Latest news with #Lukacs
Toronto Star
4 days ago
- Business
- Toronto Star
This ‘hero' took an airline to small claims court over cancelled flights and won — a victory for all travellers
A recent small claims court decision in Nova Scotia has called out a troubling and growing business practice among Canadian airlines. And consumers can thank Maritimer Jason Hennigar for this. Three years ago, Hennigar bought round-trip tickets to Florida from Halifax through Sunwing. Not once, but twice, the airline cancelled his scheduled flight for 'unanticipated business or operational constraints.' Baloney, a small claims adjudicator ruled in a decision issued in April. Hennigar just wanted to go on holiday — a trip to Disney he'd been planning since September 2022. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW After Sunwing cancelled his first flight and offered to rebook him on another plane — for $500 more — Hennigar agreed. When the airline cancelled the second flight and ignored his requests for the airline to get him on another plane, Hennigar felt he had no choice but to dig deeper into his pockets. Sunwing did not respond to the Star's emailed request for comment. The Advocate Is Sunwing responsible for reimbursing travellers after fire near resort? It says no — but a lawyer says not so fast Star advocate Diana Zlomislic takes a deep dive into Ontario's Travel Industry Act and wonders With his scheduled vacation just weeks away, he forked over $5,155.92 to Air Canada to get him to Florida — twice the amount he had already paid Sunwing. Hennigar read Canada's Air Passenger Protection Regulations, and knew that when an airline cancels a flight for reasons within its control, as Sunwing did, the law says a carrier must provide customers an alternate flight at no additional charge. But he also knew that time was running out and that he wasn't likely to convince a company that had stopped communicating with him that it was in the wrong. So he took his vacation and filed a legal action against Sunwing in a small claims court in Nova Scotia when he returned home. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW The case, which Hennigar won, shines a light on a 'highly problematic and growing business practice by airlines,' says Gabor Lukacs, president of Air Passenger Rights, a Canadian advocacy group. The group, Lukacs says, had no involvement in the case. The Nova Scotia man compiled a 16-tabbed binder of evidence for his Zoom hearing and represented himself. Lukacs, who has never met Hennigar, calls him a 'hero.' At the hearing, Sunwing's claims director testified that the second plane the airline cancelled — a 737 — was scheduled to carry 189 passengers from Halifax to Orlando in February 2023. In a public decision issued in April, small claims adjudicator August Richardson took Sunwing to task. Evidence presented in court, he wrote, shows the airline's business model 'was premised on selling enough tickets for a particular flight or destination to fill a plane.' If the airline failed to reach its target number of passengers by a specific date, it would cancel the flight. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW 'The best that could be said was that the defendant thought it would be too expensive to fulfil its obligation to the claimant to find an alternate flight at no additional cost,' Richardson wrote. 'But the fact that a contract proves more expensive than a contracting party thought it would be does not excuse that party from performance. A bad deal is still a deal.' Lukacs loves that last line and repeats it several times during our interview. 'It's the first time this practice has been called out,' he says. 'When an airline says your only option is to cancel or pay more, that's not acceptable. That's illegal.' The Advocate Air Canada placed this family's 20-month-old on standby — then the real problems began Airline apologizes and offers flight compensation and a travel voucher after family's rough ride Before taking his case to small claims court, Hennigar submitted a request for damages to Sunwing. The airline, without discussion, eventually refunded $2,503 to his credit card. In his small claims case, which he filed in September 2024, Hennigar asked the court to order Sunwing to pay him the remaining cost he incurred as a result of the cancellations, which totalled $2,652.76. Sunwing argued that the federal air passenger regulations upon which Henningar's case relied pertained primarily to 'large carriers' and that it was not a large carrier. Hennigar agreed. He turned to another piece of legislation, the 1999 Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules for International Carriage by Air — commonly referred to as the Montreal Convention. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW He successfully argued that the word 'delay' in Article 19 of the Montreal Convention included the cancellation of a flight — that a cancellation by definition amounts to a delay of the intended arrival date and time. Richardson agreed. The Advocate Airline compensation horror stories take flight. Here's why it may get a whole lot worse After sharing a traveller's odyssey for compensation from Turkish Airlines last week, readers He ordered Sunwing to pay Hennigar for the extra cost of the substitute tickets he purchased himself from Air Canada and layover expenses for a total of $2,652.76 plus costs of $200. There are a surprising number of people named Jason Hennigar in Nova Scotia. I left phone and Facebook messages with three of them but never connected with the right one. If you're reading this Jason, I'd still love to talk with you.
Hamilton Spectator
09-05-2025
- Hamilton Spectator
Is it rude to recline your seat on a flight? Here's what experts say about airplane etiquette
You've waited for hours in line, wrestled to find space in the overhead compartment, struggled to stake a claim in a shared armrest, and finally you find yourself seated for your flight, it's time to kick back and relax — but is it OK to recline? With videos surfacing online of reclining horror stories on flights, travellers and observers are debating: who's in the right and who's in the wrong? Here's what the experts have to say about airplane etiquette and what we — and our fellow passengers — can do to help each other get by while in the sky. Seats on flights in Canada have no regulated minimum size, and airlines make room for more of them by making seats thinner, using less material, said Gabor Lukacs, president of Air Passenger Rights, a Canadian non-profit. Some airlines configure seats differently so it doesn't feel you are sitting closer to your neighbours, even though you are, said Lukacs. And there is a trend that airlines sell shared seat-pitch — the space between your own seat and the back of the seat in front of you, said Lukacs, adding that 'in this type of arrangement, passengers are pitted against passengers.' Battles between airline passengers over reclining chairs do happen, said Kate Pepper, a Toronto-based travel influencer, flight attendant with Porter Airlines, and pilot-in-training, who has witnessed heated debates and spilled drinks. In one case, while the person in front 'had waited a long time to recline their seat' — not until after flight attendants collected garbage — they didn't check behind them before reclining, said Pepper, and 'the person behind had ordered a plethora of drinks that spilled on them. 'It was a really bad situation,' she said. While the person reclining was apologetic, the person spilled on was irate, she said. And a quick glance back before reclining may have avoided that. Woman who recorded video says American Airlines passenger repeatedly punched the back of her Toronto-based etiquette coach and owner of Business of Manners consultancy, Adeodata Czink, said while she advises against reclining chairs on planes, there are still courteous ways to check in with the person behind you and communicate your wish to recline. If you are going to recline, ease into it. Do not suddenly recline, said Czink. Instead, she suggests turning around to ask the person that you're going to inconvenience, 'Would it be too much of an inconvenience if I just recline my seat a little bit?' Do not recline 'right at the beginning of a flight, or when you get food,' said Czink, 'I have had people right in front of me who do that, and it's a sudden, wham ,' she said, 'especially if you've got some food on your tray still.' Instead, she suggests waiting until the most appropriate time, and even then, always checking in with your neighbours. It's about being mindful of other people and what the person behind you is doing, added Pepper. You can give them a heads-up, she said, 'No one wants to wear red wine.' Reclining chairs usually have different levels of recline, said Czink, adding she never reclines to the full extent the chair can. Instead, she eases her chair into the first pre-set level, and stays there. It's important to remember, said Pepper, 'it's OK for other people to recline their seat.' 'Seats on a plane recline for a reason,' said Pepper, 'people are trying to rest, especially on a night flight and that's OK.' Over the years, airlines have been squeezing more seats into airplanes with the goal of 'End of the day, etiquette is all about how you make other people feel,' said Nuwan Sirimanna, etiquette coach and founder of Etiquette Matters, based in Oakville. 'Consideration, respect and honesty are the three principles of etiquette,' said Sirimanna, noting 'it applies in every interaction.' 'When it comes to reclining seats, technically passengers have the right to recline,' said Sirimanna. 'But when it comes to etiquette, it's about being mindful for others,' he said. 'I always say, just because you can, doesn't mean you should,' said Sirimanna, 'At least not without consideration.' Travel can be stressful and uncomfortable, especially on flights without fresh air or much ability to move around, leaving people more easily agitated. The key, said Sirimanna, is to feel mentally prepared to keep your cool, even when things do not go as planned. 'If we crowd too many people for too long in too small a space, it is likely to create some aggression, likely to cause some problems,' said Lukacs. One of the best tips just before travelling is to imagine in your mind your flight and long journey, said Sirimanna. 'Visualize that not everything will go as smoothly as you expect and there could be unexpected scenarios or difficulties that arise,' he said. Do this first, and 'then mentally you are prepared before you face it.' If someone is not sharing space, how you react will also influence the outcome of the situation, especially midflight. Woman who recorded video says American Airlines passenger repeatedly punched the back of her The window seat passenger gets the wall to lean against, and the aisle seat passenger gets extra leg room and easier access to get up, but the middle seat has no advantage, so that passenger should have access to both armrests, for comfort said Sirimanna. Overhead bin space is not assigned to seats, but belongs to the plane, and snagging a spot for your stuff can be another pain. Passengers might not feel they should need to, but placing items at your feet can help. If you do use an overhead compartment, don't fill the bin just for yourself, and ask before you move around anyone else's bags, said Pepper. When it comes to noise, make sure your headphones are at a reasonable volume and not something others can hear, too. Avoid strong fragrances, since people can have allergies or other sensitivities. Removing shoes on a plane can be uncomfortable for those around you. If you anticipate needing to loosen your shoes for comfort or medical reasons, wear socks and shoes that can still be worn, while also feeling loose.
