Travel Disruptions, Delays and Cancellations

1. Immediate Steps During a Disruption

1. Review the supplier notice carefully. Confirm what changed, which part of the itinerary is affected and whether an alternative has already been offered.
2. Identify the operating supplier. The company that sold a ticket may not be the airline operating the affected flight.
3. Use official urgent-service channels. This may include the airline app, airport desk, hotel front desk, cruise guest-services desk or official telephone line.
4. Check the rest of the itinerary. A disruption may affect connections, hotels, transfers, cruises, tours, rental cars and other prepaid services.
5. Contact Peter. My Travel Guy may be able to review the reservation and known supplier options.
6. Contact the insurer when appropriate. Follow emergency-assistance instructions before major replacement purchases when prior approval may be required.
7. Keep complete records. Save receipts, screenshots, emails, boarding passes, baggage tags, supplier notices, case numbers and representative names.
8. Understand the consequences before cancelling. A voluntary cancellation or independently purchased replacement may affect supplier remedies, refunds or insurance coverage.

2. Flight Delays, Cancellations and Schedule Changes

When a flight is delayed or cancelled:

• Confirm current status through the operating airline
• Review the airline’s proposed rebooking
• Check whether connecting flights remain possible
• Confirm how checked baggage will be handled
• Ask about meals, accommodation or ground transportation where applicable
• Keep itemized receipts for reasonable out-of-pocket expenses
• Notify affected hotels, transfers, cruises or tours
• Contact the insurer if coverage may apply
• Contact My Travel Guy for help reviewing the overall itinerary

Monitor the airline’s official app, email, text messages, airport displays and announcements. Keep your contact information current and retain proof of all notices.

Airline obligations may vary according to the cause of the disruption, whether it was within the airline’s control, whether it was required for safety, the airline’s size and the length of the resulting delay.

Schedule changes before departure

Suppliers may change departure or arrival times, flight numbers, operating carriers, airports, connection durations, aircraft, cabins, seats, hotels, rooms, cabins, ports, tours or transfers.

Compare the revised arrangement with the original confirmation, check every affected component, review response deadlines and obtain any accepted change in writing.

Tarmac delays

A tarmac delay occurs when passengers remain aboard an aircraft after its doors close for departure or after it lands. Follow crew instructions, identify urgent medical or accessibility needs promptly, note approximate times and retain related messages and receipts.

My Travel Guy cannot communicate with the flight crew or control operational decisions while passengers are aboard an aircraft.

3. Denied Boarding or Refusal to Transport

Denied boarding generally occurs when a traveller has a valid reservation and reports as required, but the airline cannot provide the confirmed seat because fewer seats are available than expected.

Possible causes include overbooking, a smaller replacement aircraft, operational seat restrictions or another reduction in usable seating.

This is different from refusal to transport because of missing documents, missed check-in or gate deadlines, safety or security concerns, health concerns, traveller conduct or failure to follow airline instructions.

What to do

1. Ask the airline to confirm why boarding was denied.
2. Ask whether volunteers are being requested.
3. Request the proposed rebooking and explanation in writing.
4. Ask what meals, accommodation, transportation or communication assistance applies.
5. Confirm how baggage will be handled.
6. Keep the boarding pass, confirmation and notices.
7. Record representative names and conversation times.
8. Review restrictions before accepting a voucher or settlement.
9. Contact Peter so the remaining itinerary can be reviewed.
10. Submit any compensation or complaint request to the airline in writing.

4. Missed Connections

• Speak with the operating airline immediately
• Check the airline app for automatic rebooking
• Determine whether affected flights are on the same ticket
• Ask whether checked baggage will be transferred
• Confirm whether the new itinerary changes the arrival airport or date
• Notify affected hotels, transfers, cruises or tours
• Contact Peter and the insurer where relevant
• Keep written notices and receipts

Avoid purchasing a replacement ticket until you understand whether the airline, supplier or insurer may reimburse it.

Flights on separate tickets can create additional risk. A second airline may treat a missed onward flight as a no-show even when an earlier, separately ticketed flight was delayed.

5. Weather, Labour Action and Large-Scale Emergencies

Weather disruptions

Weather at a departure airport, connecting airport, destination or aircraft positioning location can affect a trip even when local conditions appear clear.

• Check official supplier alerts and airport information
• Review airline travel waivers
• Consider earlier rebooking where available
• Reconfirm hotels and ground transportation
• Keep receipts for necessary additional expenses
• Contact the insurer where coverage may apply

Strikes and labour disruptions

Labour action involving airlines, airports, air-traffic control, rail, ports, ground transportation, hotels or tour operators can cause cancellations, reduced service and baggage delays.

Use official supplier notices rather than relying solely on news reports or social media. Check the entire itinerary for secondary effects.

Natural disasters and major emergencies

Wildfires, hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, volcanic activity, civil unrest, armed conflict, public-health events and infrastructure failures may require immediate changes.

1. Follow local emergency-authority instructions.
2. Prioritize personal safety over the original itinerary.
3. Contact the supplier responsible for the immediate service.
4. Contact the insurer’s emergency-assistance line.
5. Notify Peter when reasonably possible.
6. Review official Government of Canada travel advisories.
7. Use Registration of Canadians Abroad where appropriate.

6. Passport, Visa and Entry Problems

My Travel Guy cannot override decisions made by airlines, immigration authorities, customs officers, border agencies, embassies, consulates, health authorities or governments.

Problems may arise from passport validity rules, missing visas, transit requirements, name discrepancies, missing child-travel documents, health-document requirements, admissibility concerns or insufficient proof of onward travel.

1. Ask the airline or authority to explain the reason.
2. Request written information where available.
3. Contact the relevant government authority or consulate.
4. Notify Peter.
5. Contact the insurer if coverage may apply.
6. Keep records of the decision and resulting costs.

General travel information does not guarantee boarding, transit or entry.

7. Lost, Delayed or Damaged Baggage

Report baggage problems to the operating airline before leaving the airport whenever possible.

1. File a baggage report.
2. Obtain a claim or tracing reference number.
3. Keep baggage tags and boarding passes.
4. Photograph damaged baggage and contents.
5. Save receipts for necessary replacement items.
6. Check the airline’s reporting and claim deadlines.
7. Contact the insurer.
8. Notify Peter if booking support is required.

Rules can vary by itinerary and applicable convention. Confirm current deadlines with the operating airline and the Canadian Transportation Agency.

Purchase only reasonable and necessary replacement items and keep itemized receipts. The airline or insurer determines whether expenses qualify.

8. Hotel, Cruise, Tour, Transfer and Supplier Problems

Possible problems include missing reservations, overbooking, unsafe accommodation, incorrect room or cabin categories, failed transfers, cancelled excursions, cruise itinerary changes, substitutions or missing included services.

• Contact the supplier immediately
• Ask for an on-site supervisor where appropriate
• Allow a reasonable opportunity to correct the issue
• Obtain the problem and proposed solution in writing
• Take relevant photographs without intruding on anyone’s privacy
• Contact Peter
• Keep receipts for necessary replacement arrangements
• Contact the insurer where coverage may apply

Do not wait until returning home to report a problem that could reasonably have been addressed during the trip.

Supplier insolvency, closure or cessation of service

Contact Peter, the supplier, card issuer or payment processor and travel insurer. Preserve invoices, confirmations and proof of payment. Review any applicable consumer or industry protection program and be cautious of unsolicited recovery offers.

My Travel Guy cannot guarantee recovery of supplier funds.

9. Travel Insurance Claims

Insurance claims are separate from supplier refunds.

• Contact the insurer promptly
• Use the emergency-assistance number where required
• Obtain a claim number
• Follow the insurer’s instructions
• Keep receipts and supporting documents
• Obtain medical, police or supplier reports where relevant
• Meet all claim deadlines
• Avoid major replacement purchases without required approval
• Disclose supplier refunds, credits or compensation

My Travel Guy may provide booking records and supplier documents available in the reservation but cannot determine coverage or guarantee claim approval. The insurer makes the final decision.

10. Canadian Air Passenger Rights and Recourse

Canadian passenger-protection rules may apply to flights to, from and within Canada, including connecting flights.

They may address airline communications, delays, cancellations, denied boarding, tarmac delays, rebooking, refunds, standards of treatment, baggage, seating children near a parent or guardian, musical instruments and accessible transportation concerns.

The applicable requirements depend on the operating airline, airline size, cause, route, notice, arrival delay and other circumstances. Do not assume every disruption automatically creates a right to compensation.

Airline complaints and CTA recourse

1. Contact the airline in writing first.
2. Describe the problem and requested resolution clearly.
3. Include the booking reference, flight details and supporting records.
4. Keep proof that the complaint was submitted.
5. Allow the airline the applicable response period.
6. Where the matter remains unresolved and falls within its jurisdiction, consider the Canadian Transportation Agency complaint process.

A complaint package may include traveller information, booking confirmation, ticket number, flight details, boarding pass, airline notices, the written complaint, the airline response, receipts, screenshots and the requested resolution.

Not every airport or airline issue falls within CTA jurisdiction. Customs, immigration, security screening, airport facilities, advertising and aviation safety concerns may need to be directed elsewhere.

My Travel Guy can help locate booking records and interpret supplier communications, but does not provide legal advice or determine entitlement to compensation.

11. What My Travel Guy May Be Able to Do

• Review the original reservation
• Explain known supplier options
• Identify affected itinerary components
• Assist with rebooking requests
• Request supplier changes
• Coordinate affected hotels, transfers, tours or other components
• Provide confirmations and available receipts
• Identify supplier or insurer contact channels
• Help document the disruption
• Advocate with a supplier where appropriate

What My Travel Guy cannot guarantee

• Immediate supplier response
• A particular replacement flight
• Space on another airline
• Waiver of supplier penalties
• Hotel or transportation availability
• Border entry or government assistance
• Compensation, supplier refunds or insurance coverage
• Refund-processing time
• Recovery from an insolvent supplier
• A particular complaint outcome

Emergency and after-hours assistance

My Travel Guy does not operate an emergency-response service and does not guarantee immediate after-hours availability. For urgent operational help, contact the operating supplier directly and, where relevant, the insurer’s emergency-assistance line.

Documentation checklist

• Booking confirmations, itinerary and e-tickets
• Boarding passes and baggage tags
• Supplier emails, texts and screenshots
• Receipts and invoices
• Representative names and conversation times
• Case, claim and baggage-report numbers
• Relevant photographs
• Medical or police reports where relevant
• Insurance correspondence
• Credit or refund confirmations

Avoid common disruption mistakes

• Relying only on social-media reports
• Discarding boarding passes or baggage tags
• Leaving the airport without reporting baggage problems
• Accepting a credit without reviewing restrictions
• Cancelling without understanding penalties
• Buying expensive replacement travel before checking reimbursement conditions
• Missing response, rebooking or claim deadlines
• Assuming every disruption qualifies for compensation
• Waiting until returning home to report a correctable problem

12. Relationship to Other My Travel Guy Policies

• Terms and Conditions cover the booking relationship, supplier rules, payments, cancellations, refunds, credits and limitations of responsibility.
• Privacy Policy covers traveller information, supplier disclosures, travel documents, international transfers and privacy rights.
• Travel Resources provides general preparation links for passports, advisories, baggage, security, weather and transportation.