Canada’s two biggest airports have banned billboard ads by a startup which helps bumped passengers claim compensation from airlines.
Flight Claim president Jacob Charbonneau has cried foul, claiming Toronto and Montreal airports had been pressured by airlines not to display the ads.
He said Flight Claim had paid up front to display the ad at Montreal for two years, but the airport pulled the ads after only five days.
Toronto airport officials refused to run the ad from day one, he told AFP.
Charbonneau said his advertising agency told him airlines had applied pressure to get the ad removed.
"It is the duty of airports to display consumers’ rights or at least not to prevent us from doing so. These are regulations, laws to which airlines must submit," Charbonneau said.
"We’re just there to protect and help the rights of the passengers, so we feel it’s kind of sad that we’re not able to publicize in a free market"
Flight Claim was founded a year ago and files claims for bumping on behalf of passengers in exchange for a 25% cut of compensation awarded.
It was operational before the outcry over the infamous United Airlines dragging incident and the recent introduction of a passenger bill of rights in Canada which sets out minimum mandatory rules for compensation.
The Montreal based company says the removal of the ads has actually been a boon for business with the local media attention generated lots of new inquiries from passengers.
