Medicine Hat Regional Airport - file photo

By Charles Lefebvre

Next phase of air passenger bill of rights takes effect Sunday

Dec 13, 2019 | 11:50 AM

MEDICINE HAT, AB — Air passengers in Canada have been protected by a bill of rights since the summer, however a recent survey says many Canadians are not aware of their rights.

According to a survey conducted by the Alberta Motor Association (AMA) and released on Friday, 56 per cent of people surveyed did not know that they had rights as an airline passenger.

AMA says airlines are the ones responsible for telling people the rights they have.

“Introduced in July as part of the first phase of the protections is a requirement for all airlines to provide a plain language education and awareness to their passengers of the protections that they have,” said Jeff Kasbrick, vice president of government and stakeholder relations with AMA. “Every single air traveller can look on their itinerary and they should in fact see information with regards to the protections that they have.”

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The next phase of the bill of rights comes into effect on December 15. It includes cash compensation for long flight delays or cancellations, a requirement to seat children under the age of 14 near their parents or guardians, and requires airlines to rebook of refund travel if delayed more than three hours or cancelled, in certain circumstances.

For large airlines, such as WestJet or Air Canada, compensation starts at $400 if your flight is delayed between three and six hours. It increases to $700 if the flight is delayed between six and nine hours and rises to $1,000 if your flight is delayed more than nine hours.

“For too long, air passengers in Canada have had to navigate a really convoluted and confusing system to try and get any recourse if their travel plans didn’t go as they planned,” said Kasbrick. “What the Air Passenger Bill of Rights actually introduces for Canadians is a clear, consistent set of rules, a minimum baseline rules that airlines have to follow.”

Airlines are also required to get you to your destination in the event of a delay or cancellation, and it includes booking the passenger on a competing airline if that is the only flight available.

Airlines do not have to compensate passengers for circumstances out of their control, such as poor weather, labour disputes or international security threats, but are required to get them to their destination.

This includes potentially book the passenger on a competing airline if that is the only flight available.

Also introduced on Sunday are new requirements for travelling with children. Airlines are expected to seat children near their parents or guardians, with any child under 5 now having to sit next to the adult. Children aged five to 11 must be seated in the same row as the adult, and children 12 or 13 can be no further than one row away.

The full list of rights can be read here.