Help with Delay Repay - Thameslink Gatwick Airport

[lyesbkz]

Hello,

I'm trying to help my Dad claim delay repay from Thameslink. He travelled from Gatwick Airport to St Pancras on the 25th March and says he boarded a train which departed and then got stuck for over an hour (due to a bridge strike) before very slowly returning to Gatwick Airport where he then waited some time for the next service that was running. We think his original train was the 16:06 to Bedford and claimed on that basis but he was only given delay repay for a delay of 15-29 minutes.

When I look at the 16:06 all I can see is that it was cancelled at Gatwick which isn't especially helpful. Is there any way to confirm that this was the right train before going back to Thameslink to dispute the amount paid? He eventually managed to get the 17:46 Cambridge train which got him to St Pancras at 18:41, nearly two hours late.

Thanks,

 

[mathstrains19]

Looking at RealTimeTrains (https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/service/gb-nr:W26368/2025-03-25/detailed), it shows an arrival time at Gatwick of 1724 but departing Three Bridges on time at 1602, and into platform 7 which I'd expect to mostly be used southbound. I'd suggest this matches with what you are describing - going somewhere north and then returning back south again to Gatwick Airport after around an hour, so while it's not definite proof of this I think it probably was the correct train!

 

[jfollows]

It also says

This service was cancelled between Gatwick Airport and Bedford due to a bridge strike (XP).

Due 16:50 Saint Pancras

 

[lyesbkz]

Thanks, that's really helpful. We've just resubmitted the claim via their process but there was nowhere to enter any additional details and the confirmation email has decided he "arrived" at St Pancras at 16:50 again. So I imagine he'll end up having to call them!

 

[redreni]

Yes, they're probably aware that that train was cancelled after Gatwick, but unaware that only happened after passengers had boarded, departed, got stuck for the best part of an hour and were then taken back to Gatwick again. So they're probably assuming, wrongly, that while your dad may have intended to board that train, he couldn't have done so because according to the data, it didn't arrive at Gatwick until about an hour after it was due, at which point it was cancelled. So they would just assume he never got on that train, remained at Gatwick and should have been able to get the next one, which obviously he couldn't do because he wasn't at Gatwick, he was on the train to nowhere.

I would email them and explain what happened.