The trick airlines could be using to deny you compensation for cancelled flights

A Canadian airline has been accused of swapping well-maintained aircraft for ones in need of repairs to avoid paying passengers when their flights are delayed, according to a report.

Brad Vanderwilk and his girlfriend’s WestJet flight from Mexico to Edmonton was canceled with a day’s notice this past March. The couple was rebooked on an indirect flight through Victoria that would make them stay overnight and get them home 16 hours late, leaving them scrambling trying to make arrangements for their children, Vanderwilk told CBC Go Public.

Canada’s Air Passenger Protection Regulations say passengers can each receive $1,000 for delays, but the compensation only kicks in if the delay is within the airline’s control and not due to safety reasons.

While Vanderwilk filed for compensation, WestJet denied the claim, citing “unscheduled maintenance required for safety.” Meanwhile, flight records reviewed by CBC showed that WestJet replaced the aircraft from Vanderwilk’s original flight with a plane that had been grounded for two days — and then almost immediately canceled the flight.

“I feel lied to and cheated,” Vanderwilk told the outlet. “They’re just trying to do what they can to not pay anybody anything.”

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Dozens of other passengers have complained of similar situations, according to CBC’s Go Public, which found 34 cases where passengers were denied compensation after their aircraft were swapped. In each case, the airline cited safety reasons for the cancellations.

Vanderwilk isn’t the only passenger taking note of the pattern.

“I just feel completely blindsided,” Viren Harjani, whose flight from Toronto to Montego Bay was canceled in December, told the outlet.

Simon Turcotte-Langevin, who missed two days of vacation after his flight was canceled, added: “They’re lying to our face.”

“It’s unethical,” said Lucy Pascal, whose flight from Calgary to Puerto Vallarta was cancelled.

In a statement to CBC Go Public, WestJet said that planes are sometimes swapped to minimize “disruption for the greatest number of guests overall.” CBC reports that the airline did not answer questions about why aircrafts were swapped short before being canceled.

The Independent has contacted WestJet for more information.

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Gábor Lukács, who founded the group, Air Passenger Rights, told CBC Go Public that the pattern suggests a deliberate strategy on the airline’s part.

“There’s a pattern of a good aircraft being swapped with a bad one and then passengers are being told, ‘Sorry, the aircraft broke down,” Lukács said.

“It’s called fraud. There’s no other way to describe it,” he added.

The Canadian Transportation Agency, the country’s airline regulator, previously ruled against WestJet in a similar 2022 case involving an aircraft swap. According to Lukács, the airline can avoid paying between $75,000 and $200,000 per cancelled flight.

In a statement, the CTA said it was investigating CBC Go Public’s reporting.

“The CTA takes allegations of tariff breaches seriously,” a spokesperson said.

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