Delays to blame for poor rail satisfaction – response to Which? article

16 February 2015

Today Which? has published its work on rail passenger satisfaction.

David Sidebottom, director at the independent watchdog Passenger Focus, said
“Passengers have told us that punctuality and how well train companies deal with delays are the biggest factors in whether they are satisfied with the overall service. The top issues raised by passengers contacting Passenger Focus include train delays, refund conditions and levels of compensation.
“This is a problem that needs addressing. When trains are delayed or cancelled, it is important that passengers are made aware of their rights to a refund or compensation. We want train operators to do more to inform passengers of their rights, to give fairer compensation and to give that recompense in the form that passengers actually want – such as cash or a card refund.
“For commuters, we want train operators to recognise the impact on work and home life of frequent delays under 30 minutes by offering some recompense. We also think compensation should be calculated in a much fairer way – currently the formula used assumes that people never take any holiday, and work on Christmas Day and Boxing Day even when trains don’t run!”

 

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