Air Canada passenger charged for baggage — twice, violating CTA rules

Rob Eedson of Ottawa figured he'd spring for a small upgrade when he purchased Air Canada tickets for a week-long family trip to San Diego in October. 

He bought the tickets online and paid extra for three "economy flex" fares — for himself, his wife and four-year-old son — because they included one checked bag per passenger on the outbound and return flights.

"It's pretty hard to pack light with a young one," said Eedson. "He wants a lot of toys and everything, so we each needed to check a bag."

The tickets were on a "codeshare" flight — meaning an airline is selling seats operated by a different carrier. In this case, Air Canada sold the tickets but the Eedsons were travelling on United Airlines.

When they showed up at the United check-in counter, an agent insisted on charging for luggage — again — $40 per bag, despite Eedson showing him an Air Canada receipt for three checked bags.

"He just kind of stuck to the line that I was getting on a United plane and we hadn't paid United for baggage," said Eedson. "Very frustrating."

On their return flights, a United agent charged the family for baggage again.

Flights on one booking involving more than one airline have become increasingly common but can be fraught with problems, says John Gradek, an aviation analyst and lecturer at McGill University in Montreal. 

On the upside, they expand the number of destinations to which an airline can sell tickets and allow passengers to fly farther on a single itinerary. The downside, according to Gradek, is that passengers can end up getting overcharged for various services when the airlines involved in one itinerary aren't on the same page.

"It's a mess," said Gradek. "Air Canada needs to get its act together if it's teaming up with another carrier."

Eedson and his family flew from Ottawa to Chicago and then on to San Diego, taking the same route to get home. 

Even before flying home, Eedson submitted a claim to Air Canada to be reimbursed for the extra luggage costs, but it was denied.

"When a customer's itinerary includes other airlines, fees may be required by the other airline depending on the itinerary," wrote an Air Canada representative in an email to Eedson.

But that response violates baggage rules, laid down by the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA), for flights to and from Canada when passengers have a ticket that involves more than one airline.