ORR acts on Delay Repay

[miklcct]

It would be negligible. People buy tickets to get from A to B, not to get compensation. However, I do not advocate for removal of DR; instead it should be consistent across all TOCs and with a 30 minute threshold (15 minutes is just silly, especially on long distance journeys).

I think 15 minutes is reasonable especially on short journeys such as Bournemouth - Southampton.

Maybe DR threshold should be based on the percentage of the scheduled time, starting from 25% delay with 25% delay repay. In such case, local commuting journeys such as Pokesdown to Bournemouth can be compensated if there is 1-minute delay causing people late for work.

 

[Haywain]

if there is 1-minute delay causing people late for work.

Anybody late for work because of a 1 minute delay was on the wrong train to start with.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 23 Dec 2021 ==

You could automatically give delay repay to all contactless users who use that train,

How do you know that they were, for instance, on the delayed fast train and not the on-time slow train?

 

[BayPaul]

How do you know that they were, for instance, on the delayed fast train and not the on-time slow train?

I think a decent algorithm could get it right 95% of the time TBH. There aren't that many times when the arrival and departure times of both would be so close as to make it unclear. As their contactless ticket would have been valid on either in any case (and if it wasn't then clearly compensation would be payable on the basis they travelled on the correct train), it would seem reasonable to assume they were on the delayed fast train, as that is the one that journey planners would suggest they should have caught.

And nothing to stop an automated email to a registered contactless user saying 'we think you might have been delayed, click here if you were', if the situation was still unclear.

 

[Wallsendmag]

It would be negligible. People buy tickets to get from A to B, not to get compensation. However, I do not advocate for removal of DR; instead it should be consistent across all TOCs and with a 30 minute threshold (15 minutes is just silly, especially on long distance journeys).

I believe more TOCs are moving to a 15 minute DR threshold.

 

[Haywain]

I believe more TOCs are moving to a 15 minute DR threshold.

Probably, at least it will improve consistency.

 

[Adam Williams]

• A simplified claims process must be in place to make it easy for passengers to submit claims for delay compensation.

Yes, but not in the way it works now: Specify a standard API, force all the TOCs to implement it and let retailers submit the delay repay claims on the passenger's behalf.

Ideally there'd be a way to automatically route the claim to the appropriate TOC too, via some centralised mediator service, so that the passenger doesn't need to worry about "well Avanti was 5 minutes late, but that meant I missed my connection with West Midlands Rail and then that service was late so who do I send my claim to?" thinking. All of this should be handled for the passenger.

This nonsense where we ask the passengers to re-enter every last detail about their tickets, journey, purchase price, name, address, itinerary etc is ridiculous and serves simply to make the process convoluted for customers. Customers are not data-entry monkeys. The retailer already knows 99% of this, why are we wasting passengers' time?

We also immediately eliminate the confusion over whether it's the retailer or TOC that needs contacting for e.g. abandoned journeys after disruption with an approach like this.

The happy path should use the selected itinerary at booking time - but of course any UI should enable the user to indicate they travelled on a different set of services for more complex cases. TOCs should review these manually following submission via the API.

This would go a way to improving the delay repay experience and enable retailers to handle this pain point in a large proportion of cases. It's already an uneven playing field given TOCs can offer automatic delay repay.

 

[Paul Kelly]

If you look on RTT before even travelling to the station, and spend another 30 mins in work rather than at the station (for example), then obviously you wouldn't get automatic delay repay in this circumstance, though there would be nothing to stop you claiming in the traditional way.

Fair enough. I misunderstood and thought you were suggesting replacing the "traditional" system.

 

[alistairlees]

Whoever sold you the ticket should do all refunds and all compensation claims. No customer data should be shared, nor should customers be forced to jump throughb hoops.

 

[BayPaul]

We also immediately eliminate the confusion over whether it's the retailer or TOC that needs contacting for e.g. abandoned journeys after disruption with an approach like this.

Definitely. This one bugs me. Abandoned journeys should be able to be processed via the delay repay system with 100% refund, (or done as a cancellation)

 

[smsm1]

One of the area that I'd like to see improved with regard to delay repay is groups of tickets. For example I recently had an issue on LNER when traveling 1 adult and 2 children, so submitted 3 delay repays, one for each advance ticket, as that seemed to be what the form suggested.

Only the adult ticket was processed with the child claims ignored likely due to the same booking reference tripping things up. I'd replied to one of the delay repay notification emails, but got no response. After a few weeks I mentioned it on Twitter and the team there were really quick to update the claim and within a couple of weeks I got the additional money through.

Why is claiming for multiple tickets in one go so complicated requiring chasing when it doesn't work? Can't the forms be updated to make the process clearer and simpler?

 

[Wallsendmag]

One of the area that I'd like to see improved with regard to delay repay is groups of tickets. For example I recently had an issue on LNER when traveling 1 adult and 2 children, so submitted 3 delay repays, one for each advance ticket, as that seemed to be what the form suggested.

Only the adult ticket was processed with the child claims ignored likely due to the same booking reference tripping things up. I'd replied to one of the delay repay notification emails, but got no response. After a few weeks I mentioned it on Twitter and the team there were really quick to update the claim and within a couple of weeks I got the additional money through.

Why is claiming for multiple tickets in one go so complicated requiring chasing when it doesn't work? Can't the forms be updated to make the process clearer and simpler?

Did you book online with LNER? If you did you should have had an email with a one click claim process.

 

[smsm1]

Did you book online with LNER? If you did you should have had an email with a one click claim process.

Yes I booked direct with LNER. I hadn't received an email with the one click claim. I think there's a setting in the account that needs to be enabled for that to happen, which I hadn't seen until after the journey.

I found the BTP at Doncaster and Peterborough to be more willing to offer me help to get the 2 kids luggage and buggy on to a train or finding water, than the LNER staff at those two stations. Watching 5 potential trains over 1.5 hours leave with 2 hungry kids ain't fun.