over many years and included several turns as the official designer and supplier of Team Canada’s Olympic uniform.
But consumers have had plenty of choice when it comes to workout gear and other apparel suited to their sporting needs. On top of the slew of athletic brands like Nike and Adidas, shoppers have also gravitated toward Lululemon Athletica Inc., Alo and Vuori, ramping up competition in the activewear category.
Roach feels Roots’ toehold in the category stems from the fit, feel and following its merchandise has cultivated.
“Our product really resonates with (shoppers) because you can wear it through multiple different use cases and occasions,” she said.
“We’ve been seeing customers come back again and again for some of these core products in our activewear collection.”
Her remarks came the same day as Roots revealed it lost $5.2 million in its latest quarter compared with a loss of $5.3 million in the same quarter last year.
The company said the second-quarter loss amounted to 13 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Aug. 3, the same as a year earlier.
In presenting the results, Roach reminded analysts that the first half of the year is usually “seasonally small,” representing just 30 per cent of the company’s annual sales.
Sales for the second quarter totalled $47.7 million, down from $49.4 million in the same quarter last year.
The move lower came as direct-to-consumer sales amounted to $36.4 million, down from $37.1 million a year earlier, as comparable sales edged down 0.2 per cent.
The numbers reflect the fact that Roots continued to grapple with inventory challenges in the company’s Cooper fleece line that first cropped up in its previous quarter.
Roots recently began to use artificial intelligence to assist with daily inventory replenishments and said more tools helping with allocation will go live in the next quarter.
Beyond that time period, the company intends to keep exploring AI and renovate more of its stores.
It will also re-evaluate its design ranks.
Roots announced Friday that chief product officer Karuna Scheinfeld has stepped down.
Rather than fill the role, the company plans to hire senior level design talent with international experience in the outdoor and activewear sectors who will take on tasks previously done by the chief product officer.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, are set to resume today as a strike that has stopped most services drags into a second week.
No timeline has been set for the length of the negotiations, but Joe McCann, president of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they are willing to stay there as long as it takes, even if talks drag on all night.
About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people unable to navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last Tuesday, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.
Hundreds of drivers rallied outside TransLink’s head office earlier this week, calling for the transportation provider to intervene in the dispute with Transdev, which was contracted to oversee HandyDART service.
Transdev said earlier this week that it will provide a reply to the union’s latest proposal on Thursday.
A statement from the company said it “strongly believes” that their employees deserve fair wages, and that a fair contract “must balance the needs of their employees, clients and taxpayers.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
MONTREAL – Travel company Transat AT Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter compared with a profit a year earlier as its revenue edged lower.
The parent company of Air Transat says it lost $39.9 million or $1.03 per diluted share in its quarter ended July 31.
The result compared with a profit of $57.3 million or $1.49 per diluted share a year earlier.
Revenue in what was the company’s third quarter totalled $736.2 million, down from $746.3 million in the same quarter last year.
On an adjusted basis, Transat says it lost $1.10 per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of $1.10 per share a year earlier.
Transat chief executive Annick Guérard says demand for leisure travel remains healthy, as evidenced by higher traffic, but consumers are increasingly price conscious given the current economic uncertainty.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
