An expert has issued a warning to travellers (Image: Drazen_ via Getty Images)
Rail travellers are being advised against purchasing certain tickets ahead as regulations are being made stricter. Mark Smith, who formerly headed the Department for Transport’s (DfT) train fares and ticketing division, has accused the Government of “approving a reduction in consumer protection for its own financial benefit”.
Off-Peak and Anytime tickets bought from the beginning of next month will only qualify for refunds until 11.59pm on the day preceding their validity for travel, barring service disruptions. Retailers will additionally review claims from ticket-holders prevented from travelling due to exceptional circumstances such as medical emergencies.
Presently, no justification is required to secure a refund if the tickets remain unused, provided they are returned to the point of purchase within 28 days of their expiry date. Industry body the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) stated the amendment targets “refund abuse”, which relates to claims for tickets that have been utilised but not scanned or stamped, and is estimated to cost approximately £40 million annually.
Mr Smith, founder of international train travel website Seat61.com, wrote on X: “If you wake up and find your event cancelled, NO REFUNDS, even on £100+ tickets. Advice to passengers is simple: NEVER buy Super-Off-Peak, Off-Peak or Anytime tickets in advance.
“ALWAYS buy on the day, five minutes before you board the train. If you buy in advance, any on-the-day change of plan could lose you £100s on a long journey. Even with a flexible ticket.”
Refund rules are being changed (Image: Lauren Hurley/PA)
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While refunds or date amendments for Off-Peak and Anytime fares will no longer be available on the day of travel, non-refundable Advance fares – which offer discounted tickets for specific services – can still be modified. Mr Smith argued the alterations make fares “more complex” and characterised the situation as “a mess”.
He wrote: “If train operators can’t check a ticket on a 200-mile journey they don’t deserve to keep the money. Simply making all tickets non-refundable is very lazy revenue protection.”
The financial affairs of English train operators – including those not yet brought into public ownership – are substantially controlled by the Government due to contracts implemented at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.
Mr Smith wrote: “It’s the Government’s money now, not the train operators’. Government approving a reduction in consumer protection for its own financial benefit. Government is marking its own homework.”
The RDG said the modifications were being introduced to “modernise a system that no longer reflects how people travel today”.
It continued: “Refund abuse, where someone claims a refund for a ticket they have already used by falsely stating they did not travel, is estimated to cost the railway around £40 million annually. This is a legacy of the outdated refund system that was designed for an era of paper tickets and cash payments, which allowed customers 28 days to return to the station that sold them their ticket to request a refund.
“Today, however, more than 80% of customers use digital tickets or tap in with payment cards or smart devices, and most refund claims are handled through self-serve processes online. The outdated rules in recent years have become a significant source of fraud and misuse.”
The Department for Transport was contacted by the Press Association for a comment.
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