From the CBC:
“Canada's
transport regulator hasn't settled a single COVID-19 flight cancellation
complaint”
The Canadian
Transportation Agency has failed to settle a single complaint from Canadians
demanding refunds for cancelled flights since the onset of the COVID-19
pandemic, CBC News has learned. The
independent tribunal said it has been inundated with close to 10,000 complaints
from mid-March, when global air travel largely ground to a halt, until Oct. 16.
The agency confirmed it's still
processing complaints it received before March 11; it has yet to deal with any
cases filed during the public health crisis. For months, Canada's Transport
Minister has told Canadians if they are unsatisfied with refunds, the course of
action is to file complaints with the tribunal.
Carly Aubertin
and her husband Rob McLean are upset that they filed a complaint in April,
which has been sitting in limbo ever since. "It's just so
disheartening," said Aubertin. "It's frustrating that the
government's not there to support us." The Ontario residents are considering selling
their home as they wrestle with living off a single income because the pandemic
has hurt McLean's business. Sunwing gave them a voucher for a cancelled trip to
Antigua due to COVID, rather than a full refund that could help pay their
mortgage until the spring. "Right
now, I mean, $5,000? There's five months of mortgage right there,"
Aubertin said.
Long backlog
before pandemic started The delay is partially due to a two-year backlog of
complaints the CTA received before the pandemic struck. The backlog is tied to
a significant influx of complaints received after new air passenger protection
regulations came into effect in December 2019. COVID-19 hampered further
efforts to process complaints; the CTA temporarily paused its discussions with
airlines regarding "dispute resolution activities" until June 30,
2020 to allow airlines to focus on more urgent matters. The agency also granted
airlines an extension until Oct. 28 to respond to passengers seeking
compensation. But the CTA says it's making progress on tackling the
caseload. The agency processed a record number of complaints in the past fiscal
year. The administrative tribunal also received a funding boost to get through
cases more quickly and says it's weeks away from starting on complaints filed
during the pandemic.
An ongoing
battle for closure The agency said it's now working through about 17,300
complaints. It is still in the process of reviewing all complaints filed during
the pandemic, but so far has counted 4,300 related to refunds, the agency said.
Those includes complaints from Canadians like Aubertin and McLean, who
spent about $5,000 for a spring vacation with a group of friends to celebrate
some of their 40th and 50th birthdays. McLean found himself without work
during the pandemic, meaning the Port Robinson, Ont., couple has started to dip
into their retirement savings. His last pay cheque was in February. "It's frustrating because in these
times we hear the leaders of our country saying to look out for everybody and
do the right thing and respect your community, and then to allow these
multimillion dollar companies to keep our money interest free for an extended
period of time doesn't feel like the right thing to us," McLean said. Aubertin said the obstacles have been
particularly disappointing given that other countries have taken a firmer
stance on helping passengers. In April, the U.S. Department of
Transportation issued a notice reminding U.S. and foreign airlines that they
"remain obligated to provide a prompt refund to passengers" despite
the pandemic and warned that it would take "enforcement action" as
necessary. In Canada, airlines have been asking the government for
financial help to survive an unprecedented drop in business during the height
of the pandemic. In many cases, airlines have been issuing travel vouchers
redeemable for two years, rather than refunds. The CTA said it issued a "non-binding
statement" on issuing vouchers in the face of "unprecedented and
extraordinary circumstances" during the pandemic. The agency said
the industry collapsed worldwide and there was an "absence of any general
minimum obligation under the law for airlines to pay refunds for flights
cancelled for reasons beyond their control." After months of public
outrage, WestJet announced last week it was changing its refund policy on Nov.
2 to give customers back money for flights cancelled due to COVID-19. Air
Canada took to Twitter shortly afterwards and said it's already repaid $1.2
billion to date for refundable tickets cancelled during the pandemic. John
Gradek, a former Air Canada executive and lecturer at McGill University's
aviation management program, said the timing is no coincidence. Canada's
major airlines — WestJet, Air Canada, Air Transat, Sunwing and Swoop — are
facing a series of class action lawsuits over refunds during COVID and the
federal court certification hearing is scheduled for Nov. 2. Gradek also
believes airlines realized there wasn't public support for a government bailout
unless carriers refunded passengers first. The Globe and Mail reported Friday
cabinet is currently deliberating a package for the aviation sector that
includes scaling back airport fee increases and low interest loans.
CTA losing
credibility, Bloc MP says Passengers and consumers have a right to feel
upset about the federal government's lack of action, said Bloc Québécois MP and
transport critic Xavier Barsalou-Duval. On Friday, he presented a bill
seeking to amend the Canada Transportation Act in order to ensure passengers
are fully refunded in the event that an air carrier cancels a flight. He said Transport Minister Marc Garneau's
failure to resolve the issue has put undue pressure on the CTA. "By
not acting, Mr. Garneau's transferring the weight of the situation on the
shoulders of the CTA and that's a big problem," said Barsalou-Duval. "[The
CTA is] losing credibility. And that's the big problem because usually they're
supposed to... apply the rules, apply the law." In a statement to
CBC News on Sunday, Garneau said he understood the frustration. "This
situation is far from ideal," he said. "We are encouraged to see that
some airlines have refunded their customers, and expect air carriers will do
their best to accommodate passengers under these extraordinary
circumstances," the statement read. "This is an important
issue to Canadians. We also continue to work with the airlines to address the
overall challenges they are facing due to the pandemic."
^ I’ve dealt
with the Canadian Government and there is a constant months-long or even
years-long delay in getting an answer or anything done. It’s due to a lack of
employees and a lack of caring. I have also dealt with the American Government
and only once had a months-long delay. Canada only has 38 million people
(compared to the US which has 330 million people) and so you would think that
they could be more efficient, but that is definitely not the case. The CTA
needs to start doing its job and keeping up on airlines and other travel
businesses to get Canadians the money they are owed. Canada has self-isolated
itself from the rest of the world since last March and so the least the
Canadian Government can now do is look after Canadians. ^
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