Avanti - worst customer experience I have ever had to deal with

[Palmyra.]

The service on Avanti has been the worst customer experience I have ever had to deal with.

The 17:30 from Glasgow to Euston was cancelled due to flooding. The staff in the station gave no information and instead kept us behind the gates like dogs whilst not telling anyone what was going on we only found out the train was cancelled through ticket apps and when news filtered through there was a stampede towards the front of the shut gate. The staff made no announcement and had a horrible attitude just expecting people to stand there clueless as to what was going on.

We were then eventually told to get on the 6:40. The 6:40 is now sat at Preston with the power turned off as there are people on the line, no updates on when we will get moving again.

I am in first class and went up to
Ask for a glass with ice and was spoken to like garbage by one of the staff members and shooed away saying she will come to my seat. 15 minutes later no sign of her, is it too much to ask for a glass with ice in first class when I’ve been
Delayed for hours.

Avanti as a company are the shame of the U.K. and it is shocking they are time and time again able to get away with delivering such a poor public service.

Can someone please confirm what the situation is when getting in Euston on a delayed train, do they cover the cost of my travel if I can no longer get home from public transport due to their delays.

 

[yorkie]

Can someone please confirm what the situation is when getting in Euston on a delayed train,

Claim Delay Repay here:

Delay Repay | Train Delay Compensation | Avanti West Coast

Has your train journey been delayed by more than 15 min? Get quick and easy compensation for your journey online at Avanti West Coast.

www.avantiwestcoast.co.uk

As for consequential losses, unless there is evidence that Avanti failed to use reasonable care and skill, that's a non-starter; see: https://www.railforums.co.uk/thread...ation-if-so-how-who-from.270778/#post-6850364

do they cover the cost of my travel if I can no longer get home from public transport due to their delays.

Where is your ticket issued to? (or final ticket, in the event that you are using a combination of tickets)

Where are you ultimately travelling to?

Are you currently still at Preston?

 

[Palmyra.]

Claim Delay Repay here:

Delay Repay | Train Delay Compensation | Avanti West Coast

Has your train journey been delayed by more than 15 min? Get quick and easy compensation for your journey online at Avanti West Coast.

www.avantiwestcoast.co.uk

Where is your ticket issued to? (or final ticket, in the event that you are using a combination of tickets)

Where are you ultimately travelling to?

My final ticket is to Euston but there will likely be no public transport running when we get into Euston after midnight so the only option for people to get home will be with taxis which no one would have needed to pay today if their trains ran on time

 

[yorkie]

My final ticket is to Euston but there will likely be no public transport running when we get into Euston after midnight so the only option for people to get home will be with taxis which no one would have needed to pay today if their trains ran on time

There will be public transport to some destinations, but without knowing your destination it's impossible to provide bespoke advice.

 

[12LDA28C]

My final ticket is to Euston but there will likely be no public transport running when we get into Euston after midnight so the only option for people to get home will be with taxis which no one would have needed to pay today if their trains ran on time

I'm curious as to how you expect trains to run on time if there is a line closure due to flooding, or delays due to trespassers on the line or indeed any other situation completely out of the Train Operator's control?

It's entirely possible that station staff at Glasgow were unaware at least initially that your train would be cancelled as Avanti may well have been awaiting an update from NR as to the extent of the flooding and whether the line would be closed. That decision would be taken by Network Rail.

 

[Palmyra.]

I'm curious as to how you expect trains to run on time if there is a line closure due to flooding, or delays due to trespassers on the line or indeed any other situation completely out of the Train Operator's control?

It's entirely possible that station staff at Glasgow were unaware at least initially that your train would be cancelled as Avanti may well have been awaiting an update from NR as to the extent of the flooding and whether the line would be closed. That decision would be taken by Network Rail.

I expect communication and customer care none of which exists with Avanti. The way they treat customers is appalling.

 

[12LDA28C]

Can someone please confirm what the situation is when getting in Euston on a delayed train, do they cover the cost of my travel if I can no longer get home from public transport due to their delays.

Not really Avanti's delays though, are they? Flooding and trespassing according to your report.

 

[12LDA28C]

I expect communication and customer care none of which exists with Avanti. The way they treat customers is appalling.

Again, station staff may not have known. They possibly didn't even know if the 1840 was going to run or not which may explain the late notice advice to passengers. It's a shame you've been delayed but none of that is Avanti's fault.

 

[Toby268]

When you get to Euston, try speaking to the staff and explaining your situation calmly with an understanding that the issues today have been outwith the staff on the grounds control and they might be able to help you.

 

[Palmyra.]

The latter may be the case - doesn’t change the fact that some things are outwith the TOC’s control. Which everything you have stated has been.

We don’t know how you approached the staff member on the service and of course you’ve clearly had a stressful evening but given your attitude in this thread I wouldn’t be surprised if you were asked to return to your seat (in order for them to deliver your AT SEAT first class service) because of the way you approached the member of staff, whilst presumably they were preparing to start the service.

As for when you get to Euston, try speaking to the staff and explaining your situation calmly with an understanding that the issues today have been outwith the staff on the grounds control and they might be able to help you.

The service was completely fine until Preston changeover, thankfully they have sent out a different staff member now who is being pleasant after MULTIPLE people on the train complained.

 

[185143]

I'm on the same train. Only I was on the TPE service originally from Glasgow, which you overtook immediately on departure (which did NOT go down well on that 397 let me tell you!)

The TM has told people they will be sorting out transport on arrival at Euston FWIW. No complaints from me at the standard end. There was a steady stream of people heading to the TMs office whilst we were at Preston, he was doing his best to reassure people that they won't be stranded. As I'm sure you'll have heard from the announcements onboard.

 

[Falcon1200]

due to flooding.

with the power turned off as there are people on the line, no updates

There are no updates because these types of incident do not, and cannot, have a definitive time for resolution; In other words, no-one can know how long they will last! Only when the line re-opens can the service then start to be recovered. None of which is an excuse for apparent staff rudeness however.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

My final ticket is to Euston but there will likely be no public transport running when we get into Euston after midnight so the only option for people to get home will be with taxis..

Hopefully, some onward transport (or taxis!) were available when the 1840 Avanti departure from Glasgow Central eventually arrived into London Euston at 0109 last night, some 89 minutes down.

Noted that the rainfall that hit parts of the East of Cumbria appeared to reach peak intensity in the period at or around 1500 yesterday (Tuesday), and that many earlier WCML services were also badly impacted.

The 1434 Avanti departure from Glasgow Central for London seems to have just about made it through, albeit picking up incremental delays along the way.

The following 1508 TPE departure for Manchester Airport looks to have been held for some time, just after Penrith South Junction, for almost 100 minutes, before being able to move at around 1830, and was eventually terminated at Piccadilly over 2 hours down.

Similarly, the 1538 Avanti Southbound departure from Glasgow Central looks to have been held at Penrith station for 89 minutes, before moving onwards at around 1832.

And the 1557 Avanti only made it as far as Carlisle.

The 1611 TPE departure for Liverpool LS looks to have been held at Carlisle station for over an hour, having arrived there on time, before proceeding onwards at 1849 and arriving to Preston, where it was terminated, over 100 minutes down.

The 1640 Avanti departure looks to have been held in the Carlisle area, just short of the station, for over an hour, before being allowed to continue Southwards from Carlisle at 1907, albeit only as far as Preston.

The 1707 TPE departure for Manchester Airport ran only as far as Preston, arriving 103 minutes down.

And the 1730 Avanti was cancelled between Glasgow Central and Preston.

The above summary ignores the impact on any Northbound WCML services yesterday afternoon (delayed/cancelled inbound services), or services running to/from Edinburgh, although noted that the 1452 Avanti departure from Waverley (for Euston) was held in the Tebay/Lowgill area for over an hour-and-a-half, before being able to move at or around 1825.

So, given all the problems affecting the WCML yesterday, it must have been touch and go as to whether the OP's 1840 train from Glasgow would have been able to run at all and/or not cancelled/terminated short of London, and it's quite possible that the decision was fairly last minute. Undoubtedly communication could have been better, but there seems to have been a lot happening, with multiple services affected, at a stand.

Not that good for the OP (who seems not to have had the best of travel experiences with Avanti West Coast of recent) when making such a lateish long distance journey, but at least they would still have been able to make their way to London Euston last night, and not currently be making the journey right now, after having being stuck in Glasgow/Carlisle overnight.

And, of course, they'll be eligible for 100% Delay Repay if travelling on a Single ticket.

 

[RAPC]

Avanti have many faults and rightly are called out frequently in the forum, but the situation described above isn't their fault. Information flow isn't easy around flooding and trespassers, as it takes a while to get things assessed, as well as the railway to operationally decide what they may be able to do. When Avanti have communicated quickly in the past about running services, which then couldn't happen, they get criticism for letting people down. Much easier to get a strong handle on what is possible and even then, much of it is still out of their hands.

Surprised to see the OP still using Avanti, as they had previously said they were giving up on rail and moving to flights between Glasgow and London.

 

[The exile]

There are no updates because these types of incident do not, and cannot, have a definitive time for resolution; In other words, no-one can know how long they will last! Only when the line re-opens can the service then start to be recovered. None of which is an excuse for apparent staff rudeness however.

An update can also be “we still do not have any details about when the line will be clear”. At times like this, “inappropriate” auto announcements are likely to wind people up. It needs to be a real human.

 

[Bletchleyite]

An update can also be “we still do not have any details about when the line will be clear”. At times like this, “inappropriate” auto announcements are likely to wind people up. It needs to be a real human.

What is also good (and tends to be practiced by airlines) is saying when the next update will be, even if that next update ends up being "we still don't know, next update in an hour".

I know there was that famous London Midland "shall I go to the pub" Tweet exchange, but that actually made a lot of sense. Setting expectations is very important.

 

[The exile]

What is also good (and tends to be practiced by airlines) is saying when the next update will be, even if that next update ends up being "we still don't know, next update in an hour".

Exactly - although for the next update an hour seems too long to wait.

 

[sh24]

In one sense it's a positive as Avanti actually got the last train through, albeit delayed.

The communication around disruption, well that's an industry issue not just an Avanti one. It's frequently awful.

 

[RAPC]

An update can also be “we still do not have any details about when the line will be clear”. At times like this, “inappropriate” auto announcements are likely to wind people up. It needs to be a real human.

Having seen a couple of Twitter posts about the disruption from passengers stuck in Glasgow, there were some announcements by staff saying they didn't have details and that they were working on getting updates when available. This still didn't seem to placate people stuck there at the time though.

 

[KNN]

Anyone who's been on the ground in situations like this knows you can't do right for doing wrong. And a lot of staff are weary of trying after the last few years. The truth is that passengers find out within minutes of staff knowing anything concrete.

It's a shame none of this anger is ever turned on the right people. If there is flooding in July that's a problem of NR under investment and the climate emergency.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Having seen a couple of Twitter posts about the disruption from passengers stuck in Glasgow, there were some announcements by staff saying they didn't have details and that they were working on getting updates when available.

At what time yesterday were these posts made?

 

[Starmill]

Not really Avanti's delays though, are they? Flooding and trespassing according to your report.

It's in the nature of the consumer contract that they are responsible for mitigating any effects of this. Network Rail do not have any relationship with the customer who bought a train ticket.

 

[Starmill]

Again, station staff may not have known. They possibly didn't even know if the 1840 was going to run or not which may explain the late notice advice to passengers. It's a shame you've been delayed but none of that is Avanti's fault.

It's the role of the company to provide information in a clear and consistent way if there's disruption. After all, disruption is likely. Whose fault it is or isn't doesn't really concern the consumer - they can't raise a complaint with Network Rail.

 

[12LDA28C]

It's in the nature of the consumer contract that they are responsible for mitigating any effects of this. Network Rail do not have any relationship with the customer who bought a train ticket.

I'd be interested to hear what mitigation can be provided if an Operator is waiting to hear if and when a line will be reopened following flooding, or indeed if a train is being held at a station whilst NR/BTP deal with a trespass incident. On-train staff can attempt to keep passengers informed but in those kind of situations the potential extent of delay is often not known.

 

[12LDA28C]

It's the role of the company to provide information in a clear and consistent way if there's disruption. After all, disruption is likely. Whose fault it is or isn't doesn't really concern the consumer - they can't raise a complaint with Network Rail.

Indeed but raging against the Train Operator because of flooding is pointless. The best they can do is to provide information if known. Often it isn't known when a line will be reopened.

 

[Starmill]

I'd be interested to hear what mitigation can be provided if an Operator is waiting to hear if and when a line will be reopened following flooding, or indeed if a train is being held at a station whilst NR/BTP deal with a trespass incident. On-train staff can attempt to keep passengers informed but in those kind of situations the potential extent of delay is often not known.

Well it's not my job to provide it, it's Avanti's. I was rebutting your argument that nothing could be done. Plainly you were wrong to imply nothing could or should be done given the OP was asking about one thing that could absolutely be done which is to have a taxi booking process in place. Eurostar do this by sending the customer a link if there's a delay over two hours late at night so they can track their own taxi to their destination. That's one example only, however, and not exhaustive, because it's not for me to say. It doesn't matter why the train is delayed, as you were saying, Avanti are still required to provide the best of the information available and alternatives if they're needed.