South West train delays: How do I claim a refund?

Our guide to claiming back if you have suffered delays

Chaos on the railways is an all-to familiar sight on a bank holiday weekend (Getty Images)

South West Trains delays may mean hundreds of commuters are in line for compensation.

Earlier today, hundreds of commuters faced chaos after a signalling failure in Surbiton saw some passengers delayed by as much as three hours.

Then last week, commuters on the southern travel provider - among other services - faced six hour delays after a power cut near Clapham brought chaos to Clapham Junction station. Thousands of commuters were evacuated from trains, with photographs of a packed Clapham Junction emerging on social media as customers’ anger with the train company spiralled.

Although many of these commuters are eligible for compensation, Passenger Focus found that in general as many as 88 per cent won’t ever claim. The consumer group estimates the majority of people fail to claim due to lack of awareness – so here we take you through the steps to claiming back your fares.

Am I eligible for a refund?

Yes, if your train is delayed by 60 minutes or more and the delay was within the control of South West Trains.

How much can I claim back?

You can claim a full refund on single tickets and a half refund on return tickets. For weekly season tickets, you are eligible to claim the cost of a single ticket for that delayed journey.

It becomes slightly more complicated if you are a season ticket holder, with the South West website not making the job easy for customers at all.

The company claim they will give you a five per cent discount on the price of your season ticket renewal should more than 2.5 per cent of services rank below their Passenger Charter standards. This charter defines ‘punctuality’ as services arriving at their destinations within five minutes of the listed times.

Customers are also eligible for a 10 per cent discount if South West fails more than one per cent of its ‘reliability’ – defined as a portion of the service unable to run, as happened last week.

What do I need to be aware of?

South West trains will not offer you a discount on your season ticket renewal if it is for a different route, a longer distance, a different length of time.

You need to apply in writing to their Customer Service Centre within 28 days of the previous ticket expiring, while making sure that you allow five working days (within the 28 days) for the team to process your request.

The company will not refund you if they have “informed” you of a delay or cancellation prior to the journey, or if they have published an amended timetable.

They also will not refund claims “beyond our control,” which include: “security alerts, poor weather conditions, fatality or suicide, or vandalism.”

(Getty)

South West trains did not respond to requests for comment.