With nearly 10,000 complaints filed by airline passengers since last July, critics are calling on the Trudeau government to crack down on major air carriers who are allegedly violating Canada’s air passenger protection laws.
“Airlines are finding creative ways to work around the rules to confuse people with the intent of not living up to their obligations,” NDP Transport critic Niki Ashton told Global News. “There shouldn’t be loopholes in terms of airlines being able to avoid compensating people financially.”
Nearly a dozen Air Canada passengers interviewed by Global News allege the airline is intentionally mis-referencing flights or misrepresenting the cause of flight delays in order to avoid paying compensation under the Air Passenger Protection Regulations (APPR) that came into effect in December.
Under the new laws, large airlines — like Air Canada, WestJet or Air Transat — must pay passengers between $400 and $1,000 when their flights are delayed by three hours or more for reasons within the airlines control. Smaller airlines, like Swoop or Flair, are required to pay anywhere from $125 to $500.
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Airlines caught breaking the new regulations could face up to $25,000 in fines for each violation.
1:26 Air Canada passenger says her claims were wrongly denied under new passenger rules
Air Canada passenger says her claims were wrongly denied under new passenger rules
Ten passengers who spoke with Global News provided documents and correspondence with Air Canada that showed flights cancelled or delayed for staffing or scheduling issues, which are considered within an airline’s control and eligible for compensation under the new regulations.
All the claims, however, were initially rejected by Air Canada who claimed events outside of its control caused the flight disruptions.
Ottawa resident Carla Di Censo, whose Air Canada flight was cancelled over “crew constraints,” said she believes this is part of “a systemic strategy not to pay” passengers.
“It’s very clear to me that it’s an approach they’re using to avoid having to pay these claims out.”
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Air Canada eventually paid her husband $1000, but Di Censo said her and her daughter’s claims are still outstanding.
Air Canada has said its policy is to “fully abide by the APPR.”
“We have put in place the necessary processes and procedures to ensure compliance and are dealing with customers directly,” Air Canada said in a statement. “We have no additional information to offer, but would point out for context that since the APPRs first took effect, we have transported more than 25 million customers.”
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CAA calls the allegations ‘unacceptable’
Canadian Automobile Association spokesperson Kristine D’Arbelles said CAA expected some “kinks and bugs” as the new regulations kicked in, but called the alleged conduct of major airlines “unacceptable.”
“Telling someone one reason for [cancelling a flight] and then changing that reason later on is not the spirit of the airline passenger rights regime,” she said.
CAA is calling on the federal government to take greater enforcement action against airlines that are breaking the rules.
“The more they crack down on airlines that are not respecting the new regime, the faster airlines are going to start pulling up their socks.”
Recent reports of passengers struggling to obtain compensation for flight disruptions also point to problems in the government’s new Air Passenger Protection Regulations (APPR), according to Ashton.
“The passenger bill of rights does not go far enough.”
1:53 Customers frustrated with Air Canada’s new reservation system
Customers frustrated with Air Canada’s new reservation system
Under the new rules airlines are allowed to cite maintenance issues as a cause for delays and cancellations that exempts them from providing compensation to passengers, Ashton noted.
Airlines do not owe compensation for flight disruptions caused by technical issues required for safety purposes and identified outside of scheduled maintenance.
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“That is not the case in Europe,” Ashton said, noting that experts who testified before the House of Commons have indicated the European Union rules have resulted in airlines more promptly addressing mechanical problems.
Airline expert Seth Kaplan said airlines allegedly cancelling flights for one reason and then denying compensation for another reason is “clearly wrong.”
1:38 Garneau announces new rules protecting Canadian air travellers
CAA, which was involved in the APPR consultation process, is calling on the federal government and the Canadian Transportation Agency to release more data about the growing number of complaints.
The CTA has said it’s received 9,757 air travel complaints since phase one of the APPR first came into effect on July 15, 2019, calling the number “unprecedented.”
“We need to see what is actually going on, what is the breadth of the issue, what kinds of complaints are out there,” D’Arbelles said. “In any new regime you’re going to see a lot of complaints … but the examples that we are seeing now are clear violations of the [APPR].”
Transport Minister Marc Garneau did not respond to questions about whether his office would be investigating but encouraged Canadians to report any complaints to the CTA.
“With respect to Air Canada or any other airline, the new passenger protection rules are there. At the moment this is a brand new set of regulations. It’s understandable in some cases there will be a different interpretation. I encourage Canadians who feel they did not get an adequate response where they feel there rights were not respected to go to the CTA.”
VANCOUVER – Contract negotiations resume today in Vancouver in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia’s ports since Monday.
The BC Maritime Employers Association and International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514 are scheduled to meet for the next three days in mediated talks to try to break a deadlock in negotiations.
The union, which represents more than 700 longshore supervisors at ports, including Vancouver, Prince Rupert and Nanaimo, has been without a contract since March last year.
The latest talks come after employers locked out workers in response to what it said was “strike activity” by union members.
The start of the lockout was then followed by several days of no engagement between the two parties, prompting federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon to speak with leaders on both sides, asking them to restart talks.
MacKinnon had said that the talks were “progressing at an insufficient pace, indicating a concerning absence of urgency from the parties involved” — a sentiment echoed by several business groups across Canada.
In a joint letter, more than 100 organizations, including the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Business Council of Canada and associations representing industries from automotive and fertilizer to retail and mining, urged the government to do whatever it takes to end the work stoppage.
“While we acknowledge efforts to continue with mediation, parties have not been able to come to a negotiated agreement,” the letter says. “So, the federal government must take decisive action, using every tool at its disposal to resolve this dispute and limit the damage caused by this disruption.
“We simply cannot afford to once again put Canadian businesses at risk, which in turn puts Canadian livelihoods at risk.”
In the meantime, the union says it has filed a complaint to the Canada Industrial Relations Board against the employers, alleging the association threatened to pull existing conditions out of the last contract in direct contact with its members.
“The BCMEA is trying to undermine the union by attempting to turn members against its democratically elected leadership and bargaining committee — despite the fact that the BCMEA knows full well we received a 96 per cent mandate to take job action if needed,” union president Frank Morena said in a statement.
The employers have responded by calling the complaint “another meritless claim,” adding the final offer to the union that includes a 19.2 per cent wage increase over a four-year term remains on the table.
“The final offer has been on the table for over a week and represents a fair and balanced proposal for employees, and if accepted would end this dispute,” the employers’ statement says. “The offer does not require any concessions from the union.”
The union says the offer does not address the key issue of staffing requirement at the terminals as the port introduces more automation to cargo loading and unloading, which could potentially require fewer workers to operate than older systems.
The Port of Vancouver is the largest in Canada and has seen a number of labour disruptions, including two instances involving the rail and grain storage sectors earlier this year.
A 13-day strike by another group of workers at the port last year resulted in the disruption of a significant amount of shipping and trade.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
The Royal Canadian Legion says a new partnership with e-commerce giant Amazon is helping boost its veterans’ fund, and will hopefully expand its donor base in the digital world.
Since the Oct. 25 launch of its Amazon.ca storefront, the legion says it has received nearly 10,000 orders for poppies.
Online shoppers can order lapel poppies on Amazon in exchange for donations or buy items such as “We Remember” lawn signs, Remembrance Day pins and other accessories, with all proceeds going to the legion’s Poppy Trust Fund for Canadian veterans and their families.
Nujma Bond, the legion’s national spokesperson, said the organization sees this move as keeping up with modern purchasing habits.
“As the world around us evolves we have been looking at different ways to distribute poppies and to make it easier for people to access them,” she said in an interview.
“This is definitely a way to reach a wider number of Canadians of all ages. And certainly younger Canadians are much more active on the web, on social media in general, so we’re also engaging in that way.”
Al Plume, a member of a legion branch in Trenton, Ont., said the online store can also help with outreach to veterans who are far from home.
“For veterans that are overseas and are away, (or) can’t get to a store they can order them online, it’s Amazon.” Plume said.
Plume spent 35 years in the military with the Royal Engineers, and retired eight years ago. He said making sure veterans are looked after is his passion.
“I’ve seen the struggles that our veterans have had with Veterans Affairs … and that’s why I got involved, with making sure that the people get to them and help the veterans with their paperwork.”
But the message about the Amazon storefront didn’t appear to reach all of the legion’s locations, with volunteers at Branch 179 on Vancouver’s Commercial Drive saying they hadn’t heard about the online push.
Holly Paddon, the branch’s poppy campaign co-ordinator and bartender, said the Amazon partnership never came up in meetings with other legion volunteers and officials.
“I work at the legion, I work with the Vancouver poppy office and I go to the meetings for the Vancouver poppy campaign — which includes all the legions in Vancouver — and not once has this been mentioned,” she said.
Paddon said the initiative is a great idea, but she would like to have known more about it.
The legion also sells a larger collection of items at poppystore.ca.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
