Decision No. 27-C-A-2022

[1] The applicants received a Travel Bank credit in the amount of CAD 842.74 from the respondent after initiating the cancellation of an itinerary they had purchased for travel in August 2019. They do not dispute the amount, but seek to have this amount refunded to their original form of payment instead of a Travel Bank credit.

[2] Although the applicants claim that this travel credit was provided in relation to an itinerary they had booked for travel in May 2018 (May 2018 Itinerary), the evidence shows that the parties’ dispute relates to a different itinerary.

[3] The respondent has provided evidence showing that the May 2018 Itinerary was used by the applicants. The respondent states that on August 12, 2019, a “Premium” fare ticket was purchased for Ruth Dewitt-Langley to travel from Halifax, Nova Scotia, to Hamilton, Ontario, departing on August 19, 2019, and returning on August 22, 2019 (August 2019 Itinerary). The respondent claims that the Travel Bank credit referred to by the applicants was provided when Ms. Dewitt-Langley cancelled this itinerary on August 16, 2019. The respondent submits that Travel Bank credits are valid for one year, and that, as a goodwill gesture, it extended the validity of the Travel Bank credit in question by an additional year. The Agency notes that the applicants submitted correspondence from the respondent dated August 16, 2019, informing them that a Travel Bank credit for CAD 842.74 had been issued. Based on the above, the Agency finds that the parties’ dispute relates to the August 2019 Itinerary.

[4] In this decision, the Agency’s role is to decide whether the respondent properly applied its Tariff^{Note 1} to the ticket purchased by the applicants. The relevant provisions of the Tariff are set out in the Appendix.

[5] According to Rule 40(C)(4)(ii) of the Tariff, when a passenger cancels a reservation more than 24 hours after booking:

• a refund to the original form of payment is not available for “Premium” fare tickets;
• the passenger will be charged a cancel fee per fare component; and
• the remaining amount will be refunded to future flight credit in the form of a Travel Bank credit.

[6] Pursuant to Rule 40(C)(4)(1) of the Tariff, a Travel Bank credit is valid for one year from the date of its creation.

[7] The Agency notes that Ms. Dewitt-Langley cancelled her reservation on August 16, 2019, which was more than 24 hours after its booking on August 12, 2019. Given that the respondent provided Ms. Dewitt-Langley with a Travel Bank credit valid for one
year—and later extended it for an additional year—the Agency finds that the respondent properly applied its Tariff.

[8] The Agency therefore dismisses the application.
 

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APPENDIX TO DECISION NO. 27-C-A-2022

Local Domestic Tariff

Rule 40: Reservations

….

(C) Changes and cancellation of reservations

A Guest may change or cancel a Reservation up to two (2) hours before the planned departure of the Flight.

1. Changes and cancellations incur a fee as outlined in the chart below

All Travel Bank Credit shall include all amounts paid by the Guest in association with the Fare, including refundable Fees, Charges, Surcharges and Taxes. The Travel Bank Credit shall be valid for one year from the date of its creation.

….

4. Guests cancelling a Reservation:

….

ii. will be charged a fee as per the above chart and the unused ticket amount will be refunded to future flight credit in the form of
   Travel Bank, for Reservations made after 24 hours of booking. On or after March 11, 2019, cancel fees will be per fare component.

 

	Basic	Econo	EconoFlex	Premium	PremiumFlex	Business	Business Flex
Cancel within 24 hours of booking (excluding flights departing within 24 hours)	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Cancel for travel departing in more than 60 days	Non‑Refundable, no changes are permitted, any unused ticket amount is not available for future travel credit.	$25	$25	$25	$0	$100	$0
Cancel for travel departing within 60 days and same‑day flight changes at check-in	Non‑Refundable, no changes are permitted, any unused ticket amount is not available for future travel credit.	$100	$100	$100	$0	$100	$0
Name change	Non‑Refundable, no changes are permitted, any unused ticket amount is not available for future travel credit.	$100	$100	$100	$0	$100	$0
Cancellations  (balance refunded to original form of payment)	Not Available and any unused ticket amount is not available for future travel credit.	Not Available	Not Available	Not Available	$0	$100	$0

…….