Why is Delay Repay so complicated (and slow)?

[xotGD]

Sometimes I find that the delay repay form does not ask for enough information. For example, nowhere to state what train(s) you actually travelled on if there is a cancellation.

 

[sheff1]

Sometimes I find that the delay repay form does not ask for enough information. For example, nowhere to state what train(s) you actually travelled on if there is a cancellation.

Indeed. When I filled in a Northern online form for the first time the other day I was pleased to see a list of itinerary options to select from to show which trains I had used after the cancellation. The impossibility on some TOC sites of making things clear regarding a cancellation means that I tend to email customer services with details rather than use the form.

 

[BlueFox]

Sometimes I find that the delay repay form does not ask for enough information. For example, nowhere to state what train(s) you actually travelled on if there is a cancellation.

What I've done a couple of times when the delay was "non standard" is to take a photo of the ticket, then in a photo editing program add some explanatory text. So the uploaded photo has all the information they need.
You could do something similar by handwriting an explanation, and taking a photo of that along with the ticket.

 

[Joe Paxton]

What I've done a couple of times when the delay was "non standard" is to take a photo of the ticket, then in a photo editing program add some explanatory text. So the uploaded photo has all the information they need.
You could do something similar by handwriting an explanation, and taking a photo of that along with the ticket.

When I read "photo editing program" alarm bells started ringing before I'd even finished your reply! To be absolutely clear I'm not suggesting you've done anything wrong whatsoever - it's just that once one starts introducing photo editing software into the equation, even for something as simple and benign as adding some text, it's not inconceivable that the veracity of the underlying image might start to be questioned.

 

[BlueFox]

When I read "photo editing program" alarm bells started ringing before I'd even finished your reply! To be absolutely clear I'm not suggesting you've done anything wrong whatsoever - it's just that once one starts introducing photo editing software into the equation, even for something as simple and benign as adding some text, it's not inconceivable that the veracity of the underlying image might start to be questioned.

When I add text, I never obscure any of the ticket, it's always above or below it.

I'd always assumed they can tell what the ticket is from the ticket number anyway, so I thought the photo of the ticket was just to prove you have the ticket with that number.
And if they question it I'll still have the original ticket I can send them.

Even if I'm just sending them a photo of the ticket I'll crop it and resize it before uploading it, so there's always some editing done.

 

[AlterEgo]

I'd always assumed they can tell what the ticket is from the ticket number anyway

They can't - surprisingly.

Ticket numbers aren't even unique.

 

[MichaelAMW]

In summary, the technology exists to process Delay Repay claims automatically (at least in the case of tickets limited to a specific service) and (almost) instantly. It took me 20 minutes to drive home from the station after my delayed train arrived, and from a technical point of view, there is absolutely no reason I can see why the refund should not already have been waiting for me in my bank account by the time I got there.

One of the things you are formally declaring when you make a claim is that you actually travelled. If you had an Advance ticket but didn't travel then you wouldn't be entitled to any payment if the train on which you had booked was delayed. An automatic system would pay you regardless and that would be money the TOC could perfectly reasonably seek to save. They are not being "fined" for being late by the delay-repay system; you actually need to have been delayed.

 

[MichaelAMW]

They can't - surprisingly.

Ticket numbers aren't even unique.

They are just a sequential series for the machine in question, presumably?

 

[mallard]

If you had an Advance ticket but didn't travel then you wouldn't be entitled to any payment if the train on which you had booked was delayed.

Not under Delay Repay maybe, but if a train is delayed, cancelled or has no seat reservations and you choose not to travel (or you choose to return to your origin) then you're entitled to a full refund under the NRCOT. The NRCOT does not define a minimum length of delay for this to apply. Realistically, if you didn't travel at all, you'd only be able to claim if the train was already delayed at the station you were due to board it, of course.

 

[steffo]

It took 33 working days for Cross Country to approve my claim and I am into day 4 out of a promised 10 days to receive a BACS transfer.

 

[Bletchleyite]

One thing I don't understand is why traditional 4-day BACS is still an option. My employer pays expenses that way as well. Why do the banks not switch to "faster payments for everything"? It's only a relatively simple IT problem, really.

 

[sheff1]

Indeed. When I filled in a Northern online form for the first time the other day I was pleased to see a list of itinerary options to select from to show which trains I had used after the cancellation.

And today I have received an email confirming my claim has been accepted ... so a very quick response.

However, the email also says that free Northern travel vouchers "are enclosed". They are not and I wouldn't expect them to be as, if they were, unlimited copies could be printed. Anyone have any experience as to when I might expect to receive them.

 

[BlueFox]

And today I have received an email confirming my claim has been accepted ... so a very quick response

They appear to be dealing with new claims rather than putting all their effort into clearing the backlog from March and April.

 

[Qwerty133]

They appear to be dealing with new claims rather than putting all their effort into clearing the backlog from March and April.

Is it one of them things where as soon as the target is missed the punishment is the same whether the target is missed by 2 minutes or 2 months?
If so it makes business sense to maximise the number of claims processed on time by putting anything that is already late to the bottom of the pile.

 

[BlueFox]

Is it one of them things where as soon as the target is missed the punishment is the same whether the target is missed by 2 minutes or 2 months?
If so it makes business sense to maximise the number of claims processed on time by putting anything that is already late to the bottom of the pile.

As far as I'm aware there is no punishment for Northern missing their target of 20 working days.
They might be upsetting fewer customers by doing this, but at the expense of really upsetting those of us who have already been waiting for months.
The claim I'm waiting for is from before all the snow delays in March. Presumably they were snowed under (pun intended) with claims from then, and just let them pile up instead of providing the required resources to deal with it.

 

[andyc20050]

I also submitted a claim on the 21st March and still awaiting. Compare that Southern who will action in a couple of days.