Delays, cancellations, compensation disputes, Canada’s transport agency is drowning in airline complaints

Travellers look at the arrival and departure board at Montreal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport in Montreal, Friday, Sept.13, 2024. (Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press)

A backlog of 85,000 complaints from air passengers is piling up at the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA), and one advocate says the system is failing passengers.

From delays and cancellations to compensation disputes, the CTA is drowning in complaints.

“It is going to take them more than two years to deal with just a current backlog,” said Air Passenger Rights founder Gabor Lukacs.

Since the CTA resolution office launched in 2023, the number of complaints continues to grow.

Lukacs said that the agency’s method of dealing with grievances is complicated and ultimately fails customers.

“In Canada, they have this system where the airline will say, ‘Well, it’s outside our control, so we don’t have to pay you anything,” he said, adding that, from the airline’s perspective, it’s easier and more profitable to refuse to pay and instead tell passengers to file a complaint through the CTA.

“So the Canadian Transportation Agency has the power to fine airlines that don’t obey the law, but they’re not using those powers,” he said.

The CTA said it’s proposing charging airlines nearly $800 for each eligible complaint, but for some airlines, the proposal is not welcome.

“Charging airlines $790 for each complaint, including the vast majority when we are found to have applied the legislation correctly, would not be balanced nor an equitable way of addressing the issue,” said Air Canada in a statement. “Air Canada cooperates with the CTA on a continuous basis, and our standard is to respond swiftly to all files transmitted by the agency and meet their response deadlines.”

“The Canadian Transportation Agency’s punitive proposal reflects a troubling disconnect between the Agency and the realities of Canada’s economy and aviation sector,” said Westjet. “Imposing additional costs on Canadian travellers, in an industry already oversaturated with high government taxes and fees, is very concerning—particularly during an affordability crisis in Canada."

Westjet adds that the agency’s priority should be dealing with improving its administration and reducing wait times.

The CTA said, however, that in 2024-2025, the agency closed over 33,600 complaints. In addition, as of July 20, 57.4 per cent of all decisions rendered by the agency’s Air Travel Complaints Resolution Office since September 2023, have been in favour of passengers.

Lukacs said he’s taking the CTA to court due to the agency’s lack of transparency.

“Because not only that, it takes more than two years, and they have a huge backlog,” he said. “They’re also trying to gag passengers who have a case before them.”

In the meantime, he says that if passengers have complaints against airlines, heading to a small claims court is a better option.

CTV News reached out to Canada’s Ministry of Transportation for comment, but did not hear back.