Canadian Sunwing passengers stranded in Mexico for 5 days with ‘no communication’ | 24CA News
As a whole bunch of Canadians scramble to get dwelling after their Sunwing flights from Mexico had been cancelled final week, a passengers’ rights advocate says stranded travellers ought to think about authorized motion in the event that they aren’t compensated by the airline.
As of Sunday, a whole bunch of Canadian travellers had been caught in Cancun, Mexico after Sunwing cancelled their flights dwelling. Some described being shuffled from lodge to lodge, typically arriving to seek out there have been no rooms booked for them, whereas Sunwing officers supplied inaccurate and incomplete details about after they would possibly get dwelling.
Sheldon de Souza mentioned in an interview Monday {that a} comparable scenario is enjoying out in Puerto Vallarta on Mexico’s west coast. He mentioned he flew there together with his spouse, three children and three household associates on Dec. 14, with a flight dwelling scheduled with Sunwing on Dec. 21.
That flight was cancelled, although just some passengers had been advised, he mentioned. Several days of incomplete info and confusion from Sunwing adopted, he mentioned.
He and a bunch of fellow passengers had been moved to totally different lodges and requested to take a look at every day and report again to the foyer each hour, in case there was news of a flight.
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Sunwing officers on the lodge would say there was a flight developing then, hours later, would say it had been cancelled, de Souza mentioned. He mentioned within the meantime, the flights wouldn’t present up on the airport’s every day schedules, main de Souza to consider he was being misled.
He mentioned he booked himself a spot on an Air Canada flight again to Calgary on Dec. 23, which price him about $1,000. His spouse, his kids and their associates managed to get a Sunwing flight dwelling on Boxing Day, however solely as a result of they began displaying up on the airport to push for a spot, he mentioned.
He mentioned they’d snagged seats on a Sunwing flight to Edmonton late on Christmas Day, even making it to the gate with boarding passes. But then officers mentioned the crew had been past their allowed most working hours and the aircraft was cancelled.
“It felt like Sunwing just abandoned us, they didn’t care,” de Souza mentioned. “It’s not even that they made an effort, they forgot us.”
He mentioned there have been “several hundred” Canadians stranded in Puerto Vallarta when he left, and a few are seemingly nonetheless there.
Sonal de Souza, their children, Sarah Pereire and her baby lastly made it dwelling to Calgary on Monday, after a five-day delay and three resorts later. But the prolonged keep was not vacation-like, Sonal mentioned.
“You’re walking around with all your important documents. You’re not really enjoying it because you’re keeping an eye on your phone to make sure you’re not missing any communication to make sure you can get out.
“And the communication from Nexus, that’s the representative in Puerta Vallarta, was awful. They said there’s a flight coming in for you. Make sure you’re at the lobby at 8:30. Pickup is at 9. We waited until 11:30. Nobody showed up to pick us up.”
In the wake of “no communication from Nexus or Sunwing at all,” the group went to the airport themselves, “demanding to get on a flight.”
And, the flight dwelling “was half empty,” Pereire mentioned.
Both ladies say they’ll search compensation from Sunwing.
“I don’t discount the flight was delayed because of weather, but five days?” Sonal mentioned.
“We know because we’re all in a group chat, there’s people stranded that have been kicked out of the hotel, have no place to go and Sunwing is not responding,” she added.
Other stranded passengers reported half-empty return flights from Mexico.
Smartlynx chartered flight from Cancun to Regina Dec. 26, 2022 at 5:25 p.m.
Supplied to Global News
Gabor Lukacs, president and founding father of the Air Passenger Rights group, says passengers grappling with cancelled flights and insufficient details about after they may be rebooked can purchase their very own tickets dwelling with a distinct provider, and preserve cautious information and receipts of their bills.
If Sunwing refuses to compensate them below the federal Air Passenger Protection Regulations, they need to take the matter to small claims courtroom, Lukacs mentioned in an interview.
“We’re at a point in Canada where suing an airline is not simply about your own money, it’s about changing how they operate. It’s about behaviour modification,” he mentioned. “And that’s where the government is derelict in its duties to the public.”
He mentioned passengers must also cellphone their native member of Parliament and ask for higher enforcement of passenger rights in Canada.
The federal Air Passenger Protection Regulations mandates airways to pay as much as $1,000 in compensation for cancellations or vital delays that stem from causes throughout the provider’s management when the notification comes 14 days or much less earlier than departure.
Lukacs mentioned it’s unlikely Sunwing will voluntarily pay up. The Canadian Transportation Agency, which acts because the federal airline regulator, doesn’t do sufficient to carry airways accountable, he mentioned, in order that they don’t really feel a lot stress to obey the foundations.
Federal laws grants the company’s enforcement officers the facility to research firms and people it believes have damaged the foundations and to concern fines of as much as $25,000.
The regulator’s web site exhibits that previously 5 years, only one provider — WestJet, for 55 situations in late January — has been fined for not offering sufficient compensation to passengers. The whole penalty was $11,000.
Lukacs mentioned the company isn’t issuing sufficient fines. “The government is turning a blind eye to airlines’ misconduct,” he mentioned.
The Canadian Transportation Agency didn’t reply instantly to a request for remark.
In an e-mail to Global News Tuesday, Sunwing mentioned “a number of return flights continue to be impacted by delays due to displaced crew and aircraft resulting from the aftermath of severe weather disruptions across Canada.
“Our teams are working hard to reaccommodate customers in destination by subservicing aircraft, and arranging alternate hotels and transfers for those with overnight delays,” a Sunwing spokesperson mentioned.
“Our teams continue to proactively work around the clock with several airline partners to subservice aircraft and return customers home.
“We have completed two recovery flights so far this week, have planned another eight recovery flights which are scheduled to depart between today and Dec. 30, 2022, and are currently finalizing recovery plans for our remaining passengers in destination. Additional information will be provided to customers through flight alert notifications and their destination representatives once rescheduled return flights are confirmed. In the meantime, customers can sign up for flight alerts on Sunwing.ca.”
Sunwing additionally mentioned passengers who’re at their vacation spot however need to guide an earlier flight dwelling on one other provider can accomplish that at their very own price after which submit a refund request for his or her unused Sunwing flight.
Customers at present in vacation spot who would favor to guide an earlier return flight on one other provider can accomplish that at their very own price, ought to they so select, and will submit a refund request for his or her unused Sunwing return flight.”
— With recordsdata from Emily Mertz, Global News
