Decision No. 87-C-A-2023
Application by Alanna Lahey, Shawn Lahey and their minor child (applicants) against WestJet (respondent) regarding a refund
[1] The applicants purchased round-trip, economy-class tickets from the respondent for travel from St. John’s, Newfoundland, to Houston, Texas, via Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Calgary, Alberta, departing on March 16, 2020. The applicants paid for the tickets using a combination of WestJet Dollars and a payment from a credit card.
[2] On March 13, 2020, the applicants cancelled their tickets due to the travel ban implemented by the Canadian government. The amounts paid in WestJet Dollars were deposited to their Travel Bank, then deducted and replaced as WestJet Dollars. The amount paid by credit card, CAD 857.55, was deposited to their Travel Bank; the applicants seek a refund of this amount to their credit card instead.
[3] The respondent indicates that the Travel Bank credit was originally given a standard one-year expiry, but was extended an additional two years until March 21, 2023, as a courtesy.
[4] In this decision, the role of the Canadian Transportation Agency (Agency) is to decide whether the respondent properly applied the terms and conditions that were applicable to the tickets that the applicants purchased, as set out in its Tariff.
[5] If the Agency finds that the respondent failed to properly apply its Tariff, the Agency can direct the respondent to take the corrective measures that the Agency considers appropriate or to pay compensation for any expense incurred by the applicants as a result of the respondent’s failure.
[6] The Tariff provides that when a passenger cancels an economy-class ticket more than 24 hours after purchase, they are not entitled to a refund in the original form of payment; a refund will only be made in the form of credit, valid for one year.
[7] Therefore, the Agency finds that the respondent properly applied its Tariff when it provided the value of the applicants’ tickets in the form of travel bank credit, and that the applicants are not entitled to a refund to the original form of payment.
[8] In light of the above, the Agency dismisses the application.
| Legislation or Tariff referenced | Numeric identifier (section, subsection, rule, etc.) |
|---|---|
| Air Transportation Regulations, SOR/88-58 | 110(4) |
| International Passenger Rules and Fares Tariff WS1 containing Local Rules, Fares and Charges on behalf of WestJet Applicable to the Transportation of Passengers and Baggage between points in United States/Canada And Points in Area 1/2/3 and between the US and points in Canada, CTA 518 | 15(C)(1)(A); 15(C)(1)(C) |
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