Train Strike claiming Refund and NOT pay admin fee

duncanlawrence

Hey Martin, 
I have bought my train ticket online via EMR and now there is a national strike , I try to claim a refund and EMR are refunding me MINUS and admin fee!
I am therefore not getting my full value ticket refunded and I am loosing out by £10 because EMR have cancelled the train - that cant be right ??
How can I claim my refund and NOT pay the admin fee

[Deleted User]

Martin's out the back having a smoke at the moment but has asked me to let you know that you can't get a refund on the admin fee.

The ticket selling is operated by Trainline and it details that admin fees are not refundable in the terms on the EMR site.

duncanlawrence

Thanks @[Deleted User],interesting that the strike will give Trainline a little boost in tickets admin sales!!

MSE_James

I think @[Deleted User] may be confusing an admin fee for a refund for a booking fee for the original ticket.

Which day were you planning to travel, @duncanlawrence?  I suspect there are some crossed wires somewhere, as I don't think you'd be expected to pay an admin fee if the train you intended to travel on was not running.

This is MSE's article about refunds arising from last month's strikes:

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/news/2022/06/train-strikes-across-the-uk-confirmed-to-go-ahead---your-refund-/ 

lisyloo

duncanlawrence said:

Thanks @[Deleted User],interesting that the strike will give Trainline a little boost in tickets admin sales!!

Do you expect the train line to offer their ticketing and booking service for free?
they are not the railway and they are not striking.
you don’t have to use trainline, you can buy tickets through other channels.
you might find it better going direct.
but in general ticketing companies still want to be paid for the service they’ve provided, that includes the admin service in dealing with refunds.

i don’t work for a ticketing company, but I don’t work for free either.

daveyjp

If a train is cancelled and you choose not to travel you are entitled to a 100% refund from the seller.

razord

@duncanlawrence Not sure what this thread descended into, but you're definitely entitled to a full refund here, with no £10 fee for that.

Just drop them a twitter DM or call - the form is probably not smart enough to realise it was because of a cancellation.

jon81uk

Trainlines fee is usually a couple of pounds, so the £10 fee is not that.

It sounds like you were trying to get a refund of a ticket type that is not normally refunded and therefore they are charging an admin fee.

You need to claim compensation for the cancelled service causing you not to travel instead.
Make a Delay Repay claim | EMR (eastmidlandsrailway.co.uk)

daveyjp

You don't make a delay repay claim for a future potentially cancelled service, that will just confuse the matter.  Delay repay only applies where a service has run and there has been a delay arriving.

All ticket types are covered by refund if a service which is part of the booked trip doesn't run or is delayed to an extent that the passenger chooses not to complete their journey.

https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/National%20Rail%20Conditions%20of%20Travel.pdf

Whilst the day of travel may be a strike day have EMR confirmed that the service is actually cancelled?

jon81uk

daveyjp said:

You don't make a delay repay claim for a future potentially cancelled service, that will just confuse the matter.  Delay repay only applies where a service has run and there has been a delay arriving.

All ticket types are covered by refund if a service which is part of the booked trip doesn't run or is delayed to an extent that the passenger chooses not to complete their journey.

Yes it isn't a delay repay claim, but the relevant information was on that page.

From the link:-

Delay Repay if you decide not to travel because of disruption

You can apply for a refund in cases like these, just be sure to include your reasons for not being able to travel. Apply for a refund at the place where you bought your ticket.

If you booked your tickets on our website or app, Log into your online account and follow the instructions ​for 'Order process and refund applications' on the 'My account' screen.

If you have Advance tickets you bought online, call our Customer Service Centre on 03457 125 678 or email contact@eastmidlandsrailway.co.uk to claim a refund for your cancelled journey.

Chino

Deleted_User said:

The ticket selling is operated by Trainline and it details that admin fees are not refundable in the terms on the EMR site.

Which terms where on the EMR site?

 EMR's Passenger's Charter states (my bold):

If your train is delayed or cancelled before you start your journey, or if your reservation isn’t honoured you may decide not to travel. If so, we will give you a full refund for all unused tickets. If your train is delayed or cancelled part way through your journey and you decide to terminate your journey and return to your original station, we will also give you a full refund.

Deducting an administration fee from a refund in respect of a cancelled service would not constitute a full refund.

An administration fee can apply in situations where:

If you decide not to travel for your own reasons, you can get a refund in most cases. For full ticket and refund conditions, check details on our website. Claims for refunds need to be made within 28 days of your ticket expiring. A £10 administration fee per ticket may be charged.