of Port Coquitlam, BC, a single mother whose 150,000 points were annulled by Aeroplan because she had not made a contribution or a redemption in her account for one year, a period during which she had fallen ill. Those points fell victim to Aeroplan's rules, under which the company erases points in an account that has been dormant for 12 months. In a telephone interview, Neale said she had been going to pay for her daughter's trip to New Zealand—her graduation gift—until she tried to pay from her account and saw that it had been emptied. Aeroplan spokeswoman JoAnne Hayes declined to comment on the issue because it is now before the courts. In a statement, Aeroplan noted, "no class action has yet been filed. This motion is the first procedural step before any such action can be instituted." The company stated, "petitioners (are) seek(ing) court permission to sue Aeroplan on behalf of program members in Canada to obtain reinstatement of expired miles, reimbursement of any amounts already expended by Aeroplan members to reinstate their expired miles, $50 in compensatory damages and an undetermined amount in exemplary damages on behalf of each class member, all in relation to changes made to the Aeroplan program concerning accumulation and expiry of Aeroplan Miles as announced Oct. 16th, 2006." But Aeroplan stressed that it "is of the view that there are good grounds for opposing the motion for authorization and will vigorously defend any class action, should one be authorized by the court." Neale said, "I felt like they stole from me." "If the bank took my money like that, it would be theft. I earned those points. They belong to me, and (Aeroplan) has no right to take them away from me." Status Levels Prior to Air Canada's acquisition and relaunch of the program in 2020, Aeroplan rewarded users with status levels upon reaching a particular level of points accumulation in a given year. This program was called Aeroplan Distinction. The levels were Aeroplan Silver, Aeroplan Black, and Aeroplan Diamond, requiring 25,000, 50,000, and 100,000 miles, respectively. Most points qualified for these levels, including those from credit card spending and actual flying, but excluded points from credit card sign up bonuses, prizes, etc. At higher levels, members were rewarded with less expensive flight redemptions, priority access to call centers, and status matching with other rewards/loyalty programs. The Aeroplan status program was a