About Train Operating Complaints on Rail Fares

Both train operating complaints relating to train fares and car parking charges in stations are dealt with according to the provisions of the Competition Laws. However, you might like to know a bit more about the process for dealing with the erring train operating company.

The first thing that you may like to know is whether your fares are regulated. The Passenger Focus for outside London transport and the London Travel Watch for the inside London transport can check this out for you. The normal procedure for them is to find out whether the train operating company is charging you the exact fare that is government regulated. They also obtain necessary guidance from the Fares Review Conclusions of 2003 of the erstwhile Strategic Rail Authority. Though this body has been abolished, the policy they pursued still continues and is used in resolving train operating complaints. You have to take care of one thing however. The names of the fare types go on changing from time to time and you should keep track of these changes. You can verify them from the website of the National Rail Enquiries.

Train fares are regulated by the government and also by the transport authorities for England, Scotland and Wales. Therefore the amounts by which a train operating company can enhance their fares are capped by regulations put in place by these authorities. Normally the tickets are capped at the RPI, or the Retail Price Inflation, limits. The maximum limits are 6% and a company can only increase it by another 1% at the most. Deviation from these capping regulations will be valid grounds for train operating complaints.