Train delays: compensation claims to be easier under Great British Railways | Rail industry
Rail passengers will be able to claim compensation for train delays directly from the website where they purchased their tickets, the government has said, as part of regulation to make rail travel easier.
Passengers who currently use third-party retailers such as Trainline to purchase tickets must forward their refund applications to the relevant train operator for processing.
Claims systems for individual train operators will be consolidated into a single consolidated service under the newly nationalized railway body, Great British Railways (GBR).
The Department for Transport said the GBR site will also process refunds for customers using dedicated ticketing websites if the retailer and passenger choose to share purchase details.
The latest full-year figures from rail regulator the Office for Rail and Road showed train operators paid out £138 million in 2023-24 for delayed journeys.
While some train operators and ticket types offer automatic “delayed refunds”, particularly for advance e-tickets and season ticket holders, other requests can be more complex.
The Department for Transport’s (DfT) latest research from 2023 showed that 47% of passengers whose journeys are delayed enough are increasingly receiving compensation, and some train companies are now warning customers when they are eligible for partial refunds.
But more than half of customers don’t bother to apply. Passengers who purchase paper tickets at the station can mail the tickets or usually scan them and complete the process online, but for longer trips they can be transferred from one company to another. The DfT said passengers were currently “having to deal with a complex system involving 14 different train companies, creating confusion and frustration”.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said: “Using the rail under British Rail will be simpler and more reliable. When services are delayed, passengers should be able to easily claim the compensation they are owed.”
“These necessary changes will ensure people can claim delay refund compensation more quickly and that the industry can invest taxpayers’ money on what really matters for passengers – freezing fares and delivering train and station upgrades – rather than falling prey to fare dodgers and fraud.”
DfT will also introduce changes to railcard and ticketing terms and conditions to reduce revenue lost to fraud.
Passengers purchasing discounted tickets using a railway card will need to undergo additional checks. The “simple verification” process, designed to save around £20 million a year in lost revenue, will be trialled later this year; Here passengers will be asked to scan their rail card or enter details when purchasing discounted tickets from ticket machines or online.
This follows a recent decision to tighten refund rules for flexible tickets; These rules will only be refundable before the travel period expires, starting in April. The DfT said the move would combat fraudulent claims to refund tickets that had been used but not scanned or stamped, causing the railway to lose £40 million annually.
