WestJet passengers may still experience flight delays and cancellations due to the airline's mechanic union's strike over the Canada Day long weekend.
The airline has taken "significant strides to resume normal operations," with 125 of its 180 aircraft active across the network as of Tuesday, July 2. However, 75 flights were cancelled on Tuesday, and eight are slated for cancellation on Wednesday.
Over 100,000 WestJet guests have been impacted by the labour action, including thousands of travellers from the Lower Mainland.
WestJet must re-accommodate guests booked on cancelled flights with a flight on an alternative airline within 48 hours of their scheduled departure if they do not have another flight available. WestJet must book flights for its guests with airlines outside of its network if no flights are available.
Guests are also entitled to request a refund to their original form of payment. WestJet must fly them back to their airport of origin.
Guests should check their flight status online before leaving for the airport. They should also visit WestJet's Guest Updates page for more information regarding flight status and travel changes.
Metro Vancouver travellers might be owed more if they flew internationally
Canadian air passenger rights advocate Gabor Lukas says the rebooking must be done in whatever fare class is available. This means a passenger who booked an economy WestJet ticket must get a free upgrade to business class if those are the only tickets available, according to the Air Passenger Protection Regulations (APPR) ss.18(2)-(3).
Luckas also advises travellers to look at websites that show other available flights before accepting WestJet's offer; the airline may put them on a less desirable flight that costs the airline less money.
"If WestJet does not fulfil its rebooking obligations, then the next step is buying a ticket on a competitor, and then making WestJet pay for the extra expense — in small claims court if necessary," he told V.I.A.
Travellers with international segments in their itineraries may be owed more. WestJet is liable for damages incurred as a result of any flight delays or cancellations, meaning travellers can recoup money for meals, hotels, lost wages, and more, according to Lukas.
