Air Canada is revising its cancellation policy amid mounting customer frustration, offering travellers the option of a voucher with no expiration date or Aeroplan points if the airline cancels their flight due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The airline says the new policy 91裸聊视频� the previous one capped travel vouchers at 24 months, with no Aeroplan option 91裸聊视频� applies to non-refundable tickets issued up to the end of June, with an original travel date between March 1 and June 30.

Air Canada91裸聊视频檚 fresh tack comes as consumer advocates and thousands of passengers continue to demand their money back for services they paid for but have not received.

Three petitions with more than 89,000 signatures are calling for full refunds to be implemented before financial aid is handed out to airlines, two of which were presented to the House of Commons over the past 11 days.

Cathy Maltese, who was booked on an Air Canada flight from Toronto to Orlando, Fla., over the March break with her three children, said she is 91裸聊视频渆xtremely disappointed91裸聊视频� with how the airline has treated customers.

91裸聊视频淎t least now my family has the option of travelling when it is safe again and don91裸聊视频檛 have to worry about the time running out for us,91裸聊视频� Maltese said in an email.

91裸聊视频淭o garner trust and respect again, they also have to give customers the option of a refund. There are many families struggling right now to put food on the table,91裸聊视频� she said. 91裸聊视频淲hy should they lose that money?91裸聊视频�

Air Canada said it has refunded nearly $1 billion to customers since Jan. 1, largely to travellers who paid for refundable tickets.

91裸聊视频淲hile the world is making great progress against COVID-19, we know we must remain vigilant, which includes being flexible,91裸聊视频� chief commercial officer Lucie Guillemette said in a release Friday.

The loyalty points option allows customers to convert their booking into Aeroplan miles 91裸聊视频渁nd get an additional 65 per cent bonus miles,91裸聊视频� she said.

Toronto resident Bob Scott, who launched a petition presented to Parliament last week by Liberal MP Yasmin Ratansi, said passengers are 91裸聊视频渂ecoming increasingly angry at what they see as the government91裸聊视频檚 complicity in the daylight robbery being committed by the airlines.91裸聊视频�

Canada is out of step with the United States and the European Union, he noted, where officials have ordered airlines to reimburse customers for cancelled flights. The Canadian Transportation Agency chalks up the difference to U.S. and EU legislation establishing a 91裸聊视频渕inimum obligation91裸聊视频� to refund that Canada lacks.

None of Canada91裸聊视频檚 major airlines touts policies offering to return cash to passengers for the hundreds of thousands of flight cancellations since mid-March, opting instead for vouchers 91裸聊视频� typically with a timeline of two years.

Pressed on the issue Thursday at his daily media conference, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the government needs to have 91裸聊视频渟ome very careful discussions with airlines91裸聊视频� as well as Canadians to maintain a balance where travellers are 91裸聊视频渢reated fairly91裸聊视频� and the sector stays intact.

Passenger rights advocate Gabor Lukacs said the law requires airlines to refund customers, adding that fares may well go up in the coming year, reducing the value of travel credits.

91裸聊视频淎ir Canada continues to skirt its obligations to refund the approximately $2.6 billion dollars it owes to passengers,91裸聊视频� Lukacs said in an email.

Airlines have been sending repatriation flights and offering customers vouchers, but typically they advertise no refund policies for cancelled routes.

WestJet91裸聊视频檚 website highlights future travel credit for cancelled flights, but says: 91裸聊视频淲e are not processing refunds to original form of payment at this time.91裸聊视频�

The disclaimer comes despite the company91裸聊视频檚 tariff 91裸聊视频� the contract between airline and passenger 91裸聊视频� which states that 91裸聊视频渢he unused portion of the passenger91裸聊视频檚 ticket(s) will be refunded91裸聊视频� in the same form as it was purchased, 91裸聊视频渟hould the alternate transportation proposed by the carrier not meet the passenger91裸聊视频檚 satisfaction.91裸聊视频�

On Friday, Air Canada also said it will bolster its summer schedule, which nonetheless remains more than 50 per cent smaller than last year as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to pound the airline industry.

The 97 destinations compare with 220 last summer but mark an improvement from the past six weeks, when 95 per cent of its flights were still suspended.

Christopher Reynolds, The Canadian Press

Like us on and follow us on .

Want to support local journalism during the pandemic? Make a donation