Travellers in Windsor applaud passenger bill of rights

Travellers in Windsor say it's about time a passenger bill of rights was introduced in Canada, after the federal government introduced legislation on Tuesday to set a national standard for how airline passengers are treated by 2018.

The goal of a passenger bill of rights is to make sure travellers know what they are entitled to expect in terms of service or compensation should their travel arrangements be disrupted by events within the airline's control.

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Christine Labaty often visits family in Windsor, and said she's had many problems with cancellations and lost baggage with almost no compensation.

"I think if a bag is lost over a certain period of time people should receive monetary compensation, because they might have to buy supplies to manage until that time," said Labaty.

Mariam Diryawish lives in Windsor, and experienced an extraordinary travel situation involving her aunt that a passenger bill of rights could have addressed.

Diryawish's aunt was flying back to Australia from Windsor, with connecting flights in Toronto and L.A. She is originally from Iraq, and doesn't speak much English, so Diryawish's family informed Air Canada of this with a letter.

"Air Canada told us when we dropped her off that there would be an attendant with her, and everything would be fine," said Diryawish.

'It's not easy flying and being lost'

According to Diryawish, what happened next shocked the family. Her aunt was dropped off at the wrong gate in Toronto. By the time Diryawish's aunt had figured out she was in the wrong place, her flight to Los Angeles had left. She then got onto a flight to Vancouver, without her family knowing. 

"She's also on medication and has had several surgeries. So it's not easy flying and being lost, when you're sick and don't speak the language," Diryawish said.

After hours of phone calls to Air Canada, the family found out where their relative was, and she made it back to Australia the next day. 

"The whole thing was just ridiculous," added Diryawish, who pointed out that Air Canada offered no compensation for the delays and confusion.

Similar legislation has been in place in the U.S. since 2002 and in Europe since 2005. The federal government hopes to have its passenger protection regime in place by 2018.