Air Canada must pay $10K damages for ‘horrendous’ treatment of couple

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Air Canada’s treatment of a married couple intending to get away on their first vacation without the kids has earned the airline a suitcase full of embarrassment, lightened by the $10K it had to pay, as ordered by the Yukon Small Claims Court on Dec. 9.

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Whitehorse residents Tosh Southwick and husband, James Dolsen, had saved their money for a dream vacation in Cuba. They booked time off and hired care for their three kids. They packed light and dressed light for their anticipated fun in the sun.

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Instead, they became proverbial poster children for airline run-around, as the result of a misadventure that took them from Edmonton to Toronto, then Montreal, back to Toronto and finally back to Edmonton, leaving them out of pocket for hotels and meals, with nothing more than customer-support promises that they would eventually be boarding a flight to get them to their dreamed-of Havana.

The couple was “treated shamefully” by the airline, wrote Judge Katherine McLeod in her recent judgement. Their ordeal spanned three days in early February 2023.

It began when they good-naturedly volunteered not to board their original flight to Cuba in Toronto, when an Air Canada agent, identified in court documents only as “Daryl,” announced that it was overbooked. But he promised a new flight would be available later in the day with American Airlines, flying them to Miami where overnight accommodations would be provided before the couple flew on to Cuba.

The couple proceeded to confirm with their hotel in Cuba that their reservation was secure, then changed the date and time of their taxi pick up from the airport. Then they waited for hours in line to receive food vouchers and were later informed the American Airlines flight was not available — no further explanation from Air Canada.

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Next, the plaintiffs were told by Air Canada that they had been booked on an Air Transat flight to Cuba, flying out of Montreal the following morning. Due to bad weather, however, their flight from Toronto to Montreal was delayed, arriving less than 40 minutes before the Air Transat flight was supposed to take off.

Worse, notes McLeod, “only boarding passes for their trip to Montreal were issued. They did not receive any information or boarding passes to allow them to get onto the Air Transat flight in Montreal.”

This case is an example of why computers cannot be the only decision-maker

Air Transat was unable to help with anything beyond giving the couple a 1-800 number to call. They spent two hours on hold before they were told by Air Transat that it was Air Canada’s problem.

“Despite the fact that the Plaintiffs were given a new itinerary with their Air Canada/Air Transat connections, nobody at Air Canada ever contacted them either before leaving Toronto or after arriving in Montreal with an explanation of what was to happen to enable them to access the Air Transat flight,” wrote McLeod.

Back at the Montreal Air Canada counter, the couple was told about yet another American Airlines flight scheduled for 4:30 a.m. the next day. However, they were also told the night in Montreal would be at their own expense. The bad weather delaying the earlier flight intended to connect them to Air Transat was not Air Canada’s fault, the airline argued.

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They awoke in the wee hours intending to catch the American Airlines flight, but that air carrier told them they could not provide any service because the couple did not have actual tickets.

American “told them to go back to the Air Canada desk,” wrote McLeod. Seemingly out of options for the beleaguered couple, Air Canada sent them back to Toronto. “It appears that Air Canada did not even have evidence of communication with Air Transat or American Airlines.”

Then the final blow came: Air Canada told Southwick and Dolsen that their entire flight arrangements had been cancelled.

“Ms. Southwick testified that at this point, frankly not surprisingly, she became extremely emotional,” wrote McLeod. “The Plaintiffs’ evidence is replete with stories of their inability to communicate meaningfully with Air Canada. Indeed, what communication they had was limited to their willingness to stand in long lines for hours to speak to a representative.”

Still, the couple was not to be deterred. They had booked time off. Their children were being cared for. To salvage their vacation time, they decided on an alternative — Cancun, Mexico. However, choosing that option required them to take even more time off work, ultimately losing income.

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McLeod ruled the couple had undergone a “horrendous experience” based on multiple violations by Air Canada of Canada’s Air Passenger Protection Regulations (APPR).

In short, the rules state that an airline offering benefits to a passenger who has volunteered to give up his or her seat on an overbooked flight — such as rebooking — must confirm this in writing to the passenger before the initial flight departs. Air Canada failed to do so in this case.

Air Canada handed over $2,400 each as compensation for “denial of boarding.” And it choked up a total of $1,800 toward their hotel and food charges — just days before the trial began.

The judge ruled those gestures insufficient.

We finally have a conclusion to our Air Canada Nightmare

Reviewing the details of the couple’s entire claim, McLeod determined the total costs, including lost income and the price of new flights to and from Cancun, meant shelling out an extra $10,000. And that’s what she awarded them in damages, as well as sticking Air Canada with the couple’s legal costs.

“There is no evidence that Air Canada ever attempted to book the Plaintiffs on a flight on any other airline with whom they were not partnered. Furthermore, the Plaintiffs were never offered a cancellation of their trip and the opportunity to make their own booking, rather than rely on the Air Canada system,” she wrote.

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Canadians often battle to receive compensation for air travel trouble. As of early November, the backlog of air passenger complaints was over 80,000, according to the Canadian Transportation Agency. Updated rules were proposed in 2023, including requiring airlines to compensate passengers for any flight disruption, unless they can prove “exceptional circumstances” caused it.

However, the air passenger bill of rights still hasn’t been updated.

Beyond the immediate case, Judge McLeod set out a broader lesson for airlines against relying solely on automated booking systems without human oversight or sufficient communication with passenger-customers.

“While I appreciate the wonders of air travel has been advanced by computers,” she wrote in her decision, “this case is an example of why computers cannot be the only decision-maker.”

However, small claims court decisions are not precedent setting for higher courts, as these courts are at the bottom of the judicial ladder. Still, the judge’s decision favouring the wronged couple can still be cited in other court clashes and news about it is very likely to spread among airline passenger advocates.

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Southwick was overjoyed with the court’s ruling and happy to share. She wrote about the victory on her Facebook page, which indicates that she has been a member of Air Passenger Rights (Canada) since July 2020 .

“After 2.5 years we finally have a conclusion to our Air Canada Nightmare and WE WON!!…The Judge agreed with our evidence…We have been awarded 10K in costs and damages and have helped to set a new (precedent) that hopefully others can use in their cases. I’m happy to share our case with anyone who can benefit.”

McLeod concluded: “Had a human being looked at the available alternative travel for the defendants, provided the proper documentation, examined the feasibility of onward travel plans chosen by the corporation computers, much of this (ordeal) would have been avoided.”

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