Air Canada Loses Tribunal Case After Arguing Its Chatbot Is a 'Separate Legal Entity' Responsible for Its Own Actions
Source: bbc.com ↗
It should be obvious to Air Canada that it is responsible for all the information on its website. It makes no difference whether the information comes from a static page or a chatbot.
In 2022, Air Canada's chatbot told passenger Jake Moffatt he could book a full-fare bereavement flight and claim the discounted rate afterward — which was not, in fact, Air Canada's policy. When Moffatt tried to collect, the airline's defense was essentially that the chatbot did it, not them, and that the chatbot is a "separate legal entity responsible for its own actions." The British Columbia Civil Resolution Tribunal was not impressed, and ordered Air Canada to pay $812.02 in damages and fees.
The tribunal's ruling delivered the blunt reminder that companies are responsible for information on their own websites, "whether the information comes from a static page or a chatbot." Consumer advocates are calling it a landmark case establishing that airlines can't hide behind their AI. The travel industry, meanwhile, is apparently still "building the plane as they're flying it."