An Ottawa woman is calling out Air Canada for a frustrating experience that left her with a $600 travel voucher she says was nearly impossible to use and cost her far more than it was worth.
Monica Anthony posted a TikTok video earlier this month detailing how what should have been a generous travel voucher from the airline ended in disappointment and regret.
@monianthonyx ❗️@Air Canada YOU ARE SCAMMERS AND YOU KNOW IT ❗️how could you do this to me 😭😫. How does this even make sense??? Stuff like this shouldn’t be allowed… how am I ever supposed to use this voucher in full? I knew it was too good to be true. @ctvnewsottawa ♬ original sound – monianthonyx
Anthony and her boyfriend each received a $600 voucher after volunteering to be bumped from an overbooked flight to Japan. Months later, when she and her boyfriend wanted to put their vouchers to use toward a flight to Paris, they ran into an unexpected catch: the base fare of the ticket was only $1, meaning the full value of the voucher could not be applied. Taxes and fees, which made up much of the $1,500 cost of the flight, weren’t covered by the voucher.
“You’re telling me that our combined $1,200 is only going to cover $2 worth?” Anthony questioned in the TikTok video.
Despite repeated attempts to escalate the matter with different Air Canada agents, Anthony says the airline refused to offer helpful solutions, such as converting the voucher into a gift card.
“They didn’t seem to have any remorse and empathy,” she explained to Now Toronto. “It was just kind of discouraging.”
Ultimately, she and her partner were forced to pay for the Paris flight out of pocket, leaving the original voucher unused. Adding salt to the wound, Anthony says she regretfully still had to book the upcoming flight with Air Canada, as the airline was the cheapest option.
“It’s super unfortunate that we still have to fly with them, and that was truly our only option at this point,” she said. “I’m just hoping that maybe when we’re gone, or upon our return, someone will reach out and we can get some type of reimbursement.”
In a statement to Now Toronto, Air Canada explained how voucher terms are determined and communicated to passengers:
“Terms and conditions for use of the voucher are included in a link prior to the customer volunteering not to travel and, if the customer is accepted as this customer was, when they receive their voucher code,” the airline said. “That said, situations such as this do occur but are very rare, and when they do our policy is to help customers who contact us so we can provide more flexibility around how they use their vouchers.”
Air Canada noted that it’s unclear whether Anthony contacted them directly with booking details, and offered to investigate further.
As for the unusual pricing structure, like a $1 base fare with hundreds of dollars in taxes and fees, the airline says such cases are uncommon but not unheard of.
“Airfares change constantly and it is a very competitive market, so it can occur, although rarely, that base fares can be quite low.”
The incident also raises questions about how clear and consumer-friendly airline vouchers really are. While such offers are often pitched as goodwill gestures or rewards for customer flexibility, the reality can be more complicated.
Air Canada acknowledged that its voucher program is still evolving, and that improvements are underway.
“Our process for customers to voluntarily move off flights is relatively new and we do incorporate customer feedback into ongoing design changes,” the airline said. “Among those planned changes are improvements to how vouchers are issued and the flexibility they afford our customers. We will also make it clearer for how customers can reach out for support in the interim.”
For Anthony, the lesson was costly, and she hopes others won’t make the same mistake.
“I absolutely regret taking the voucher. I think we should have stuck to our original flight,” she said.
“I just truly felt let down… I’m very, very, very disappointed.”