Indian Consumer Panel Upholds Air India Compensation Over Cancelled Toronto Flight
A Chandigarh consumer commission has upheld an order requiring Air India and a travel agency to pay about Rs 1.34 lakh after a Toronto-bound flight was cancelled at the last minute. Three women were stranded in Delhi in April 2021, and the family spent roughly Rs 4.37 lakh on replacement tickets. The panel found a service deficiency because the passengers received no timely notice or adequate assistance.
In April 2021, a Chandigarh-to-Toronto trip via Delhi was booked for the complainant’s daughter and two women. Their Air India flight was scheduled to leave Delhi at 3:45 a.m. on April 16. At the airport, they discovered it had been cancelled, with no timely notice or help.
The family spent about Rs 4.37 lakh on new tickets. A district commission found the airline and travel agency deficient; the state commission upheld roughly Rs 1.33–1.34 lakh in refund, inconvenience compensation, and litigation costs. It noted confirmed, checked-in passengers should not bear losses from provider-controlled cancellations.
This ruling could reassure air travelers that abrupt cancellations may carry financial consequences for airlines and booking intermediaries. Families facing costly rebooking might feel more willing to approach consumer forums.