Air (or Error?) Canada. Our National Carrier…

Dixie Cup

Senate Member
Sep 16, 2006
6,187
3,943
113
Edmonton
I'm back to flying Air Canada. Who wants to go through Calgary to get to Winnipeg from Regina?
My hubby had to go to Regina for a family matter & there was one option, when he was booking his flight, that went: Edmonton, Calgary, Vancouver & then Regina!! Cool eh?
 

Ron in Regina

"Voice of the West" Party
Apr 9, 2008
28,552
10,749
113
Regina, Saskatchewan
Jill Rorabeck says she wishes she'd never turned to Canada's airline regulator to settle her dispute with Swoop Airlines (which is owned by WestJet).

Not only did the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) side with the airline, Rorabeck can't even share the details of her dispute???

The Toronto woman submitted a complaint almost three years ago with the CTA, which acts as a mediator between airlines and passengers in air travel complaints.

She learned in January that she lost her case, but due to legislation passed in 2023 that prevents passengers from sharing full details of CTA decisions, she's not allowed to reveal key information about what happened.

"No one can warn others about their experiences," said Rorabeck. "There is zero accountability on the part of the airlines or the CTA."

At issue is section 85.09(1) of the Canadian Transportation Act, which says once the CTA issues a decision, neither the airline nor the passenger involved is allowed to openly share the details — unless both parties agree.

Since that rule was implemented, not a single case has been made fully public.😉
This gives airlines the strategic advantage of having access to previous rulings while passengers remain unaware of how complaints are being decided.

"The only entities that benefit from this are the airlines," said Gábor Lukács' of Air Passenger Rights group. "Individual passengers don't have the experience or don't have the knowledge of what arguments work and don't work while the airlines compile these huge databases of their own cases."

Prior to the 2023 changes, full decisions issued by the CTA were posted online, but now only basic information is available. So key details, such as the reasons behind a ruling, remain confidential. The regulator says the new system is faster, fair and more efficient? For whom?

The lawsuit argues that the CTA has a quasi-judicial role, so rules that muzzle passengers violate the open court principle in law, which says court proceedings should be open to the public. It's a fundamental aspect of a democratic justice system, ensuring transparency and public confidence in the legal process, says Paul Daly, a constitutional lawyer and research chair in the Administrative Law and Governance program at the University of Ottawa.

"The fact that decisions are not published and proceedings are kept confidential, it tilts the playing field in favour of the airlines," said Daly. "I, you or anyone else should be able to walk into any courthouse in the country any day of the week and attend a hearing or access documents … that are in the registry."

As part of its legal argument, Air Passenger Rights asked for the decisions, reasons and all documents for five air passenger complaint files last July in an effort to demonstrate that the CTA systematically denies all such requests.

The secretariat of the agency denied the request a month later, citing section 85.09(1) of the Canadian Transport Act as the basis for its refusal.
1749012885048.jpeg
"They are trying to use this provision as a way of refusing to disclose information that should be disclosed," Lukács said. 🤐

The lawsuit argues that the current rules prevent Air Passenger Rights from doing its job, because it needs to know how complaints are being decided in order to provide information and resources to passengers and push for improvements.🤔

It also argues that the secrecy around decisions prevents media and other organizations from "effectively communicating information about air passenger complaint proceedings."🤫

The lawsuit calls for a hearing to be held by video conference. No date for the hearing has been set.
 
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petros

The Central Scrutinizer
Nov 21, 2008
116,536
14,051
113
Low Earth Orbit
Jill Rorabeck says she wishes she'd never turned to Canada's airline regulator to settle her dispute with Swoop Airlines (which is owned by WestJet).

Not only did the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) side with the airline, Rorabeck can't even share the details of her dispute???

The Toronto woman submitted a complaint almost three years ago with the CTA, which acts as a mediator between airlines and passengers in air travel complaints.

She learned in January that she lost her case, but due to legislation passed in 2023 that prevents passengers from sharing full details of CTA decisions, she's not allowed to reveal key information about what happened.

"No one can warn others about their experiences," said Rorabeck. "There is zero accountability on the part of the airlines or the CTA."

At issue is section 85.09(1) of the Canadian Transportation Act, which says once the CTA issues a decision, neither the airline nor the passenger involved is allowed to openly share the details — unless both parties agree.

Since that rule was implemented, not a single case has been made fully public.😉
This gives airlines the strategic advantage of having access to previous rulings while passengers remain unaware of how complaints are being decided.

"The only entities that benefit from this are the airlines," said Gábor Lukács' of Air Passenger Rights group. "Individual passengers don't have the experience or don't have the knowledge of what arguments work and don't work while the airlines compile these huge databases of their own cases."

Prior to the 2023 changes, full decisions issued by the CTA were posted online, but now only basic information is available. So key details, such as the reasons behind a ruling, remain confidential. The regulator says the new system is faster, fair and more efficient? For whom?

The lawsuit argues that the CTA has a quasi-judicial role, so rules that muzzle passengers violate the open court principle in law, which says court proceedings should be open to the public. It's a fundamental aspect of a democratic justice system, ensuring transparency and public confidence in the legal process, says Paul Daly, a constitutional lawyer and research chair in the Administrative Law and Governance program at the University of Ottawa.

"The fact that decisions are not published and proceedings are kept confidential, it tilts the playing field in favour of the airlines," said Daly. "I, you or anyone else should be able to walk into any courthouse in the country any day of the week and attend a hearing or access documents … that are in the registry."

As part of its legal argument, Air Passenger Rights asked for the decisions, reasons and all documents for five air passenger complaint files last July in an effort to demonstrate that the CTA systematically denies all such requests.

The secretariat of the agency denied the request a month later, citing section 85.09(1) of the Canadian Transport Act as the basis for its refusal.
View attachment 29382
"They are trying to use this provision as a way of refusing to disclose information that should be disclosed," Lukács said. 🤐

The lawsuit argues that the current rules prevent Air Passenger Rights from doing its job, because it needs to know how complaints are being decided in order to provide information and resources to passengers and push for improvements.🤔

It also argues that the secrecy around decisions prevents media and other organizations from "effectively communicating information about air passenger complaint proceedings."🤫

The lawsuit calls for a hearing to be held by video conference. No date for the hearing has been set.
If these disputes were made public airlines would lose a chunk of first class seating in place of wheelchair spots. Mobility equipment tops the list for damaged customer goods.
 
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