Air Passenger Protection Regulations: Your Rights on Canadian Flights

Since December 15, 2019, passengers travelling to, from, or within Canada have been covered by the Air Passenger Protection Regulations.

These regulations cover the ways in which airlines must communicate with passengers, provide minimum standards of treatment and compensation during flight disruptions, compensate passengers for lost, delayed, or damaged baggage, seat families together, and adhere to standards of carriage for the transportation of musical instruments.

All airlines flying to, from, or within Canada are subject to these regulations, with some differences in compensation between large and small carriers.

Let’s have a look at how these regulations can protect you, both in general and in the event of a disruption to your travel plans during the busy summer travel months.

Flight Disruptions

The Air Passenger Protection Regulations include provisions for what happens during flight disruptions on airlines flying to, from, or within Canada, covering both the compensation and the standards of treatment you are entitled to receive during a disruption.

Disruptions occur when you are delayed in getting to your final destination, and can occur for a host of reasons. 

Compensation

In the event of a delay in your arrival at your final destination, you may be entitled to receive compensation under the Air Passenger Protection Regulations. Whether or not you are eligible depends on the size of the airline on which you’re flying, the length of delay you’ve faced, and, importantly, the cause of the delay.

Smaller airlines, such as Porter or Swoop, are defined as carriers who have served less than two million passengers over the last two years. The level of compensation they must pay is less than that of large carriers, such as Air Canada or WestJet, who are liable for higher levels of compensation.

The caveat here is that there are a host of situations whereby the reason for the delay may exclude you from being eligible for compensation. So, just because you were delayed in reaching your destination does not automatically net you some cold hard cash.

You are eligible for compensation if the reason for the delay is within the airline’s control. Examples of this include when flights are overbooked or oversold, when the delay is caused by routine maintenance to comply with legal requirements, or when a mechanical malfunction is identified during routine maintenance. 

In these…