Have you had valid Delay Repay claims rejected?

[Dougal2345]

The SWR delay-repay site still seems severely broken.

I managed to put a couple of claims through, by dint of typing in my sortcode without actually being able to see it (and I'm unsure if I've got it right).

The site crashed once at the end of the process. Much of the client-side validation is poor, not properly highlighting what the problem is. It asks for your ticket number for a return, and once you've typed in the 19-digit number tells you it requires a five digit number, so you have to guess which bit this is. The Claim History page is sorted by claim number, which seems mostly random, so you can't sort things by date. And they use those dreadful "Google Re-captcha" things at the end of the process ("click all squares with crosswalks" etc.) which I never seem to be able to solve properly.

I popped a complaint on the main SWR site yesterday, no response yet though.

 

[MalaiseForever]

I’ve had no problems with Virgin. The turnaround is usually within 2 weeks and no valid claims have been denied.

 

[EastCoastway]

I work for Customer Services for SWR, if you want to drop me a PM if you're having specific issues I can see if I can help (:

The SWR delay-repay site still seems severely broken.

I managed to put a couple of claims through, by dint of typing in my sortcode without actually being able to see it (and I'm unsure if I've got it right).

The site crashed once at the end of the process. Much of the client-side validation is poor, not properly highlighting what the problem is. It asks for your ticket number for a return, and once you've typed in the 19-digit number tells you it requires a five digit number, so you have to guess which bit this is. The Claim History page is sorted by claim number, which seems mostly random, so you can't sort things by date. And they use those dreadful "Google Re-captcha" things at the end of the process ("click all squares with crosswalks" etc.) which I never seem to be able to solve properly.

I popped a complaint on the main SWR site yesterday, no response yet though.

 

[maniacmartin]

Several of my colleagues expressed frustration yesterday when trying to use SWR’s new Delay Repay site. Accounts were not transferred seamlessly from the old site, so users have to use the password reset option to gain access to the new site.

Also I believe the old site still has to be used for tracking previously submitted claims, but he new site for claims going forward, which is a bit cumbersome.

 

[Dougal2345]

I managed to put a couple of claims through, by dint of typing in my sortcode without actually being able to see it.

I checked to-night, and they have now fixed the sort-code issue, which was the main problem.

Regarding previously-submitted claims, the new site does show the 'completed' claims from the old system (albeit in random order) - I'm not sure what happened to claims submitted but not completed before the changeover though (I had none outstanding).

 

[Coolzac]

Just to inform everyone, I have had a response from LNER-

'Dear Mr Rowlands,

Thank you for getting in touch with us at London North Eastern Railway.

We’ve reinvestigated your original Delay Repay claim and we can confirm a slight administrative error occurred.

We have fixed it
Our aim is to offer the ideal customer experience and we are sorry that we did not get this right the first time.

We are happy to confirm we’ve issued the correct amount of £xxxx using the same payment method as you originally requested (BACS). Please allow up to 14 working days for this to be completed.'

Whilst of course I am glad that it has been resolved, I want to help make sure that the TOCs don't inflict this 'administrative error' on other passengers who are less familiar with the system and may not challenge them.

How best to do this?

 

[Haywain]

Whilst of course I am glad that it has been resolved, I want to help make sure that the TOCs don't inflict this 'administrative error' on other passengers who are less familiar with the system and may not challenge them.

How best to do this?

It's human error by the looks of it. You can't do anything to prevent it happening again.

 

[johntea]

I have just had one rejected by Northern



Err not quite Northern, as I clearly stated in the claim notes box it was IMPOSSIBLE to board the 1730 as it was so full the guard was no longer letting any more customers on by 1725! So my next option is the 18:30 which is a 1 hour delay...

I have had a response to my appeal in that it has been approved however I now have a side issue

They have calculated the refund as £2.04 for the hour delay incurred

However for another recent journey where I was delayed an hour (Leeds to Castleford rather than Leeds to Normanton) I was given a £4.09 refund

I use a Zone 1-6 rail only Metrocard (which is eligible for delay repay as it isn't multi modal), at a annual cost of £1897 so I'm not sure how to quite work out what the correct delay repay should be

 

[Mathew S]

I have had a response to my appeal in that it has been approved however I now have a side issue

They have calculated the refund as £2.04 for the hour delay incurred

However for another recent journey where I was delayed an hour (Leeds to Castleford rather than Leeds to Normanton) I was given a £4.09 refund

I use a Zone 1-6 rail only Metrocard (which is eligible for delay repay as it isn't multi modal), at a annual cost of £1897 so I'm not sure how to quite work out what the correct delay repay should be

An annual season ticket is, for delay repay, 464 single journeys. So, for a 60 - 119 minute delay you should be looking at 1/464 * £1897 = £4.09.
I suspect that, in paying you £2.04, they've based the calculation in a 30 minute delay (and thus half the cost of one single journey).
If you phone them, they should be able to correct their mistake.

For future reference, if you are a regular traveller on Northern, it can be much more lucrative to claim free tickets - which can be used for longer/more expensive/higher value journeys - than the few pounds you'll get for a delayed journey on a season ticket.

 

[EastCoastway]

Several of my colleagues expressed frustration yesterday when trying to use SWR’s new Delay Repay site. Accounts were not transferred seamlessly from the old site, so users have to use the password reset option to gain access to the new site.

Also I believe the old site still has to be used for tracking previously submitted claims, but he new site for claims going forward, which is a bit cumbersome.

It's fixed now, the accounts should have migrated with all that is needed is a password reset. The new site is an improvement.

 

[kristiang85]

It's fixed now, the accounts should have migrated with all that is needed is a password reset. The new site is an improvement.

Not really. There's no free box to explain circumstances of the delay, and half the trains were missing when I tried the other day. The old site took about 2 minutes to fill out, this new one is a pain.

Maybe it will improve over time.

 

[gordonthemoron]

I haven't had a valid claim rejected, but I have occasionally had claims 'lost' by virgin, there seems to be a fault in their workflow system, if your claim isn't picked up in a few days, you'll never see it again

 

[Kite159]

Not really. There's no free box to explain circumstances of the delay, and half the trains were missing when I tried the other day. The old site took about 2 minutes to fill out, this new one is a pain.

Maybe it will improve over time.

Probably note, as make it hard for passengers to make claims means some more passengers won't bother making a claim (as it's harder to claim & isn't 'worthwhile') means less money SWR have to pay out.

 

[JohnR]

Never had any problems with Scotrail - only rejection I had was based on a delay of 29 minutes (I thought it was bang on 30).

However, one oddity I have noticed is that XC have sometimes given a slightly different refund to ScotRail on the same journey.....I use a season ticket, and sometimes its on the same ticket! Not by much - usually its 20p out or similar.

 

[EastCoastway]

Not really. There's no free box to explain circumstances of the delay, and half the trains were missing when I tried the other day. The old site took about 2 minutes to fill out, this new one is a pain.

Maybe it will improve over time.

There is no need to fill in the free text box because most claims are dealt with automatically which means that claims are resolved quicker. The only time you need a free text box is when appealing.

 

[EastCoastway]

Probably note, as make it hard for passengers to make claims means some more passengers won't bother making a claim (as it's harder to claim & isn't 'worthwhile') means less money SWR have to pay out.

This is simply untrue.

 

[kristiang85]

There is no need to fill in the free text box because most claims are dealt with automatically which means that claims are resolved quicker. The only time you need a free text box is when appealing.

I disagree. Usually the reasons for delay can be quite complex with SWR - EG missing a train due to last min platform change and the crowds moved too slowly for me to get there (happened once to me) or having to get a later slower train when there's cancellations as the fast one was overcrowded (also happened) - both these occurrences I explained in my original application and both were paid out with no problem.

Now I need to wait for a rejection then explain, which is a complete waste of my time.

 

[EastCoastway]

I disagree. Usually the reasons for delay can be quite complex with SWR - EG missing a train due to last min platform change and the crowds moved too slowly for me to get there (happened once to me) or having to get a later slower train when there's cancellations as the fast one was overcrowded (also happened) - both these occurrences I explained in my original application and both were paid out with no problem.

Now I need to wait for a rejection then explain, which is a complete waste of my time.

In testing i'm sure it had a box. I'll pass on your suggestion.

 

[kristiang85]

In testing i'm sure it had a box. I'll pass on your suggestion.

Thanks. A non-compulsory free text box for any extra info is surely nothing too much to add to the system. It also saves SWR time at the end of the day.

 

[bubieyehyeh]

What annoys me is the southern/thameslink text box being limited to 255 characters, which sometimes makes it hard to explain a delay sufficiently.

 

[maniacmartin]

What annoys me is the southern/thameslink text box being limited to 255 characters, which sometimes makes it hard to explain a delay sufficiently.

It might as well not exist as in my experience they never read what you type in the box anyway

 

[JohnR]

Never had any problems with Scotrail - only rejection I had was based on a delay of 29 minutes (I thought it was bang on 30).

However, one oddity I have noticed is that XC have sometimes given a slightly different refund to ScotRail on the same journey.....I use a season ticket, and sometimes its on the same ticket! Not by much - usually its 20p out or similar.

Now had LNER give me a £10.60 refund for a 32 minute delay?

 

[nickswift99]

Had my first GWR Delay Repay application rejected. There's no way of actually appealing using their system, despite their rejection email encouraging me to do so because there's no free-text box to explain anything or provide any additional evidence.

I'm hoping I'm not going to be going round the multiple calls to customer services to fix this.

 

[nickswift99]

Had my first GWR Delay Repay application rejected. There's no way of actually appealing using their system, despite their rejection email encouraging me to do so because there's no free-text box to explain anything or provide any additional evidence.

I'm hoping I'm not going to be going round the multiple calls to customer services to fix this.

As I expected the Delay Repay appeals process is broken and I'm unable to appeal. Customer services do not have any means to deal with this other than requiring resubmission of the claim. I'd be grateful for any forum members advice on how to proceed from here (other than starting the process all over again, getting rejected, and repeating lots).

 

[ForTheLoveOf]

As I expected the Delay Repay appeals process is broken and I'm unable to appeal. Customer services do not have any means to deal with this other than requiring resubmission of the claim. I'd be grateful for any forum members advice on how to proceed from here (other than starting the process all over again, getting rejected, and repeating lots).

Try resubmitting the claim once more. If that still doesn't succeed then a complaint is in order. If that complaint isn't resolved within 40 working days (i.e. approximately 2 months), or you receive a "letter of deadlock" then you can take the matter to the Rail Ombudsman (which is a free service that is binding on the TOC but not on you).

 

[EastCoastway]

The First Group ToCs are using the same portal and unfortunaley we do not have the means to deal with DR cases anymore. You'll have to resubmit.

Can I ask why your claim was declined?

 

[nickswift99]

The First Group ToCs are using the same portal and unfortunaley we do not have the means to deal with DR cases anymore. You'll have to resubmit.

Can I ask why your claim was declined?

It was declined because GWR's automatic assumptions about cancellations of services after they have started don't take into account the time that it takes for passengers to be told that the service they are on is cancelled. So although my train arrived at Reading at a particular time, the time taken for fitter's attention and then the service to be cancelled is ignored.

IMHO, if the appeals process for DR is broken then GWR shouldn't be sending out emails that explain how to appeal on a system that doesn't support them. Worse still, their Customer Services shouldn't be claiming that the appeals process must be followed if this is then queried.

 

[EastCoastway]

It was declined because GWR's automatic assumptions about cancellations of services after they have started don't take into account the time that it takes for passengers to be told that the service they are on is cancelled. So although my train arrived at Reading at a particular time, the time taken for fitter's attention and then the service to be cancelled is ignored.

IMHO, if the appeals process for DR is broken then GWR shouldn't be sending out emails that explain how to appeal on a system that doesn't support them. Worse still, their Customer Services shouldn't be claiming that the appeals process must be followed if this is then queried.

If you appeal and select "other" as the option you get a text box.

 

[35B]

When I had a split ticket claim (XC advance into LNER Season) where I was concerned about the risk of confusion, I wrote up the details of the journey in table format, setting out what I was seeking Delay Repay for. I then photographed that with the tickets involved to upload, so that it was absolutely clear both what I was claiming for and how it linked to the tickets.

I was paid in short order. I would do the same for any future claim where I have a concern that the details may not be totally clear.

 

[EastCoastway]

From my experience passengers give the minimal details