WestJet delay compensation: what you're owed and how to claim

Updated October 1, 2026 · Checked against the regulations as current to September 30, 2026 · By LandedLate

WestJet owes $400, $700 or $1,000 per passenger, in cash, for a delay or cancellation within its control. The amount depends on how late you reach your final destination: 3 to 6 hours, 6 to 9 hours, or 9 hours or more. No compensation is owed if the cause was outside WestJet's control or required for safety (a safety label can be challenged); you still get a new flight or a refund, and in safety cases meals (and a hotel overnight) if you were told less than 12 hours ahead. You claim on WestJet's online form, which opens 72 hours after you arrive, before the first anniversary of the delay or cancellation (section 19(3)). WestJet then has 30 days to pay or explain why not. These are the rules in force on October 1, 2026.

Whether your own flight qualifies depends on its details: the reason the airline gave, how late you reached your destination and how much notice you had. Check it free at landedlate.ca/check.

How much WestJet owes

WestJet, delay or cancellation within its control
You reached your destination	Per passenger
3 to 6 hours late	$400
6 to 9 hours late	$700
9 hours or more	$1,000
Less than 3 hours late	$0

Per passenger, section 19(1) of the regulations. Data as of October 1, 2026.

Bumped from an overbooked flight on WestJet for a reason within its control? The amounts are $900 if you arrived less than 6 hours late, $1,800 for 6 to 9 hours, $2,400 for 9 hours or more, paid within 48 hours (section 20). For a delay or cancellation within WestJet's control (not for safety) that you were told about 14 days or less ahead, if you took a refund because the new flight didn't meet your needs, you're still owed at least $400 (section 19(2)). Every amount in one chart

When WestJet has to pay, and when it doesn't

You're owed

The cause was within WestJet's control (crew availability, scheduling, moving your plane to another flight, most avoidable maintenance), you arrived 3+ hours late, and you were told about the delay or cancellation 14 days or less before departure (section 12).

Worth challenging

WestJet says “required for safety”, “weather” or “an earlier flight” without detail. It has lost rulings on safety and weather claims. Ask for the evidence.

Not owed

A genuine cause outside its control: weather that made flying your flight unsafe, an air traffic control instruction, a security threat, or a strike. You still get a new flight, or a refund if WestJet can't rebook you within 48 hours. No meals or hotel are required (section 10(3)).

How to claim from WestJet

Wait 72 hours. WestJet's form opens 72 hours after you arrive, or 72 hours after the disruption.
Have your booking details ready. Your six-letter WestJet reservation code, first and last name exactly as on the itinerary or boarding pass, and date of birth. They must match the booking exactly.
Open WestJet's claim form at westjet.com and paste in the description LandedLate writes for you: the cause WestJet gave, how late you arrived, and the sections of the regulations that apply.
Screenshot it before you press submit. WestJet says a submitted claim can't be retrieved later.
Note the date. WestJet has 30 days to pay or explain. Approved payments go to the email address on the claim.

Write my WestJet claim

Free. LandedLate takes no share of what WestJet pays you.

What WestJet says when it refuses, and how to answer it

A WestJet refusal can be overturned. When complaints reached a Canadian Transportation Agency decision between September 2023 and June 2024, airlines were ordered to pay compensation or a refund in 50% of the 9,740 cases, and 1,443 of the passengers' wins were against WestJet (agency data reported by CBC News). The burden is on WestJet: in a complaint, a disruption is presumed to be within the airline's control and not required for safety unless the airline proves otherwise (Canada Transportation Act, section 85.07(2)).

If WestJet says	How to answer it
“Crew availability” or a crew shortage, “for safety”	WestJet took this argument to the Federal Court of Appeal and lost. A first officer called in sick about an hour before a Regina to Ottawa flight. In WestJet v. Lareau (2025 FCA 149), the Federal Court of Appeal found no error in the agency requiring WestJet to show it had a reasonable contingency plan before accepting that a crew cancellation was required for safety, and upheld the $1,000 award. More on crew shortages
“Maintenance” or an aircraft change	WestJet moved the plane scheduled for a Honolulu flight to rescue passengers from another plane with a fuel-tank problem. The agency found the cancellation was WestJet's own decision and ordered $1,000 per passenger (Lubky v. WestJet, 137-C-A-2022). Ask what failed, on which aircraft, and whether your plane was reassigned.
Weather	WestJet cited forecast snow and freezing rain but filed only undecoded weather reports and a list of other delays at Ottawa. The agency rejected that defence and ordered $1,000 (Beauchamp v. WestJet, 68-C-A-2023). Ask for the conditions, the airport and the time. More on weather delays
A late incoming aircraft	A knock-on delay counts as its original cause only if the airline took all reasonable steps to limit it (section 10(2)). Ask what it did to protect your flight.
A strike or labour disruption	A genuine defence: the regulations list a labour disruption within the airline as outside its control (section 10(1)(j)). You're still owed a new flight within 48 hours or a refund.
“Here's a travel credit”	You're entitled to money. A credit only counts if it's worth more, never expires, and you accept it in writing (section 21).

What else WestJet owes you during the disruption

Meals and a hotel, if the cause was within WestJet's control (including safety) and you were told less than 12 hours before departure: food and drink after 2 hours, a way to communicate, and a hotel plus transport if you're stuck overnight (section 14). Not required for weather or other causes outside its control.
A new flight or a refund after a delay of 3 hours or more or a cancellation. When the cause is within its control, WestJet must offer a flight on WestJet or a partner leaving within 9 hours, and otherwise one on any airline within 48 hours (section 17). For causes outside its control, the window is 48 hours (section 18). More on cancelled flights and refunds
Refunds of extras you didn't get, such as paid seat selection (section 18.1).

If WestJet refuses or doesn't answer in 30 days

Reply to WestJet's answer in writing and ask which cause it relied on and what records support it. If that fails, you can file a free complaint with the Canadian Transportation Agency once you've written to WestJet and either received its answer or waited 30 days. Expect a long wait: the agency says it may take more than 24 months before an officer reviews a complaint, and about 98,000 complaints were waiting, as reported on September 24, 2026 (The Canadian Press). How long the agency takes. LandedLate writes the reply and prepares the answers for the agency's form. What each refusal reason means. How to file a complaint with the agency

Questions

When can I submit my WestJet compensation claim?

72 hours after you arrive at your destination, or 72 hours after the disruption. WestJet's form won't accept a claim before then. File it before the first anniversary of the delay or cancellation (section 19(3)).

How long does WestJet take to answer a claim?

WestJet says it responds within 30 days, which is also the legal deadline to pay or explain why not (section 19(4)). Approved payments are sent to the email address on the claim, with options to receive the money electronically.

Do I get compensation for a 2-hour WestJet delay?

No. Compensation starts when you reach your final destination 3 or more hours late. At 2 hours you're owed food, drink and a means of communication if WestJet told you less than 12 hours before departure and the cause was within its control (section 14).

Is compensation owed if WestJet's flight was cancelled by a strike?

Not under the regulations. A labour disruption within the airline is listed as outside its control (section 10(1)(j)), so no compensation or meals are required. WestJet still has to rebook you on a flight leaving within 48 hours, or refund you if it can't (section 18).

What if my WestJet booking was flown by another airline?

The airline that operated the flight owes the compensation (section 2(1)), so check "operated by" on your boarding pass. A small airline flying on behalf of a large one owes the large-airline amounts (section 1(4)).

Is WestJet compensation per person?

Yes. Each passenger on the booking can claim the full amount, so two people delayed 6 to 9 hours by a cause within WestJet's control are owed $700 each, $1,400 in total.

Sources

General information, not legal advice.