Consultation on Cost Recovery

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Questions and answers - Air travel complaints fee proposal

What's changed?

Amendments to the Canada Transportation Act on June 23, 2023, established that airlines must pay a charge for the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) to recover a portion of the costs for processing an eligible air travel complaint.

What is a fee proposal?

When consulting with the public regarding potential charges or fees, the Government of Canada uses a fee proposal to explain, provide details and collect feedback. Once the department receives the feedback, it is reviewed and the charges or fees may be subject to change.

The purpose of the CTA's fee proposal is to present the proposed fee for processing and closing eligible air travel complaints. The consultation will be open from Wednesday, September 18, 2024 and will close on Monday October 21, 2024. Airlines will be notified 30 days before the finalized fee comes into force and a fees notice will be posted on the CTA's website.

What are the eligibility criteria for an air travel complaint?

A complaint must meet the following criteria:

  1. A complaint has to involve a flight incident that the CTA can address, such as a flight delay. The CTA’s website has a list of issues that it cannot address such as airport security screening or airline customer service.
  2. The air passenger actually experienced the flight incident raised in the complaint. For example, passengers cannot submit a complaint about something that they heard about on the news.
  3. The air passenger is looking for compensation, a refund, or reimbursement for expenses from the airline related to the flight incident raised in their complaint. The CTA cannot award compensation for pain and suffering, or loss of income.
  4. The air passenger has already sent a claim to the airline in writing before submitting a complaint to the CTA, waited 30 days for the airline's answer, and the complaint remains unresolved.
  5. The air passenger complaint cannot be vexatious or made in bad faith.

The air passenger should also note, if it is clear from the information provided in the complaint, that the airline has fulfilled its obligations under the tariff (the legal document that contains the terms, conditions and other rules that apply to an airline ticket), the complaint may be ineligible. For example, if the airline has already provided the air passenger with the compensation it was owed, the complaint would not move forward.

Eligible air travel complaints includes domestic or international flights, and small airlines or large airlines.

If an air travel complaint was made to the Canadian Transportation Agency before September 30, 2023, are those complaints going to be subject to this charge?

Yes.

What are airlines being charged for?

An airline will be charged a portion of the costs to process eligible air travel complaints.

What is the amount that the airline will be charged?

A charge of $790 per closed eligible complaint is being proposed.

When will the new charge come into effect?

The charge is planned to come into effect in the Fall of 2024.

What happens to the money that is collected from airlines?

The amounts collected will be used to cover some of the costs to operate the air travel dispute program.

Will airlines be charged for accessibility related complaints?

No.

Where can I find out how much money was collected from those charges?

The CTA will publish an annual fees report including all amounts collected on its website.