I booked a first-class ticket and seat – for £129 – to travel in early January between Newcastle upon Tyne and London but the train was 50 minutes late. It was then complete chaos on board – all seat reservations were removed and passengers were sitting on the floor, even in first class. We were also told there was no food or water on the train. We were given very little information by Virgin East Coast about the reason for the delay although eventually we were told the problems were caused by a tree down on the track north of Newcastle. Surely this is in breach of health and safety regulations? I paid a lot of money and feel very let down – along with many other passengers. YB, Newcastle upon Tyne
The weather and flooding in the North played havoc with rail travel, but as your train was more than an hour late you will be eligible for a full refund for the relevant portion of your ticket, and we strongly advise you to submit a compensation claim as soon as possible.
Even though you booked first class, you would generally not be guaranteed a seat under the terms of the National Rail conditions of carriage although Virgin does offer a “guarantee ” which lets you claim a refund when things go wrong.
A spokesman for Virgin Trains said: “Like many transport providers we’ve recently faced very challenging circumstances due to extreme weather conditions. We’re sorry when delays happen and always encourage customers to claim compensation when they do. We also appreciate it is especially frustrating when our customers experience delays at one of the busiest times of the year.”
The spokesman added that all its trains carry spare bottles of water in case of any lengthy delays so he was surprised to read there was none available.
On the issue of compensation, consumer group Which? is using its “super-complaint” powers to call for rail operators to make it easier for consumers to get the refunds they deserve.
We welcome letters but cannot answer individually. Email us at consumer.champions@theguardian.com or write to Consumer Champions, Money, The Guardian, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU. Please include a daytime phone number
