Train not stopping at advertised station; can I Get a refund?

Kite2010

EdGasket wrote: »

I was hoping Transport Focus might put more pressure on the train companies to stop where advertised but they just seem to relay my complaint to the train company and pressure them to reply. Still the more people that complain and demand refunds, the more likely the practice of omitting stations will be reduced.

Good news, we won't be omitting to call at the intermediate stations

The bad news is that as we are so late we are being turned back at Woking/Basingstoke, with the next working starting from Woking/Basingstoke.

prowla

I think that when you buy a ticket to a destination it should form a contract, to include a reasonable time of travel (and not whether the next train back 'cos you've gone past it is on schedule).

yorkie2

EdGasket wrote: »

I was hoping Transport Focus might put more pressure on the train companies to stop where advertised but they just seem to relay my complaint to the train company and pressure them to reply. Still the more people that complain and demand refunds, the more likely the practice of omitting stations will be reduced.

They will do whatever is best to recover the service.

If you can give a specific example of a particular journey that is a problem, we can get it looked at...

EdGasket

yorkie2 wrote: »

They will do whatever is best to recover the service.

If you can give a specific example of a particular journey that is a problem, we can get it looked at...

Who exactly is 'we' ?

discat11

I take it Yorkie means himself and anyone else on this thread that has the experience to assist -there are a few.

Prowlas suggestion on changing the rules to allow a ticket to become a service/time/train specific contract is a good one - however I doubt any private operator would want to take on a franchise with such stringent rules when (as has already been mentioned) in the vast majority of late running incidents the Train operator and it's staff have absolutely no control whatsoever in the delay and probably little influence in many cases on the decision whether to stop/cancel or run.

Even if such a rule change was mooted it will only suit either immediately available services or those advance train specific services surely?
After all no TOC is going to allow you to state which service your ticket was for after the days travel are they?

EdGasket

Yet when we buy an advance ticket, we are expected to get a particular train at a particular time otherwise lose the entire fare. Why shouldn't the train co's have to refund if they don't stop where they are supposed to?

NOTE: The journey where trains often skip stops for being 15 mins late is the 07:24 from Portsmouth to Fleet. When late it fails to call at Fleet, Farnborough, and Clapham. This is obviously a major problem for commuters who have to be at work by a certain time!

yorkie2

This train ran fast after Basingstoke 7 times in the last 13 months (weekdays only). There were 12 full or part cancellations (fail to calls, start/finish shorts, and complete cancellations) in the last 13 months.

When it next happens next, let me know, and I'll get the exact reasoning looked into.

yorkie2

EdGasket wrote: »

Yet when we buy an advance ticket, we are expected to get a particular train at a particular time otherwise lose the entire fare. Why shouldn't the train co's have to refund if they don't stop where they are supposed to?

An Advance ticket is refundable if the train is cancelled or delayed at your origin. If you do travel and you arrive late, you are generally entitled to compensation for a delay of 30+ minutes, which compares favourably with other public transport modes.

yorkie2

discat11 wrote: »

I take it Yorkie means himself and anyone else on this thread that has the experience to assist -there are a few.

Yes, and industry insiders (who generally don't use this forum, but who I know through another forum)