Canada’s transportation regulator has strengthened its passenger bill of rights by imposing stricter rules on reimbursement by airlines.
Posted at 11:38 a.m.
The Canadian Transportation Agency said Wednesday that the new regulations, which will take effect September 8, will require carriers to refund passengers or rebook them, at the traveller’s option, if a flight is canceled. or significantly delayed.
Until now, the Air Passenger Protection Regulations only required reimbursements for flight disruptions that were attributable to the airline, which excluded situations ranging from storms to unforeseen mechanical problems.
The agency’s president, France Pégeot, said the revision would “fill the gap” highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Thousands of Canadians are facing a slew of long flight delays and cancellations these days, as airlines and security and customs agencies struggle to manage a staff shortage amid the recent wave of travel, a problem that is expected to continue for much of the next two months. The new rules won’t protect summer travellers, however, as they don’t come into effect until the fall.
The regulations will require airlines to offer a rebooking or refund within 30 days if they cannot provide a rebooking within 48 hours of a flight cancellation or “long delay”.