Rail delay compensation claims

2019-20 rail periods 5-7 (21 July 2019 to 12 October 2019)

Publication date: 9 January 2020

Next publication date: 2 April 2020

Background

This factsheet contains information on

delay compensation claims made by

passengers on rail services in Great

Britain. These statistics contain:

 Delay compensation claim volumes

(received and closed per rail period);

 The response rate of those claims

closed;

 The volume of those claims closed

which were approved.

Train operators have a target to process

delay compensation claims within one

month of receipt. This is specified in

condition 33.2 of the National Rail

Conditions of Travel (NRCoT).

Definitions

Volume of claims closed:

The claim is closed when the train

operator issues payment for a

successful claim or when the passenger

was informed that their claim was

rejected. These statistics include claims

made by passengers, regardless of train

operator delay compensation scheme.

Claims closed within 20 working days

(percentage): ORR use 20 working

days as a proxy for the one month target

referred to in the NRCoT.

Volume of claims approved:

The volume of delay compensation

claims closed where the passengers

claim has been successful and

approved.

Responsible Statistician: Ben Hubbard

Public Enquiries: E-mail: [email protected] Media Enquiries: Tel: 0207 282 2094

Website: https://dataportal.orr.gov.uk/

Between 21 July and 12 October 2019

(2019-20 rail periods 5 to 7):

There were 1.4 million delay

compensation claims closed by train operators.

This is an increase of 13.2% from 1.3 million claims

during the same three rail periods in 2018-19.

This is primarily due to changes in delay

compensation schemes for some train operators

since last year, which has meant more passengers

are eligible for delay compensation.

Overall, 98.0% of delay compensation claims were

closed within 20 working days.

This is an increase of 2.7 percentage points from the

same three rail periods in 2018-19.

16 out of 23 train operators either increased or

maintained their response rate within 20 working days

compared to the same three rail periods in 2018-

19.

Of these claims closed, 84.5% of claims were

approved by train operators.

This is an increase of 2.1 percentage points from the

same three rail periods in 2018-19.

Effects of delay compensation scheme changes on claim volumes:

A major reason for the 13.2% increase in delay compensation claims between rail periods 5 to 7

2019-20 compared to the previous year is due to a number of train operators switching to the

Delay Repay 15 (DR 15) compensation scheme during the last year. The switch to DR 15 means

the threshold to claim compensation is lower (15 minutes), where previously it was 30 minutes in

most cases, so therefore more passengers are eligible to claim delay compensation.

The table below shows that for the six operators that have changed to a DR 15 delay

compensation scheme in 2019-20, all these operators have shown an increase in the volume of

claims closed. Overall, these six operators account for an increase of 139,577 claims closed

between the same three rail periods in 2018-19 and 2019-20. This increase is despite most of

these operators seeing an increased train performance in 2019-20 Q2 compared to the same

quarter last year (see the ‘

* = East Midlands Railway and Southeastern changed to DR 15 during 2019-20 rail period 6.

** = Great Western Railway now operates DR 15 with some season tickets on a traditional charter scheme.

*** = Transport for Wales Rail was operating as Arriva Trains Wales during 2018-19 rail periods 5 to 7.

Response rate to claims closed:

Nationally, 98.0% of delay

compensation claims were

closed within 20 working

days in 2019-20 during rail

periods 5 to 7. There were

15 train operators which

closed more than the

national average within 20

working days.

There were 16 out of the 23

train operators which either

increased or maintained

their response rate within 20

working days compared to

the same three rail periods

in 2018-19, with 7 operators

having a lower response

rate compared to the same

rail periods last year.

Train operator

Volume of claims closed and

delay compensation scheme,

2019-20 rail periods 5 to 7

Volume of claims closed and

delay compensation scheme,

2018-19 rail periods 5 to 7

Volume increase

Southeastern 87,093 (DR 15*) 49,496 (DR 30) +37,597

Great Western Railway 71,380 (DR 15**) 40,446 (Traditional) +30,934

Greater Anglia 149,274 (DR 15) 125,846 (DR 30) +23,428

East Midlands Railway 37,789 (DR 15*) 16,152 (DR 30) +21,637

Northern 63,516 (DR 15) 50,006 (DR 30) +13,510

Transport for Wales Rail 17,179 (DR 15) 4,708 (Traditional***) +12,471

Passenger Rail Performance’ statistical release for more information).

100.0%

99.9%

99.6%

98.7%

97.2%

96.6%

96.3%

95.8%

93.1%

91.7%

90.8%

83.2%

-2

-3

-6

-1

-17

-300 -260 -220 -180 -140 -100 -60 -20 20 60

0 1 1 2 2

CrossCountry

Greater Anglia

Heathrow Express

London Overground

Merseyrail

ScotRail

Southeastern

TfL Rail

Govia Thameslink…

Great Western Railway

c2c

South Western Railway

TransPennine Express

TfW Rail

West Midlands Trains

Grand Central

Hull Trains

Northern

Chiltern Railways

Virgin Trains West Coast

London North Eastern…

East Midlands Railway

Caledonian Sleeper

Delay compensation claims response

rate within 20 working days, 2019-20 rail

periods 5 to 7

Percentage point

change on 2018-19

periods 5 to 7

Delay compensation statistics by train operator,

2019-20 rail periods 5 to 7:

Delay compensation claims closed, percentage of claims approved, and response rate

within 20 working days by train operator, 2019-20 rail periods 5 to 7

Train operator

Delay compensation

scheme

Claims closed

Response within

20 working days

Percentage of

claims approved

c2c Delay Repay (DR 15) 4,666 99.9% 80.4%

Caledonian Sleeper Delay Repay (DR 30) 2,559 83.2% 95.7%

Chiltern Railways Traditional 5,096 95.8% 73.8%

CrossCountry Delay Repay (DR 30) 26,885 100.0% 94.5%

East Midlands Railway

Delay Repay (DR 15*) 37,789 90.8% 91.4%

Govia Thameslink Railway Delay Repay (DR 15) 320,546 100.0% 85.8%

Grand Central Traditional 3,803 97.2% 71.3%

Great Western Railway

Delay Repay (DR 15)* 71,380 100.0% 71.9%

Greater Anglia Delay Repay (DR 15) 149,274 100.0% 88.5%

Heathrow Express Delays of 15+ mins 1,157 100.0% 38.1%

Hull Trains Traditional 5,068 96.6% 97.0%

London North Eastern Railway Delay Repay (DR 30) 117,911 91.7% 85.9%

London Overground Traditional 3,911 100.0% 80.5%

Merseyrail Traditional 322 100.0% 98.4%

Northern Delay Repay (DR 15) 63,516 96.3% 80.4%

ScotRail Delay Repay (DR 30) 29,687 100.0% 83.6%

South Western Railway Delay Repay (DR 15) 158,249 99.9% 83.7%

Southeastern

Delay Repay (DR 15*) 87,093 100.0% 86.5%

TfL Rail Traditional 1,676 100.0% 88.5%

TfW Rail Delay Repay (DR 15) 17,179 99.6% 92.5%

TransPennine Express Delay Repay (DR 30) 50,323 99.9% 67.2%

Virgin Trains West Coast

Delay Repay (DR 30) 141,901 93.1% 86.0%

West Midlands Trains Delay Repay (DR 15) 116,975 98.7% 84.4%

Great Britain 1,416,966 98.0% 84.5%

Comparison of delay compensation claim volumes between train operators should be treated with

caution – This is due to different thresholds to claim compensation between each delay compensation

scheme and the different number of services for each train operator.

All tables associated with this release can be found under data tables on the passenger delay compensation

page of the ORR Data Portal. The figures presented in this release are provisional and subject to revision.

Note some train operators have changed delay compensation scheme since 2018-19 so some time

comparisons must be treated with caution.

For up-to-date information on the delay compensation scheme each train operator operates, please see the

individual train operator’s website or the National Rail Enquiries website. The following information is accurate

as far as ORR know at the time of publication.

Notes:

1). East Midlands Railway took over the East Midlands Trains franchise from 18 August 2019 (start of rail period 6).

From 18 August 2019 onwards, East Midlands Railway is operating the DR 15 scheme instead of DR 30.

2). Great Western Railway operates the DR 15 scheme with some season tickets on a traditional charter scheme.

3). From 11 September 2019 onwards, Southeastern is operating the DR 15 scheme instead of DR 30.

4). Avanti West Coast took over the Virgin Trains West Coast franchise from 8 December 2019 (start of rail period 10).

From 8 December 2019 onwards, Avanti West Coast will be operating the DR 15 scheme instead of DR 30.

5). c2c, Northern and Virgin Trains West Coast operate Automatic Delay Repay on some tickets, with other operators providing automated

Delay Repay: See the notes on page 4 for further details on these schemes.

Type of schemes: The most popular delay

compensation scheme is Delay Repay. Delay

Repay is a national scheme train operators use to

compensate passengers for delays. For those

operators using the Delay Repay scheme, all ticket

types are covered and passengers can make a

claim for delay compensation whatever the cause

of disruption. There are two types of Delay Repay

schemes available:

Delay Repay 30 (DR 30): Passengers can claim

compensation if the train is delayed by 30 minutes

or more. Passengers delayed between 30 and 59

minutes are entitled to 50% of the cost of a single

ticket, and if the passenger is delayed by 60

minutes or more, the passenger is entitled to a

100% refund of a single ticket. If delayed 120

minutes or more the passenger can claim the cost

of a return journey if they have a return ticket.

Delay Repay 15 (DR 15): Passengers can

additionally claim compensation if the train is

delayed by 15 minutes or more. DR 15 allows a

passenger to claim 25% of the cost of a single

ticket if they are delayed between 15 and 29

minutes. Eight train companies operated this

scheme from the beginning of 2019-20, with East

Midlands Railway, Southeastern and Avanti West

Coast moving to this scheme during 2019-20.

Other schemes (traditional schemes): A small

number of operators run other schemes which are

different to Delay Repay. Often these schemes

have different timeframes to be eligible, and

compensation can vary between each schemes.

Compensation may not be available if the delay is

caused by an event outside the operators control.

Frequently asked questions:

How are several claims on one form recorded?

If a passenger submitted several journeys on one

delay compensation form, then each journey is

counted as a claim.

Are discretionary compensation payments or

enhanced compensation claims included?

These statistics include claims for delays only, and

exclude discretionary compensation payments made

following complaints of poor service (for example,

compensation due to wi-fi not working). Some

operators may also provide enhanced or additional

compensation during periods of extended disruption,

but these claims are not included within these

statistics.

Are Automatic Delay Repay claims included?

Automatic Delay Repay is when a passenger is

automatically compensated when their journey is

delayed within the timescales to be eligible for

compensation. Northern and Virgin Trains West Coast

offer Automatic Delay Repay if the passenger has

booked through their website or app and has an

advance ticket. c2c offers eligible passengers with a

registered smartcard 3p back per minute for delays of

between two and fourteen minutes - These c2c

automatic compensation volumes are not included

within these statistics.

Are Automated Delay Repay claims included? A

number of operators now provide automated Delay

Repay where they automatically advise passengers

who use smartcards and/or buy advance tickets that

they may be eligible for compensation by generating a

delay repay claim for them. The passenger has to then

correct. Only claims which are confirmed by the

passenger are included within these statistics.

Other sources of delay compensation information:

ORR publish statistics on rail passenger complaints

which shows 8.3% of all complaints nationally were

about delay compensation schemes in 2018-19.

Furthermore, appeals to the Rail Ombudsman on delay

compensation schemes, such as appeals on claims

which are rejected or the claims process, are most

appealed complaint category.

The Department for Transport (DfT) publishes

compensation amounts paid by train operators to

passengers from 2009-10. The DfT figures are not

comparable to statistics given here due to the different

time periods involved, changes to delay compensation

schemes and franchises from previous years, and the

fact DfT figures include discretionary compensation

payments made following complaints of poor service.

Key findings from Department for Transport

research (March 2018) on ‘Rail Delays and

Compensation’

Compensation claims: The research showed only

39% of eligible passengers claimed for a 30 minute or

longer delay, and only 18% of eligible passengers

claimed for a 15 minute delay.

Satisfaction with speed of payment: 69% of

claimants were satisfied with the speed of payment.

Claim rate: The proportion of passengers claiming

compensation is strongly correlated to the price of

their ticket: 52% of passengers who paid over £40

claimed compensation, compared to 25% when the

ticket was £5 or less. The research also found the

longer the delay, the more likely the passenger is to

claim compensation.