Canadian airline passengers have now been granted additional rights when travelling by air, according to the Canadian Transportation Agency’s (CTA) newest set of rules.
The expanded passenger rights come from the CTA’s first round of new Air Passenger Protection Regulations, which will now allow airline travellers to seek compensation for lost or damaged baggage, flight bumps, take-off delays while waiting on the tarmac within a plane, and more.
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The new rights launched today, July 15th, with another set of regulations scheduled to take effect in December 15th, 2019.
The full list of rules that came into effect today are:
- Communicating to passengers, in a simple, clear way, information on their rights and options, and regular updates in the event of flight delays and cancellations.
- Providing compensation of up to $2,400 for bumping a passenger for reasons within the airlines’ control.
- Ensuring passengers receive prescribed standards of treatment during all tarmac delays and allowing them to leave the airplane, when it’s safe to do so, if a tarmac delay lasts for over three hours and there is no prospect of an imminent take-off.
- Providing compensation for lost or damaged baggage of up to $2,100 and a refund of any baggage fees.
- Setting clear policies for transporting musical instruments.
To receive compensation under the new regulations, passengers must file a request for compensation with the airline within one year of the day that their issue – like a flight delay or baggage lost – occurred.
The airline then has 30 days after the request was received to provide compensation or explain why compensation is not payable.
“This is an important day for the millions of Canadians who take flights to see family and friends, visit new places, do business, or seek medical treatment,” said Scott Streiner, Chair and CEO of the Canadian Transportation Agency in a statement.
“The Air Passenger Protection Regulations establish clear, fair, balanced obligations that will help ensure fair treatment when people travel by air – whether they’re flying from, to or within this vast country.”
