When First Class service doesn't give you First Class service

Alun

Morning,
I recently went to London and for a treat, we decided to travel down and back by 1st class travel - luckily we got the advanced tickets so they weren't too expensive.

On the way down, it was great - nice seats and excellent service.
On the way back, on a Saturday morning - excellent seats but no service and not even an announcements. Didn't even see any staff apart from the odd person dashing through the carriage - to make matters worse, the 1st class coach was the furthest carriage away from the bar!

Having emailed East Midlands trains - this is the reply I got:

Our full First Class service is only available Monday to Friday and it is
aimed primarily at business travellers. Customers can benefit from added extras such as snacks, refreshments and newspapers.

However, at weekends, it's quieter and we reduce the fare to encourage other customers to travel in the First Class area, but the added extras aren't available.

I am concerned to hear that you weren't aware of the difference in service as details are shown in our timetable. However I can appreciate your disappointment and will pass on your comments to the marketing team to look at the way we communicate this policy.

As a gesture of goodwill they are going to send me a £10 voucher - which I am fairly happy with but I have looked again and I cannot see any mention of this reduced service when booking tickets.

Should I accept the £10 voucher [even though it cost us £10 extra per person each way]?

Cheers

Alun

hammy_the_hammer

it's a hard one to call as i don't use East Midlands trains. however on the routes i do use you don't expect service at the weekends and what you are offered during the week is dependant on the time of day.
had a quick look at their website and i must admit they rely on you knowing these things or you have to dig into the 'belly' of the website

geri1965_2

What is it you were after? People coming to your seat and doffing their cap? Is it too much to ask that you stretch your legs and walk to the buffet car where you can claim your free food?

Twopints

geri1965 wrote: »

What is it you were after? People coming to your seat and doffing their cap? Is it too much to ask that you stretch your legs and walk to the buffet car where you can claim your free food?

so you think it's OK to charge a customer for a non-existent service? :rolleyes:

geri1965_2

I thought you paid to be seated away from the riffraff and get free food and drink. I didn't realise first class involved being waited on hand and food.

Alun

Oh come on, that is a little harsh - as I said in my first post it was a special treat - which was actually for a special occassion - so I just felt a little let down that the service wasn't up to much on the Saturday.

Surely you can understand that - paid the same price for the seats on the way down and on the way back but the level of service was totally different.

Cheers

Alun

Incapuppy

You said that the outward journey was fine but you felt that the return journey wasn't up to scratch. You paid £20 extra for that return journey and you have received £10 - only you can decide if you think its worth pursuing for the extra £10.

So - the seats were excellent but you weren't happy about the service. Maybe you should consider that it was worth the £10 for the good seats and that you have received a £10 refund for the reduction in service level? That seems more than fair to me.

Alun

Think I am more annoyed that they are just fobbing me off with the, oh it says so on the website type answer - It's not really about any compensation - if I'd seen the info they seem to think is clearly stated on the website then I would have not bothered booking the 1st class tickets on a Saturday.

Can someone point me to the part of the website that states this policy?

Cheers

Alun

Incapuppy

Its in FAQ's:

'Is First Class available at weekends?'

http://www.eastmidlandstrains.co.uk/emtrains/faq/

Alun

Excellent,
Thanks for that.

and of course, I always read the FAQ's and small print before booking, like everyone else does

Cheers - and thanks for all the assistance.

Alun

dmg24

Alun wrote: »

Excellent,
Thanks for that.

and of course, I always read the FAQ's and small print before booking, like everyone else does

Cheers - and thanks for all the assistance.

Alun

Maybe that should be the lesson then - read the small print before booking?

I use East Midlands Trains, and the different service at the weekends has been the case for at least the past five years (in the days when it was Midland Mainline). My main gripe about the weekends is that the price makes it accessible for the riff raff back in standard!