A major airline is suing a passenger whose bag it lost

The airline had been ordered to compensate the passenger in 2024.

Feb 28, 2025 - 18:42

A major airline is suing a passenger whose bag it lost

While both the U.S. and Canada have laws requiring airlines to compensate passengers for lost or significantly delayed luggage, anyone who has ever dealt with claiming the funds knows just how taxing the process can be.

Travelers frequently report facing long wait times when trying to reach an airline representative after discovering that their bag did not come out on the baggage carousel. Waiting for a response after submitting receipts for any clothing and toiletries they had to purchase while waiting for their bag to be located can seem interminable.

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Air Canada traveler reports being served with court documents over delayed bag

At the start of 2022, Toronto resident Alaa Tannous and his wife, Nancy, took Air Canada (ACDVF) to fly cross-country and arrived in Vancouver only to discover that the baggage he had checked before the flight was not there.

While the suitcase was eventually located and delivered, Tannous turned to Canadian regulators to claim compensation for the inconvenience and purchases he had to make on the trip when the bag was lost after the airline rejected his claims. In 2024, the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) ordered Air Canada to pay Tannous $2,079 CDN (approximately $1,440 USD).

But just a few weeks after the decision was handed out, Tannous reported being served with legal documents informing him that Air Canada was suing him on Christmas Eve 2024.

"It was shocking," Tannous described to national broadcaster CBC. "It's disappointing to see the airline, after all the money I spent with them over the years [is...] appealing a $2,000 claim."

These are the details of the case and Air Canada's appeal

The lawsuit, which was filed in Canada's federal court against Tannous personally rather than the CTA, states that the bag was delivered the day after Tannous' flight and that Tannous claimed expenses that were unreasonable for being separated from his belonging for less than 24 hours. His claim for $3,435 CDN (roughly $2,382 USD) included a pair of running shoes purchased the same day as the flight and a monogrammed designer suitcase.

Air Canada is the country's largest and flagship carrier.
Shutterstock

Air Canada says that it offered Tannous $250 in compensation at the time that he rejected; the CTA later ruled that the airline owed him $2,079 CDN.

Tannous also said that he and his wife were only staying at their hotel in Vancouver for one night and had already moved on to the rest of the trip after the suitcase arrived without notice.

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Air Canada did not immediately respond to a request for comment from TheStreet or comment on it to other outlets.

The airline has also recently stirred up passenger outcry after announcing that it would start charging its basic-economy passengers to bring anything larger than a purse or small backpack aboard certain shorter flights. Such a model mirrors low-cost airlines such as Spirit (SAVE) and overwhelmingly affects travelers who are already struggling to afford travel.

"Let's just say I'm not very happy today with what I've heard from Air Canada," Canada's Federal Transport Minister Anita Anand said after the changes were announced last December. "I think they need to take a look at the persons that they are targeting with these excess fees."