Air Canada says more customers whose flights were cancelled during last week’s strike will be eligible for reimbursement for alternative travel and out-of-pocket expenses. And that includes passengers who booked their original Air Canada or Air Canada Rouge flights through a travel agency.
Affected travel agent clients – as well as those booking through Aeroplan and those who purchased tickets from the company directly – can seek reimbursement through Air Canada’s online form.
The policy applies to cancelled flights originally scheduled to depart from Aug. 15 to 23 in cases where Air Canada was unable to rebook passengers who then made alternative arrangements themselves.
Air Canada says the only exception is for those who booked their original flight on Air Canada through another carrier, as it encourages those passengers to seek reimbursement of the cancelled flight through that airline, with Air Canada then able to cover the difference relating to costs of alternative travel.
Reasonable expenses
The company announced the reimbursement policy last Wednesday, before expanding it the next day to also cover “reasonable expenses” for hotel stays, meals and other related costs.
“We deeply apologize to all customers whose travel plans were disrupted, and we’re committed to making things right for all customers – particularly those who were stranded during their trip,” said Mark Nasr, executive VP and COO at Air Canada, in a press release.
The company said claims must be supported with receipts, which can be submitted through Air Canada’s online customer relations portal.
It said it may take four to six weeks to reimburse affected customers “due to the anticipated volume” of claims.
Last Wednesday, Air Canada announced it would cover “certain transportation expenses” incurred by customers while getting to their destinations during the recent work stoppage.
Air Canada also stipulated that customers would be entitled to reimbursement if they paid “a reasonable fare on another airline” within five days of their original departure date. Such fares must be in the same or lower cabin to their original flights.
It added customers could also submit claims for alternative transportation options such as bus, ferry or car expenses.
For hotel and meal expenses incurred during the disruption, Air Canada had initially advised customers they may be able to claim some of those other costs by contacting their travel insurance provider. It had said on its website that the airline itself does “not cover hotel stays or meal expenses, or other non-transportation related expenses.”
Air Canada’s operations are almost back to full capacity as it continues to ramp up following last week’s three-day flight attendants’ strike, saying in a Saturday morning update that 99% of domestic, U.S. and other international flights were expected to take off over the next 24 hours.
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