B.C.’s Civil Resolution Tribunal has ordered Calgary-based WestJet Airlines to pay a passenger $575 in damages for a delayed flight, a long way from the $2,462 she had claimed.
In her June 25 decision, tribunal member Alison Wake said Aimee Mugridge purchased a return ticket from Kelowna to Phoenix, Ariz., connecting through Calgary.
Wake said Mugridge’s flight from Kelowna to Calgary was delayed so she missed her connecting flight to Phoenix.
Mugridge booked herself on a different flight to Phoenix, with a different carrier. She claimed WestJet was responsible to reimburse her for the replacement flight and other expenses.
WestJet, however, denied most of the claims but agreed to refund her for the unused portion of her ticket.
WestJet acknowledged Mugridge may be entitled to compensation under the Air Passenger Protection Regulations (APPR) for the delay.
The booking
Mugridge booked the flight for Dec. 21, 2022.
Her first flight was to depart Kelowna at 1:05 p.m. PST and arrive in Calgary at 3:06 p.m. MST. Her second flight was to depart Calgary at 6:50 p.m. MST and arrive in Phoenix at 10:52 p.m. MST.
However, the first flight was delayed so Mugridge did not arrive in Calgary until 11:12 p.m. and missed her connecting flight to Phoenix.
She booked herself on an Alaska Airlines flight from Calgary to Phoenix via Seattle on Dec. 22, 2022.
Mugridge claimed reimbursement of the cost of the Alaska Airlines flight, plus a refund of her unused WestJet flight to Phoenix. She also claimed compensation for the delay under the APPR.
WestJet argued that any loss or damage Mugridge suffered was beyond its control.
But, Wake said, WestJet relied in its submissions on APPR section 17, which applies when a flight is delayed for reasons within a carrier’s control, or within its control but required for safety purposes.
“So, I find WestJet acknowledges that Dr. Mugridge’s flight delay was within its control,” Wake wrote.
The dispute
Wake said the APPR says that, for delays of more than three hours within a large airline’s control, the airline is obligated to rebook the passenger on the next available flight to their destination on a reasonable route departing within nine hours with the original carrier or with another carrier with which it has a commercial agreement.
“If the carrier is unable to do so, it must rebook the passenger on any reasonable air route to their destination within 48 hours,” Wake said.
Wake noted under the APPR, if the offered alternate travel arrangements do not accommodate the passenger’s travel needs, the airline must refund the unused portion of the ticket.
WestJet argued it was in the process of making alternate travel arrangements for Mugridge, but she rebooked herself on a new flight within two hours of her delayed arrival in Calgary.
Mugridge told the tribunal there were no WestJet flights to Phoenix for several days and that WestJet did not offer her alternate travel arrangements at any time. WestJet acknowledged it did not offer alternate travel arrangements but said Mugridge did not wait for a rebooking within the 48-hour deadline under the APPR before booking her own arrangements.
Mugridge said she never contacted WestJet to advise she had made her own arrangements, and yet WestJet did not contact her at any point during her trip, or even after her return, to offer her alternate travel plans.
“WestJet does not dispute this, and the parties agree that Dr. Mugridge did not contact WestJet to cancel the second leg of her itinerary,” Wake said.
WestJet said Mugridge wasn’t entitled to damages because she incurred the alternate flight expenses before it failed to offer her alternate travel arrangements itself.
Wake ruled that didn’t apply as, “WestJet did not offer Dr. Mugridge alternate travel arrangements at all.”
As such, Wake ordered WestJet to compensate Mugridge for the Alaska Airlines ticket. She was not given a refund for the unused portion of her ticket.
"I agree with WestJet’s submission that the APPR provides for alternate travel arrangements or a refund of the unused portion of the passenger’s ticket, but not both. Because I have awarded Dr. Mugridge damages for the cost of her alternate travel arrangements, I find she is not also entitled to a refund of the unused portion of her flight," the ruling said.
