Within WestJet’s control - including for safety 

What you’re entitled to: 

• If you are informed of a delay less than 12 hours before your scheduled departure and have waited 2 hours or more after the indicated departure time: 
• Food and drink in reasonable quantities 
• Access to a means of communication, when feasible 

If you are required to wait overnight: 

• Hotel or comparable accommodation 
• Transportation to and from the accommodation 

These services may be limited or not provided if doing so would further delay your trip.

Compensation when within WestJet’s control and not related to safety: 

When you are informed 14 days or less of a flight delay, compensation is based on the length of your delay in reaching your final destination, and the reason it occurred. Compensation applies when arrival delays are 3 hours or greater.  

We carefully review each flight disruption, and it can take up to 72 hours after your flight to confirm the reason for your late arrival.  

Situations surrounding flight disruptions can be complex and have multiple causes. The reasons provided for a flight disruption may change as the situation evolves, new issues arise, or new information is received.  The final reason may differ from earlier updates you received. 

Compensation claims are accepted beginning 72 hours after arriving at your final destination and must be filed within 1 year from the day the arrival delay occurred. 

Compensation amounts are in Canadian dollars and are determined by the length of delay at your final destination: 

• Less than 3 hours | $0 CAD 
• 3 to 6 hours | $400 CAD 
• 6 to 9 hours | $700 CAD 
• 9 hours or more | $1,000 CAD 

If you request a refund instead of flying, you may request compensation of $400 if your flight was delayed 3 hours or more and the reason for the delay qualifies. 

Reimbursement for hotel, meals, and transportation 

If you incur reasonable out-of-pocket expenses due to a flight cancellation that is within WestJet’s control, including for safety, you can submit a request for reimbursement.  

If approved, you can choose to be reimbursed either: 

• With cash via electronic payment, or 
• With Travel Bank credits deposited into your WestJet Rewards account 

To request reimbursement, complete and submit the online form in full. A WestJet Guest Support specialist will review your request. 

If your WestJet flight is delayed for three hours or more, we will attempt to provide you with a confirmed reservation at no additional cost on the next available WestJet, WestJet Encore, or partner airline, or with an alternate airline when required. 

Comparable travel arrangements 

We’ll attempt to book you on comparable travel to your original ticket. If the new flight is in a higher class of service, you won’t be asked to pay more. If it’s in a lower class, we’ll automatically refund the difference in fare for that portion of your trip.  

If you had an accepted offer to upgrade and it was not honored, you can submit a request for a refund: 

Upgrade offer refund request 

Additional services  

If you purchased extra services for your original flight and didn’t receive them on your new flight, or had to pay for them again, we’ll refund those costs to the original form of payment and to the person who made the purchase.  

Refund for unused travel and return to your original airport if en route 

If the new travel arrangements don’t meet your needs, we’ll refund the unused portion of your ticket.  

If you are en route, we’ll arrange a flight back to your original departure airport. Refunds go to the original payment method and purchaser. To request a refund and arrange a flight back to your original departure airport, contact us.  

Flights booked on another airline or third-party 

If your disrupted flight is flown by one of our partner airlines, or you booked through a third-party such as a travel agent, another airline, or travel site, please contact them directly.  

If your flight departs within 24 hours, you have the option to reach out to your third-party agent or contact us.  

A Tarmac Delay is when your flight is ready to take off, or your flight has just landed (but the doors of the aircraft are closed) and you are waiting on the plane. We will do what we can to make you comfortable during a Tarmac Delay, including the following: 

• WestJet will provide you with access to working lavatories, proper ventilation and heating or cooling, food and drink, and the ability to communicate with people outside the plane free of charge, when feasible (“Tarmac Delay Services”). If you require urgent medical assistance during a tarmac delay, we will take all reasonable steps to facilitate access to medical assistance. 
• After a 3-hour tarmac delay at an airport in Canada, the plane will return to the gate so you can disembark if safe to do so. A plane can stay on the tarmac for up to 45 additional minutes, if it is likely that it will take off within that period, and we are able to continue providing the same Tarmac Delay Services, when feasible. 
• This short extension is to ensure that the plane can take off if there is a reasonable prospect of this occurring – so that you can reach your destination without the inconvenience of further delay or a flight cancellation. 
• If it is not likely that the plane can take off within the additional 45-minute window, the plane will return to the gate, unless it is prevented for reasons related to safety, security, customs control, or air traffic control. 

If the plane returns to the gate for disembarking because of a tarmac delay, disembarking priority will be available to passengers with disabilities and their support person, service animal or emotional support animal, if any, upon request and when feasible.