Air Canada flight change rules force passenger to fly with H1N1

by Charlie Leocha on November 16, 2009

acLast week, an Air Canada refused to bend their flight change policies for a passenger who had a note from a doctor certifying that she had H1N1 influenza (swine flu). The passenger felt she had no other option but fly home sick.

Liz Overduin after visiting a doctor who certified that she had H1N1 called Air Canada to request a change to her ticket to allow her to fly home a few days later, after she was no longer contagious.

Air Canada was willing to book her on a later flight, but refused to waive any fees or the penalty of having to basically pay a walk-up airfare.

The result was an airfare that cost $700 more than her original ticket. She felt that she had coverage because she purchased trip interruption insurance from the Air Canada site when she purchased her airline ticket.

She was told that the insurance would reimburse her for her original ticket, but it wouldn’t pay for the additional costs that Air Canada was demanding.

In the end, it came to a choice between flying sick and contagious or paying almost $700 more to Air Canada. Ms. Overduin decided to fly home.

Air Canada noted that they were following government directives to make it easy for passengers to change their flight in case of discovering they have the flu. The directives failed to mention that the changes should also be affordable.

Most U.S. airlines have similar policies to Air Canada’s policy. Last week, back here in the U.S.A., the Consumer Travel Alliance sent letters to all of the major airline CEOs asking them waive change fees and penalties for anyone faced with flying with a contagious disease.

(United Airlines actually has a section in its contract of carriage that says the airline will waive the change fee in case of passengers too sick to travel with a note from a doctor. It does not make any mention of limiting changes in airfares because of the cancellation.)

The Consumer Travel Alliance also sent a letter to the Secretary of Transportation requesting that he issue a directive (perhaps together with the Center for Disease Control) ruling that change fees and penalties cannot be charged when a passenger needs to change travel plans because of a contagious disease.

Until the airlines act responsibly or the Department of Transportation forces them to be responsible, behavior and outrageous charges such as that seen north of the border will continue throughout this dangerous flu season.

(Photo: matt.hintsa/Flickr Creative Commons)

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Tagged as: air canada, airlines, change fees, flu, H1N1, penalties

  • kiki d

    ah, in the immortal words of trey parker and matt stone, “blame canada”.

  • comeon…

    I don’t know why any business should bear the burden… presumably the passenger chose a lower fare (most of us would), however, there are limits in return for lower fares and that includes taking responsibility for any changes incurred. So, sorry, in this case, I’m with the airline. The alternative could result in higher fares for everyone!

  • Frank

    Hey, tell the consumer travel alliance, while they at it, make it a federal policy for all businesses in the United States (why just airlines???) to allow changes and REFUNDS to everyone who says their sick.

    I’m sick, I couldnt make the World Series. I want a REFUND.
    I’m sick, I couldnt make the Broadway Show. I want a REFUND.
    I’m sick, I couldnt make the Concert. I want a REFUND.

  • MarkieAA

    @comeon

    The problem is that it’s not the sick passenger who’s going to suffer – although traveling with the flu can be downright miserable – it’s possibly every other passenger on the plane. The airline tacks on its $700 and, in this case, the passenger has to add several more $$$$ to the hotel bill for a few nights extra stay. Not many people will willingly take a $1000 hit if they don’t have to.

  • http://www.tripso.com/author/leocha Charlie Leocha

    Frank,
    In all of those cases you can resell your tickets to a broadway show, to a ball game to a concert or give it to your friends. In the case of the airlines, passengers are not allowed to resell their tickets. No other part of the travel industry has this kind of limitation on an item that you purchased.

  • Janice Hough

    I’m actually with Charlie here. If the airlines want to let people re-sell their tickets, fine to charge a change fee if they can’t. But heck, with World Series and Broadway tickets you can actually make a profit on unused tickets. Wonder how the airlines would feel about clients making a profit, on say, a ticket they couldn’t use around Christmas.

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  • Frank

    Sure, you can resell it, but, if you dont, it’s NO GOOD. No “changing dates”, “no paying a penalty”, no GOOD.

    At least you’re offered ticket RULES when you purchase a ticket from the airlines. YOU decide the restrictions you’re willing to pay. Apparently the “change fee” means NOTHING TO MOST OF YOU until YOU GET SICK.

  • ninas

    Any customer flying that flight who gets ill should sue the airline. One lawsuit would solve the problem. All the airlines would cower.

  • http://www.tripso.com/author/leocha Charlie Leocha

    The simple solution would be for the airlines to sell transferable tickets (with TSA approval of course). That would solve the problem. Passengers would have the same choice they have with Superbowl tickets, Red Sox or Yankee tickets. Miss your flight — lose your ticket value.

  • http://aol.com barbara

    Dream on everyone. I hve often had to return from a vacation with a rotten cold.I am sure that other people may have become sick. On the other hand I very likely caught the cold on the the previous flight. Please the TSA can barely handle some of the more serious problems they have. Less goverment in some cases is better.

  • Frank

    Charlie Leocha November 17, 2009 at 2:12 pm
    The simple solution would be for the airlines to sell transferable tickets (with TSA approval of course). That would solve the problem. Passengers would have the same choice they have with Superbowl tickets, Red Sox or Yankee tickets. Miss your flight — lose your ticket value.
    ====================================================

    Careful what you wish for. The airlines would benefit from this, no more overbooking. Sell 100 tickets for 100 seats. You dont show up, your ticket is WORTHLESS. Ever get stuck in traffic? Afraid to drive in icey or snowy conditions? Have a family emergency? Those $800.00 tickets to Paris? WORTHLESS. Care to purchase NEW ONES?

  • MidMom8949

    But if they’re transferable, you could sell them, gift them, do something with them.

  • Teri

    I think that most of you can stop feeling sorry for the airline and thinking that they should be able to charge an extra $700.00. Liz had a note from a doctor certifying that she had H1N1. This should have been good enough for the airlines to just rebook her to a later flight at no extra cost. When these insurance policies are written up do they take into consideration that there may be a world wide pandemic, and they could just be helping to continue the spread by not accommodating passengers. Why couldn’t Air Canada shows some compassion and not just look at the bottom dollar. Maybe Liz should have asked to speak with a supervisor or someone else that would have understood her situation.

    H1N1 (swine flu). I have had this flu and let me tell you, I thought I was going to die, 2 weeks in bed unable to breath, move and do many other things I don’t even want to mention. My lungs still hurt and it has been a month. Just the fact that this woman was wanting to protect other people from this horrible virus should say something. BUT, we are talking AIR CANADA, this is the airline that most Canadians love to hate, poor customer service, airfares that are outrageous, and the $700 add on this poor women would have to pay. It wasn’t even mentioned as to where her flight was going. My bet for an extra $700 it was going from Vancouver to Calgary. It usually costs cheaper to fly return from Vancouver to Heathrow. There is absolutely no use trying to complain to anyone as Air Canada has the monopoly Canada, so they don’t have to care.
    I just really want to thank Liz for thinking of other people’s health, even if the fools at Air Canada wouldn’t.

    Just another quick note, Air Canada is now making people pay for extra leg room, you will never guess in what section, the exit rows. They are now discriminating against tall people, my son who is 6’5 is usually fortunate enough to sit in this row, without extra charges. Shouldn’t Air Canada and other airlines be giving the people who sit in this row a reduced rate as they are the ones expected to help passengers exit the plane in an emergency.
    What next, a flight attendant standing outside the lavatory selling toilet tissue at $1.00 per square.

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  • Frank

    How do you “sell” a ticket you intended to use, but due to traffic, sudden illness or an accident you now can NOT make the flight?

    You know what you do with them after you missed your flight?

    You trash them.

  • Doug

    Quoted from Teri….

    “Just another quick note, Air Canada is now making people pay for extra leg room, you will never guess in what section, the exit rows. They are now discriminating against tall people, my son who is 6′5 is usually fortunate enough to sit in this row, without extra charges”

    AC are not the first airline to do this. In fact, they’re not even the first in Canada to implement this charge. Westjet started doing this last year.

    I’m getting tired of seeing people say that the airlines have to change tickets without charge. The truth is the consumer bought the cheapest ticket they could. That ticked comes with restrictions. You can’t make the flight? That’s part of the risk you take buying a cheap ticket.

    That’s no different than a home owner getting the lowest coverage possible on an insurance policy. You save some on the monthly premiums, in the hope that you never have to make a major claim. If something happens, well….

  • chris

    do what they do in triage at emergency rooms — give her an N95 mask, make her wear it. call it a day.

  • Kevin M

    Frank,

    As it is now, if you miss a flight because of traffic, the ticket is usually effectively worthless anyway. You show up, they rebook you on a later flight, credit back the $300 you paid for the original ticket, charge you a $150 change fee, charge you the $800 walk-up fare for the new ticket – you’re still paying a lot more money to recover even a small portion of the ticket’s value. (And the airline could well have had a standby passenger paying walk-up fare for the missed seat get on in your place, so they may come out way ahead).

    In any event, nobody’s saying the airlines don’t have the *legal* right to do this – as you whine on and on about “read the rules”. We’re not saying that these aren’t the rules. We’re saying the rules are unfair and uncompassionate. In the interests of not exposing the rest of the plane of passengers to H1N1, Air Canada could have simply transferred her to a later flight. After all, Southwest manages to allow changes with *no* fees whatsoever, so it’s clearly not impossible to do, and it’s obviously possible to be profitable while doing so.

  • Ed

    WTF?
    “She was told that the insurance would reimburse her for her original ticket, but it wouldn’t pay for the additional costs that Air Canada was demanding.”
    There’s the *REAL* crime here…she purchased the insurance, but it only covers the original ticket…What a scam!
    Ed

  • Frank

    Kevin M November 19, 2009 at 2:59 pm
    In any event, nobody’s saying the airlines don’t have the *legal* right to do this – as you whine on and on about “read the rules”. We’re not saying that these aren’t the rules. We’re saying the rules are unfair and uncompassionate. In the interests of not exposing the rest of the plane of passengers to H1N1, Air Canada could have simply transferred her to a later flight. After all, Southwest manages to allow changes with *no* fees whatsoever, so it’s clearly not impossible to do, and it’s obviously possible to be profitable while doing so.
    ==================================================

    who’s doing the whining? I’m NOT. How many passengers can get a doctor’s note on a whim and make a SHAM of the airline. Is that uncompassionate or simply UNETHICAL now? Yet, EVERYONE thinks they should be an “exception”. And, how are the RULES unfair when you accept them along with the ticket PRICE?

    the only reason Southwest can do this is they have LOW LOAD FACTORS. Most of the year, they’ve been operating at a 70ish percent load factor. Lowest among the BIG CARRIERS. And they have high frequency on alot of routes, allowing the changes.

  • Frank

    AND…….. I find it ironic that the flying public whines about the airline industry NOT being “compassionate”.

    Are YOU?

    The one’s who yell and scream at the agent when the flight is cancelled. Or throw your tickets at the agent when the flight is late?
    Bitch because all the overhead space is gone and you have to check your bag? Throw a fit on the jetway. Snap your fingers at the flight attendant with your superior attitude.

    All this behavior is directed at HUMAN BEINGS (simply wearing a uniform). Seriously, I’ve watched airline employees treated worse then DOGS. Isnt it any wonder why some simply shut down mentally and emotionally, because of what they’ve endured day in and day out.

    Yet, they’re supposed to care about YOU in return when YOU want an exception to the rules. How ironic.

  • Flyergal

    I have just come down with a cold and was doing a Google search to see if I might be denied boarding when I came across this thread.

    First, I manage a service organization so I know a thing or two about difficult customers. The most difficult of difficult end up speaking with me.. some have valid issues and others are just rude and possibly mentally challenged. I certainly will not excuse rude behaviour but it is part of working with the public and usually those customers will get the least amount of latitude. However, as a company we don’t get to charge people for this ‘inconvenience’. ANY people who work with the public have this challenge – not only airline workers.

    I am one of those people who did not take the travel insurance. If I felt that I might be contagious I would just not go on the trip and take responsibility for my earlier decision. However, if I took insurance and then still had to pay out to get back, YES I would feel cheated UNLESS it was very clearly stated in the insurance coverage information. At this stage though I’m lucky that I haven’t left yet – I would definitely be held hostage if I was trying to GET home from somewhere.

    Policies can be re-examined and changed if an equitable solution is found for both the carrier and the consumer. I am not an expert in the airline industry, but it certainly seems that the policy makers could consider the feedback and take a look at current practices to see if there was a way to change things even if any qualified, potential ‘loss’ would be charged back to the Federal Government. We are talking about public health and safety which can affect any one of us.

    Frank, I get the sense that work for the airlines.. would that be an accurate statement?

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  • MDF

    Frank, I think you’re whining.

    The whole point isn’t that someone bought a cheap ticket and should now suffer the risk that they got the flu. It’s that one person bought a cheap ticket and because the airline won’t bend their rules, everyone else on the plane is at risk. If I paid full fare, and get sick because of somebody next to me, shouldn’t the airline reimburse me my ticket and my medical expenses?

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  • BIanca

    That’s a big shame! I deeply hate Aircanada because last year in Calgary, because of a migraine, I was sent to a private clinic by ambulance and I paid for all that 700$, the same price! It was outrageous, but that was the only condition to take the next flight to go to Vancouver. But that’s not the end of the drama!!!
    After a week they emailed me telling I had to give then another note (a special one!) specifying that I was healthy and able to fly again (since I had another aircanada ticket to flight back to Europe). Needless to say, it was a big pain in the neck. A scandal!
    I won’t buy ANY MORE an Aircanada flight. 

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