Additional compensation scheme offered by Northern
12 Jul 2018
Staff who have rail season tickets through Northern can claim additional compensation for delays on specified routes
The scheme, which is over and above the existing Delay Repay offer, which is funded by Northern, will provide compensation to Northern customers on certain specified routes where more than five percent of trains have been cancelled or seriously delayed.
The compensation is being paid for by the rail industry, as agreed by the Department for Transport as the situation was caused as a result of the late handover and delay on major infrastructure issues (Blackpool and Bolton). This compensation scheme has been approved by the Board of Transport for the North.
From Thursday, 12 July 2018, season ticket holders who have travelled on routes which have seen most delays and cancellations will be able to submit their claims for this additional compensation. Claims need to be made by Wednesday, 19 September 2018.
There are two levels of compensation, recognising that some customers faced disruption to their journeys prior to the introduction of new timetables on 20 May 2018.
Level 1
Those who hold season tickets and have faced significant disruption on certain specified routes between 1 April 2018 and 30 June 2018 will be able to claim compensation up to the equivalent of a month of travel. Claimants will need to provide evidence of four weeks of travel during this period on the specified routes.
This disruption was caused by the delay to the electrification of the Blackpool to Preston line, which meant Northern had to carry out additional, unexpected training for more than 400 train drivers. As a result, some drivers were unavailable to operate train services, leading to significant disruption on a number of routes across the North West. Additionally, these routes were impacted by the May 2018 timetable change.
| Level 1 routes | |
|---|---|
| Lakes Line (Oxenholme to Windermere) | Liverpool Lime Street to Wigan |
| Lancaster to Morecambe/Heysham | Kirkby to Wigan |
| Preston to Barrow-in-Furness | Southport to Manchester (via Wigan) |
| Preston to Blackpool South | Manchester Piccadilly to Manchester Airport |
| Preston to Blackpool North | Hazel Grove to Manchester Piccadilly |
| Preston to Colne | Heaton Chapel to Manchester Piccadilly |
| Preston to Ormskirk | Manchester Victoria to Bolton |
| Preston to Bolton | Ellesmere Port to Manchester Victoria |
| Liverpool Lime Street to Manchester via Warrington Central | Clitheroe to Manchester |
| Liverpool Lime Street to Manchester via Newton le Willows | |
Level 2
Customers who hold season tickets and have faced significant disruption on certain specified routes since the timetables changed on 20 May 2018, there will be compensation to the equivalent of a week of travel. Claimants will need to provide evidence of one week of travel during this period on the specified routes (including stations).
This disruption was caused as a result of the introduction of the new timetable on 20 May 2018.
| Level 2 routes | |
|---|---|
| Carlisle to Barrow-in-Furness | Leeds to York via Cross Gates |
| Settle to Lancaster | Leeds to Selby |
| Chester to Manchester via Altrincham | Leeds to Nottingham via Barnsley |
| Crewe to Manchester via Stockport | Carlisle to Newcastle |
| Manchester to Stoke on Trent | Newcastle to Chathill |
| Manchester to Buxton | Newcastle to Saltburn via Durham Coast |
| Manchester Victoria to Burnley Manchester Road | Barton-on-Humber to Cleethorpes |
| Manchester Victoria to Bradford/Leeds via Huddersfield and Halifax | |
| Manchester Victoria to Leeds via Rochdale | |
Customers have been affected by a number of issues during the past few months, most notably the knock-on effects of the delay to the electrification of the Blackpool to Preston Line, delays to the electrification of the Manchester to Preston via Bolton line and the problems on some routes following the introduction of the May timetable. This compensation scheme aims to provide some recompense for those whose journeys have been impacted the most.
Customers can claim by visiting Northern Rail season ticket compensation, calling the dedicated customer support team, who can be reached between 8.00 am and 8.00 pm Monday to Friday on 03332 220 126 or emailing Compmay18@northernrailway.co.uk.