Canada's new air passenger rights

[Mattg]

Canada has just introduced new consumer protections for air passengers, similar to the EU regulations requiring airlines to compensate passengers for delays and being denied boarding due to overbooking, etc.

Some info on the Canadian government website -

https://rppa-appr.ca/eng

Unsurprisingly, the airlines aren't happy -

https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/canadian-airlines-to-oppose-passenger-rights-bill-in-court-1.5201985

I sure hope they introduce something like this in the USA (or even better, Australia).

 

[opusman]

It'll never happen here. Pollies wouldn't want to risk their CL memberships.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

It will be interestng to see how this goes. Compensation is payable for events within an airline's control. Most safety related issues - tother than scheduled maintenance - are all deemed 'outside' the airline's control. So the gate delays 'maintenance' are likely to stay.

At the moment it seems wide enough to drive a truck through. And Canada's CTA is not always very consumer friendly in these things (if they're the ones that are going to rule on issues as they arise).

This would certainly NOT be the model I'd like to see in AU if we ever get to that point.

 

[Mattg]

This would certainly NOT be the model I'd like to see in AU if we ever get to that point.

I tend to agree with you there. But do you think this is better than no model at all (i.e. the status quo)?

 

[MEL_Traveller]

I tend to agree with you there. But do you think this is better than no model at all (i.e. the status quo)?

That's going to be the question. This sounds like the airlines all had a finger in the pie during drafting. And all it may mean is frustration for passengers. For example you get bumped, but the airline argues the oversell was due to a mechanical delay - outside their control, of course - 6 hours earlier somewhere else in the system? Same with bad weather - 'we had to roll people forward' so its no longer within their control?

Who knows. I guess all of these things will eventually get tested before the CTA. But looking at their decisions they are about 50/50 between ruling n favour of the airline and passenger. And when they do rule in favour of the passenger a common outcome is that no compensation is payable (so the passenger 'wins' but gets nothing).