Flight delayed? Luggage lost? This new tool will tell passengers if they can get compensation
As the busy summer travel season approaches, you may be worried about more flight delays or lost luggage. Thankfully, there’s a new tool that will help passengers navigate their way to compensation.
The Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) launched an easy-to-use guide on Tuesday to help flyers know their air passenger rights.
Aptly named the Air Passenger Help Guide, it’ll help you navigate the rules when you run into some of the most common problems when flying: flight delays, cancellations, lost bags and getting bumped from a flight.
“Travelling can be complex, and the rules protecting air travellers are complicated. CAA is stepping up by providing Canadians with the information they need when things go wrong,” says Ian Jack, vice president of public affairs for CAA National.
Although the hope is never to have to use this tool, it’s a quick and easy way to help you maneuver through the complicated over-60-page-long Air Passenger Protection Regulations the federal government has in place.
CAA’s Air Passenger Help Guide explains things simply and will answer your question about flight disruptions in five clicks or less.
If your flight is cancelled or luggage is lost, let’s be real, your first question is whether you’ll receive compensation, and how much. This tool is a quick way to find that out.
How does it work?
Let’s run through a quick scenario to show you how it works.
The first prompt on the guide asks you how your travel has been affected, listing delays or cancellations, denied boarding, and lost luggage as some of the options.
CAA
Let’s say you’ve just experienced a delay or cancellation, so you click the first option. Now, it’ll ask you if you were flying with a major airline like WestJet or Air Canada, or a smaller airline like Porter.
CAA
You flew with Air Canada (which was named one of the worst airlines in North America for on-time arrivals last year), so you select that option. Now, it’ll ask you how much notice you were given about the flight disruption.
CAA
The airline gave you less than 12 hours’ notice before the delay or cancellation, so now the tool will ask you what reason the carrier gave.
CAA
If you choose staff and flight crew scheduling and availability, for example, the guide will bring you to a page that confirms that you’re eligible for compensation.
It also lists how much you can receive, what the airline must provide, what actions you should take next, and more.
CAA
Hopefully, you won’t have to use this tool, but it’s there if you need it. Daily Hive also has its own handy guide that’ll help you exercise your air passenger rights.