Cancelled train but not informed

dragonfly888

Hi all, 
I purchased Lumo train tickets via Trainline from Edinburgh to London a few months before I travelled. On the day I arrived at Edinburgh station, I saw that my train was not on the board, when I spoke to staff they said the train was cancelled and all Lumo trains were cancelled due to engineering work and that I should have been told. However I was not notified and in fact that very morning received an email from Trainline to get ready for my trip! I had to get back to London so ended up buying tickets there and then with LNER for x4 my original ticket cost..very distressing. 
I have since contacted Trainline who have agreed to return my original ticket cost. I have asked for compensation due to not being informed prior to travel and hence having to pay a hefty amount for tickets on the day, rather than sorting this out prior to traveling. Trainline have said I need to take this up with Lumo as they were not told about the train cancellation. I have reached out to Lumo and they are saying they did tell Trainline of the cancelled trains beforehand. Can someone please help? I think its only fair I should be compensated for the extra amount I had to pay which could have been avoided if I was told beforehand of the cancelled train and now Lumo and Trainline are blaming each other. Thank you

spenderdave

Engineering work and associated change or cancellation of trains is widely announced on the train companies websites and National Rail (https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/service_disruptions/currentAndFuture.aspx). But they only announce this three months in advance. They have no responsibility to inform Trainline and other third party retailers but Trainline should have checked themselves. You could have checked on the Lumo site as well but it doesn't absolve Trainline from checking and informing you. If you had bought the ticket directly from Lumo you could have claimed a refund from them, less an admin charge.

daveyjp

There is no admin charge for a ticket refund for a train which doesn't operate.  The operator has broken their contract with you, full refund is due.

OP. Go direct to train operators to buy tickets, it avoids the mess you are in with parties blaming each other..

It was down to Lumo to arrange an alternative for you, which is usually ticket acceptance with another operator.  Press them for compensation.

Langerhan

If you've gone through the official complaints procedure with both Lumo and Trainline, the next step would be the Rail Ombudsman, who exist to resolve disputes trail companies haven't solved themselves.

onashoestring

Lumo we’re responsible for providing the service you had paid for and should therefore have arranged alternative transport or if you had wanted it a refund ( you are not entitled to both )

By requesting a refund you may have scuppered your chances of the recovering the additional costs of the alternative tickets from them . 

However it would be worth writing to them again - stating that they were responsible for getting you to your destination and since they did not provide alternative transport you are claiming for the additional cost of the LNER tickets that you had to purchase minus the refund that you have already received .

Make it clear that you are not requesting full  reimbursement for the LNER tickets just the difference between the LNER ticket cost minus the refund that you have already received.

Still_not_an_expert

As trainline is a commercial company, not owned by train operators (only affiliated) so you only have their word Lumo didn't tell them. 

Engineering works are planned many weeks in advance, and had you booked through Lumo, I suspect tickets would not have been on sale, or if the engineering was emergency, Lumo would have contacted you. BTW, Lumo trains are all electric, so cant use diversionary routes like the LNER bi-mode trains can. 

Try the Rail Ombudsman if that fails, small claims court against Trainline? 

yorkie2

dragonfly888 said:

Hi all, 
I purchased Lumo train tickets via Trainline from Edinburgh to London a few months before I travelled. On the day I arrived at Edinburgh station, I saw that my train was not on the board, when I spoke to staff they said the train was cancelled and all Lumo trains were cancelled due to engineering work and that I should have been told. However I was not notified and in fact that very morning received an email from Trainline to get ready for my trip! I had to get back to London so ended up buying tickets there and then with LNER for x4 my original ticket cost..very distressing. 
I have since contacted Trainline who have agreed to return my original ticket cost. I have asked for compensation due to not being informed prior to travel and hence having to pay a hefty amount for tickets on the day, rather than sorting this out prior to traveling. Trainline have said I need to take this up with Lumo as they were not told about the train cancellation. I have reached out to Lumo and they are saying they did tell Trainline of the cancelled trains beforehand. Can someone please help? I think its only fair I should be compensated for the extra amount I had to pay which could have been avoided if I was told beforehand of the cancelled train and now Lumo and Trainline are blaming each other. Thank you

Can you provide more details about the journey, such as the date and time of travel?

The site I book through provides a link to the train, which shows the history including all timetable changes.