Arlingsworth’s litigation department has recently been instructed to handle various claims for compensation within the context of Southern Rail’s ongoing industrial strike action.

You may be aware that a refund scheme going by the name of ‘Delay Repay 15’ has been introduced by Southern Rail, giving passengers some form of comfort in the run-up to Christmas. As a result of the scheme, claims can now be made for journeys delayed by 15 minutes if you are a Southern Rail passenger.

It comes at a time when Southern strikes are planned throughout December and January, which are no doubt going to cause significant disruption to passengers in the run-up to Christmas and New Year. The dates of these strike dates are as follows:

    • Monday 19th December – Tuesday 20th December;
    • Saturday 31st December – Monday 2nd January;
    • Monday 9th January – Saturday 14th January.

This is a compensation scheme that has been on the government’s agenda for a couple of months now, with Transport Secretary Chris Grayling announcing back in mid-October that “‘Delay Repay 15’ will be introduced within months on Govia Thameslink Railway services, including Southern, and then rolled out across the country.”

Previously, compensation claims could only be made if journeys were delayed by 30 minutes or more but ‘Delay Repay 15’ has reduced the threshold by half for Govia Thameslink railway services (including Southern).

Passengers will now be able to claim 25% of the cost of the single fare for delays between 15 and 29 minutes. The existing compensation thresholds will apply for delays from 30 minutes with passengers able to apply for compensation through the train operating company. The existing ‘Delay Repay’ thresholds include:

    • Delays between 30 and 59 minutes, passengers are entitled to 50% of the single fare;
    • Delays between 1 and 2 hours, passengers are entitled to 100% of the single fare;
    • Delays of 2 hours or more, passengers are entitled to 100% of the return fare.

Cutting the threshold for claims to delays between 15 and 29 minutes is a welcome move for passengers, likely paving the way for thousands of claims.

The changes also allow passengers to claim losses as a result of missed train connections and passengers are guaranteed to be refunded with cash.

After being introduced to Govia Thameslink Railway services, ‘Delay Repay 15’ will be rolled out across the network beginning with the South Western, West Midlands and South Eastern franchises.

If you need advice in relation to making a claim under the Delay Repay scheme, give one of our experts a call on 01273 696962, request a callback, or email info@arlingsworth.com. You can keep up-to-date with our latest articles by following us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.