Minister of Transport, Omar Alghabra, announced $75.9 million in additional funding over three years, starting in 2023-24, to ensure the Canadian Transportation Agency (Agency) has the resources to address passenger rights complaints. The new funding will make it possible to hire more employees to deal with complaints.
In 2019, for the first time in Canadian history, an air passenger rights regime, called the Air Passenger Protection Regulations (APPR), was implemented to clarify minimum requirements and compensation based on whether an airline has control over the disruption or not. During the pandemic, the government strengthened these rights to include refunds for situations outside the airline’s control, including major weather events or a pandemic.
“ When airlines do not provide the reimbursement or compensation to which travellers are entitled, the Canadian Transportation Agency is there to ensure passenger rights are respected. Today’s announcement helps give the Agency more resources to deal with complaints and ensure the rules are respected. Our government also continues to work to strengthen and clarify travellers’ rights,” commented the Minister
They feel our pain.