The Department for Transport has announced passengers will be able to claim for delays of 15 minutes or more the scheme will launch first on southern rail followed by Govia Thameslink Railway and eventually across the UK
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Rail passengers will be able to claim compensation when trains are more than 15 minutes late under new plans revealed by the Department for Transport (DfT).
The policy, Delay Repay 15, will be launched first on Southern trains, which have suffered months of disruption over disputes about the role of conductors. It will then feature on other Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) services in the coming months before being rolled out across the country.
Existing compensation rules mean passengers can only claim pay outs when services are delayed by at least 30 minutes, but one railway regulator estimates just one in five people actually do so.
Only three in four GTR trains arrived on time between August 21 and September 17 this year with almost one in 10 cancelled or arriving more than 30 minutes late, Network Rail figures show.
A DfT spokeswoman could not give a start date for the scheme but said it would apply to Southern services "soon".
Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said: "We recognise that, above all else, passengers want a reliable train service, but when things do go wrong it is vital that they are compensated fairly.
"Delay Repay 15 is a major improvement for passengers and we are working with train companies to make it as easy as possible for passengers to claim their rightful compensation.
"Together with the Consumer Rights Act, this policy shows we are putting passengers first and making sure they receive due compensation for poor service."
Under the new Delay Repay 15 scheme, the compensation thresholds will be:
:: 25% of the single fare for delays of 15 to 29 minutes
:: 50% of the single fare for delays of 30 to 59 minutes
:: 100% of the single fare for delays of 60 minutes to 119 minutes
:: 100% of the total ticket cost (including if it is a return) for delays of two hours or more
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