Passengers on Northern rail services have been given a significant advantage following the government’s expansion of the compensation scheme for delays as part of its modernisation efforts.
The ‘Delay Repay’ scheme, which currently permits passengers to claim compensation if their train is 30 minutes or more late, will be extended in December to include delays of between 15 and 29 minutes. Affected passengers can claim back 25 per cent of their fare. For delays between 30 and 59 minutes, they can claim 50 per cent, and for delays of an hour or more, they can claim 100 per cent of their fare back.
Rail minister Jo Johnson stated, ‘Passengers deserve a reliable train service, and when things do go wrong it is vital that they are compensated fairly. Extending
Delay Repay
to cover 15 minute delays is a major boost for Northern passengers and we are committed to working with train companies across the network to make it as easy as possible for passengers to claim their rightful compensation. We are investing in the biggest rail modernisation programme since Victorian times to deliver the improvements that passengers want – more space, and faster, more frequent services. Improving compensation for delays is a key part of this.’
In June, a frustrated commuter on the network created an app to highlight the issue of cancelled trains. This underscores the significance of timely and fair compensation for passengers.
Meanwhile, a new Twitter bot on a prominent rail website now collates and presents disruption information before rail operators can do so. The bot scans operators’ Twitter accounts for relevant data and informs customers of delays ahead of official rail data feeds. Passengers can access this information by asking questions such as ‘How’s my commute doing?’ or ‘Is this train on-time?’ while using Google Assistant. There is no current indication of whether it will be extended to work with Amazon’s Alexa.
The expanded ‘Delay Repay’ scheme is positioned to significantly benefit Northern rail passengers by providing broader and quicker compensation for delays. Coupled with new technological solutions to inform passengers about disruptions, these initiatives reflect a forward-thinking approach to improving the reliability and user experience of rail services.