WestJet ordered to pay $5K to family denied boarding while plane was still at gate: B.C. tribunal

WestJet passenger jets parked at departure gates at the Calgary International Airport on Wednesday, May 31, 2023.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

A family that scrambled to make a connecting flight but were denied boarding while the plane was still at the gate must be compensated by WestJet, a B.C. tribunal has ruled.

The dispute dates back to January of 2024, when Adam Green, Vanessa Trevors and their three children were scheduled to travel from Phoenix to Kelowna, with a connection in Calgary, according to the Civil Resolution Tribunal decision posted online Friday.

The first leg of their flight was delayed by roughly three hours, arriving in Calgary 37 minutes before the connecting flight was set to depart at 7:15 p.m. Unbeknownst to them, the airline had rebooked their flight to Kelowna for 11:30 a.m. the next day, the decision said.

“The applicants say WestJet did not inform them of any change to their itinerary, and they rushed through the Calgary airport to catch their connection,” tribunal member Alissa Reynolds wrote.

“Their boarding passes were scanned at security checkpoints and were still valid. They arrived at their gate while the flight to Kelowna was boarding.”

The family arrived in Kelowna 18 hours and 10 minutes later than they were scheduled to.

WestJet did not dispute the family was denied boarding, instead arguing the family experienced a weather-related delay on the first leg of their trip that was outside of the airline’s control and were therefore not entitled to compensation under the Air Passenger Protection Regulations.

The tribunal disagreed, finding the reason for the delay on the first leg of the trip was immaterial given the family arrived in Calgary in time to make their connection. Further, Reynolds found the reason they did not ultimately make it home to Kelowna on time was within the airline’s control.

“It was caused by WestJet’s decision to rebook the applicants on a later connecting flight. WestJet does not explain why it made that decision when the applicants still had 37 minutes to make their connection and made it to the gate while the flight to Kelowna was boarding,” she wrote.

Canada’s passenger protection legislation required large airlines, like WestJet, to compensate people $1,000 each for delays of nine hours or more within the company’s control, the decision explained, awarding this amount to each member of the family.

In addition to the $5,000 in compensation for the delay, the tribunal also ordered the airline to reimburse the family $112.70 for meals and the $22.45 they paid for accommodations after redeeming points at a Calgary hotel.

The tribunal also awarded $187.49 for tribunal fees and dispute related expenses, bringing the total to $5, 322.64.