Air Canada Refuses To Compensate Passenger Who Claimed He Almost Died From Deep Vein Thrombosis

A passenger who travelled on a long-haul flight with Air Canada claims he almost died as a result of of a 10-hour journey from Chile to Canada.

Colin Savage from Victoria, British Columbia, was diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis (DVT), which doctors say could have been as a result of being on the cramped flight.

However, while the 64-year-old passenger claims DVT almost killed him, he will not receive any compensation under Canadian law.

Savage said that he had been fit enough to cycle 400km a week and run marathons before the trip.

During the flight in January this year, Savage was forced to stay in his seat in economy class for the majority of the journey due to turbulence, which caused his knees to be 'up against the seat in front'.

The seat area is just 31 inches long, leaving little leg room.

Savage, who's 6ft 2in, spent the entire journey trying to get comfortable.

However, within a day and half of returning home from a hiking break, he had severe pains and had to go to hospital.

Air Canada says there is no conclusive medical evidence linking deep vein thrombosis with flying.

The WHO have advised there is no risk with air travel for healthy passengers, and that long periods of immobility in trains, buses or cars carry similar risk.

'We recognize that any travel may be stressful mentally and physically for some passengers. For this reason, we publish information on our website about general health tips, and how to help decrease the risk of thrombosis, from the Aerospace Medical Association.'

Under Canadian law, Savage is unlikely to receive any compensation according to Paul Warnett, partner at Vancouver-based law firm Warnett Hallen.

In a blog post, he said: 'The reason why DVT cases have largely been rejected by international courts is that the injury is not caused by an “accident” as defined in Article 17 of the Montreal Convention (which covers death and injury of passengers on international flights)

'Deep Vein Thrombosis cases have been interpreted as an injury caused by an event that is “internal” to the passenger and not caused by an unexpected event or unusual event external to the passenger.

'Therefore, the courts have concluded that there was no “accident”. No “accident” results in no compensation.'

Warnett says that Savage will only be able to receive compensation if the Montreal Convention is changed.