Hope of compensation for Quebec travelers who saw their plane tickets canceled by air carriers due to travel restrictions caused by COVID-19: the Court of Appeal has just given the green light to a class action.
The Quebec high court thus overturned the decision of the Superior Court which had refused, in 2021, to authorize the prosecution.
All procedural steps can now take place, until a full trial can be held. None of the travelers’ allegations have yet been proven in court.
The action was thus authorized by the Court of Appeal on behalf of all Quebecers who purchased plane tickets or travel packages from Air Canada, Air Transat, WestJet and Sunwing, who then canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and who could not obtain reimbursement or who were reimbursed late, in whole or in part.
The judge who will hear the collective action will have in particular this important question to decide: in the event of cancellation, beyond his or her will, of a flight or travel package, is a consumer owed a refund? full, unconditional?
The closure of Canadian borders, following the adoption of emergency health measures, led to the cancellation of all flights from Canada, including that of Gregory Bonnier.
He purchased a non-refundable Air Canada plane ticket in January 2020.
Eventually, the airline informed him that he would not be reimbursed but would instead get a travel credit with conditions, which he was not satisfied with.
The class action was quickly filed on March 20, 2020, just a few days after the start of restrictions and closures of all kinds in Quebec and Canada.
Between October 2020 and June 2021, the airlines targeted by this action announced in turn the implementation of voluntary reimbursement programs.
Due to these offers and also the fact that the Superior Court judge concluded that there were too many differences in the conditions of purchase of tickets and packages that there could not be a “common question to be decided », which is one of the criteria for having the right to proceed by collective action.
However, according to the Court of Appeal, the district judge erroneously sought a “common answer” when he only had to identify a “common question.” »
Furthermore, the existence of voluntary reimbursement programs does not immediately defeat collective action, writes the Court of Appeal. It is too early to determine whether they actually had the effect of fully reimbursing the travelers, she continues: the trial judge will have the opportunity to examine.