Place for readers | Traveler compensation

Many of you responded to our appeal to all on the compensation of travelers by airlines. Reading the testimonials, obviously not everyone received the same services. Here is an overview of the emails received.

Posted at 9:00 a.m.

Air Canada scam?

After receiving an initial negative response from Air Canada, this week I received a $100 discount eCoupon, valid for three years, but which cannot be purchased on a mobile device, without the services of a trips, and several other conditions… Could it be a scam?

Genevieve Lalonde

Air Transat radio silence

Well seated at Montreal International Airport, we await our scheduled departure at 8:20 a.m. on Thursday, July 28. We were all excited to find ourselves under the radiant sun of Western Canada. Major disappointment! Our departure was postponed to 10:30 p.m. Fourteen hours of waiting at the airport, nothing less. Not to mention all the planned activities that we had to cancel, at our expense. The company offered us two meager gift certificates to sustain us, worth $35 per person, for two meals. Finally stepping into the long-awaited plane, no apologies were given from the crew. Radio silence… nothing less! Still questionable from a self-respecting carrier! After denouncing this more than unreasonable delay in writing, we are still awaiting a response from the carrier so that compensation can be awarded to us, commensurate with the inconvenience experienced. After more than 14 days, Air Transat has still not responded to our request for compensation. We hope that the company will be able to take its responsibilities by compensating travelers who have suffered several inconveniences! We remain optimistic, because Air Transat remains a more than respectable airline!

Francois Bellefeuille

Everything planes with Delta

I had a reservation with Delta for a round trip to Chicago. The Toronto-Quebec return flight was canceled by WestJet. Delta reimbursed me for the full cost of the trip in less than 15 days. Impeccable as a service.

Michel Paquet, Lac-Beauport

Security issue with Sunwing

In May, my wife and I had a 19 hour delay with Sunwing returning from a week’s vacation in Cayo Santa María, Cuba. Sunwing refused to compensate us, on the pretext that there was a security problem. We have entrusted Vol en Late with the mandate to assert our rights. We finally received an amicable offer from Sunwing, a travel credit of $225 per person, which we accepted.

Rejean Perron

FICAV not found

I have been waiting for more than 2 years for compensation from the Compensation Fund for Customers of Travel Agents (FICAV), relating to a flight cancellation between Hanoi and Montreal for four people. It cost me an additional $4400 to buy the return tickets following the cancellation of our flight. The last e-mail from FICAV dates from April. Still no news since. It is excessively long. Will there ever be compensation?

Valy Darroman

Paris is still waiting

We are still waiting for an amount of $100 from Air Canada. It was a deposit made in June 2021 for a trip to Paris. It was possible to cancel at any time, which we did in January 2022. Our trip was scheduled for June 2022… No news of refunds since January 2022.

Benoit Ferland

Sunwing settles everything

In April 2022, my spouse and I were 29 hours late departing Montreal for Holguin, Cuba with Sunwing due to a major computer system failure. Full refund of one night’s accommodation and additional meals due to the delay. Compensation of $500 per person and all received within 40 days. We are very satisfied with the settlement with this company.

Joan Lesperance

Dreadful puzzle

In March 2020 we had already been visiting Spain for a week when the pandemic was declared. We struggled for two weeks to get back to Canada with our elderly parents: canceled flights, stop of trains, suspension of car rentals, closure of the airport, in short, a terrible headache and quite intense stress.

We submitted a claim to the Travel Agent Customer Compensation Fund (FICAV) for a paid flight that could not be taken, our prepaid excursions that were canceled, and our living and accommodation expenses for the period beyond our original departure.

After a year without sound or image, FICAV, through PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), asks us to resubmit our application through an ultra poorly done digital portal, which required three calls with PwC representatives because the questions were formulated in an incomprehensible way, in French as in English.

Eight months later, still no news, no email, nothing. We called PwC back. We are part of complicated cases that cannot be resolved immediately (!), we are told. All past and present requests take precedence over complicated cases. Be lucky that we take care of you, because the FICAV really doesn’t cost you much. Stunned we were.

And we are still waiting, 28 months after March 2020.

Marc-Andre Anderson, Gatineau


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