Air Canada was ordered to pay a passenger $2,000 for delayed luggage. Instead, it's taking him to court
CBC
Alaa Tannous was pleased when the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) ordered Air Canada to pay him $2,079 for delayed luggage, following a flight he and wife, Nancy, took from Toronto to Vancouver in 2022.
"I felt it's fair," said Tannous, who had waited more than two years for the CTA's decision.
But instead of receiving a payout from Air Canada, the airline served him with court documents this past December — on Christmas Eve. Air Canada is taking Tannous to Federal Court in an attempt to overturn the CTA's decision.
The CTA, Canada's transport regulator, isn't named in the court case, so Tannous is on his own.
"It was shocking," he said about being served at his Toronto home. "It's disappointing to see the airline, after all the money I spent with them over the years … they're appealing a $2,000 claim."
This is the fourth CTA ruling airlines have challenged in court in 2024, and the second one filed by Air Canada. The other case, which is still before the courts, involves passengers Andrew and Anna Dyczkowski in B.C. They were awarded $2,000 for a flight delay, which Air Canada is contesting.
"Something is really wrong in the system," Andrew Dyczkowski told CBC News in June 2024.
The way the rules currently work, after CTA officers issue rulings, if passengers or airlines disagree with the outcome, they can contest the decision in Federal Court. Airlines contesting CTA rulings is rare, but some affected passengers and consumer advocates argue the CTA complaints system needs to change, so passengers never have to worry about getting dragged into court battles.
"It does have a chilling effect and it's a scary proposition" for a passenger, said Geoff White, executive director of the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC), a national consumer advocacy group.
White says many people can't afford to hire a lawyer to take on an airline.
"Litigation lawyers aren't cheap," he said. "It puts customers at a real disadvantage."
As for Tannous's case, White says the tens of thousands of dollars Air Canada will likely spend on the legal challenge "could be better spent on improving customer service."
Tannous says he has no plans to hire a lawyer to try to win back what the CTA determined he's owed: $2,079 to cover toiletries, make-up and clothing he and his wife purchased after landing in Vancouver without the one suitcase they had packed for a weekend getaway.
"There's no point for me to waste more money," he said.
