Guava

And they are correct, because they won't even bat for Quebec residents as they simply don't have the human resources to look into every single cases. The OPC regulates travel agencies through licensing, hence they kind of have to intervene with respect to travel agencies and even then, only if it's a major infringement, like operating without a license. The onus is on the consumer to take it to a Quebec small claim court and have the law applied against the merchant, in this case, Air Canada. OPC is neither a court nor an arbirtrator. Ms. Boer lives in NB, under law, she can simply goes to the court nearest the NB/QC border, instead of Montreal, as the law permits the consumer to choose whichever region most convenient to her.

jmastron

Well, Air Canada could certainly have expanded on their answer or attempted to pass blame if there was more to the story, but they themselves admitted it was "mistaken information that the credit card was fraudulent". It sounds like an overaggressive fraud AC detection algorithm, and unwillingness/inability for the checkin agents to escalate and get someone to clear the issue and reinstate the ticket at the time.

The story doesn't say how much the original ticket was, only that the replacement was $700 -- if the original was $700 also (perhaps bought fairly late), then refunding that is okay; if it was less, then obviously AC owes the higher refund. If I'm forced to buy a new ticket for a flight I already paid for, the first thing I will do on landing is to dispute the *new* charge.

rickg523

So if I buy my married daughter (different last name) a ticket on AC with my credit card, there's no assurance they'll honor the ticket and not make her buy another one with her credit card?
Sounds kind of a dicey proposition. I'd choose a more reliable travel partner.

Doc Savage

^

Articles like this will help others make this intelligent choice.

stevendorechester

If I had been in this position I would have taken a different flight and sued them for IDB compensation. They can't just cancel a ticket and not give a reason ( or what's stopping all airlines from doing that when they overbook flights?).

Stranger

Some airlines (mainly in Asia) actually request that you show the credit card used to pay when checking in.

But coming back to the above, I know of one case with AC whereby the ticket had been purchased on a credit card that was not the passenger's. The insisted in phoning the cardholder before allowing the passenger to board.

This is all about buying on internet, using just a credit card number. There are numerous cases of fraudulent purchases made using pirated credit card numbers. So it is understandable that airlines try to protect themselves.

Which needs not mean that they should disallow legitimate purchases.

This said, it still sounds like there is more than we are being told in the current story.

Jumper Jack

A contract can be discharged via
agreement,frustration in this case.


Looks like neither was applicable here.
AC can cry and say it was frustration to the point that it's impossible to perform.

Even though we are bound by what we sign, exemption clause still has to be reasonable and non predatory.

Just took the comm law exam on Tuesday so few thing is still fresh in the mind lol

Guava

Then you can see why AC can legitimately set up its arguments to defend itself under Common Law because CL does indeed allow the unilateral cancellation of such consumer contract, despite an incorrect claim to the contrary by another poster. All AC has to do is to prove "frustration" and if a judge bought the argument and that AC acted without malice with just cause, albeit ultimately, just being overly cautious - then it is entirely possible Ms. Boers would only be entitled to the original refund while ended up paying a more expensive last minute ticket + the lost time + court fees + inconvenience. Such argument cannot even be entertained in Quebec, it is not permissible under law so no court will ever rule in favor of Air Canada under the above scenario, but not so elsewhere in Canada unless the said province has prescribed similar protection in their consumer protection. I know a few do but not Ontario. And imagine pitting yourself against Air Canada lawyers in a small claim court for such a small claim. The balance of the CL is clearly in favor of big corporations, despite claim to the contrary. That is why, such practice is specifically outlawed in Quebec, AC will not be able to bring its army of corporate counsel against you in Court if you fight them in Quebec. In English speaking Canada, you are trying your luck.

canadiancow

IDB compensation only applies if the flight was oversold.

If the load factor is 50% and they deny you boarding for any true reason ("we suspect fraud" is true (at least the suspicion), "the flight's full" is not), you are not entitled to IDB compensation.

I read the rules about this over the summer when something like that happened to my PNR-companion. COUPON REQUIRED meant they wouldn't let him board. AC even admitted fault later (reservations agent screwed up an IRROPS rebooking), but only offered 5000 miles due to it not being an oversell situation.

Not that this is entirely relevant to this situation. Just that IDB compensation is not due unless they can prove the flight was oversold.

karachi

it doesnt specify if the info on the fraudulent CC was from the bank, or AC. Fraud models do generate false positives a lot, which is why most fraud algorithms are rules heavy. Did the bank say the transaction was fraud, or did AC misunderstand it ?

DrunkCargo

It looks like her big mistake was applying for reimbursement. It could be argued that her intention was to request a refund and thus it was not a unilateral decision. Chronology doesn't support this argument, however temporal proximity?

It's similar to how my intent at the airport must be not to fly, therefore do not let me in the MLL on a J fare.

Edit: Wait a sec; I misread the original article and assumed she was essentially a walk-up fare like much of my flying (yes, projection). Dec 8 to Feb 18? AND, she had BP in hand meaning? AC is ....ed on this one. The fraud silliness won't hold.

dudestir

This has to be really common. I buy all my wife's flights (different last name) and have never had an issue.

I do agree we haven't heard all the details and AC as usual is slow or unwilling to release them, public relations be damned!

stevendorechester

Looking at the article it seems the airline refunded the first ticket. Not the most expensive one. Why not refund the more expensive ticket she was forced to purchase. The airline made the mistake and should have flown her at the original fare. What happened to her was a de-facto fare increase, if this was allowed what' s stopping any airline from cancelling tickets and then extorting more money from passengers if they want to fly that day. It did not cost Air Canada any more money to fly her on the same plane. I would sue Air Canada and the employee who made the decision to cancel the ticket to get back the difference.

stevendorechester

I think there are a couple of threads on airlines ( British Airways and Iberia come to mind) that have accidentally cancelled tickets and then denied compensation with a reply that " we cancelled your ticket accidentally, sorry about that". They paid once they were served court papers. Could be that the EU laws are more generous. Which is another reason to have EU-style laws in North America to prevent this kind of thing by airlines.

WR Cage

The details are in the CBC story but admittedly they were buried in the pro-complainant story.

The complainant upgraded her ticket to J class from the online checkin screen. After the transaction was completed, her credit card provider refused to accept the charge on grounds it was a potentially fraudulent transaction. The complainant has a printout BP that is still valid to get through security, the checkin agent would look at the complainant's J class BP and then process the bag tag from within the checkin system (checkin system would have created a bag tag without going back to the Reservation system for verification). Once AC treasury gets a hold of the credit card refusal, they cancel all onward travel in both reservation and checkin unless the traveler buys a new ticket.

Last summer I had a gig as finance manager for a golf course. Atleast once per month I would see after the fact credit card refusals come through our Moneris system. The common factor was an unusual transaction or high dollar transaction from the cardholders perspective that was processed between midnight and 3am. The credit card would be accepted at 3am but the declined the next day by the card issuer. In this instance the card issuer holds the transaction as "pending" for longer than the switch system at Moneris allows. In these instances, the Moneris system will allow the transaction to proceed (stand in procedure) pending confirmation by the card issuer. However the next day the card issuer refuses the transaction.

I have also been in a similar situation as the complainant, however in all situations I contact my card issuer immediately and speak with their help desk. The situation usually gets resolved in 2-5 minutes and I'm on my way. But my guess is the complainant didn't think to call the credit card issuer and ask to speak with the fraud detection desk.