Q: I have a season ticket but because of train strikes I’ve not been able to use it as much as normal, can I get a refund for the missed days?   

A: If you’ve paid for advance train tickets or passes or if you have a season ticket, then you should be able to get a refund if a train is cancelled or delayed because of a train strike. 

How the process works depends on the individual rail company and they have all the details on their websites. You will usually need to choose ‘Industrial Action’ as the reason for the delay if you weren’t able to travel on a strike day. 

This type of refund is known as ‘delay/repay’ and most companies allow you do this quickly via their websites. 

For season tickets, be it a monthly, annual, or flexi ticket, the money is calculated on a pro-rata basis, although this does vary by company.  

However, very few train firms automatically refund you. In fact, many make you jump through a zillion hoops to get your cash back and you may be charged an admin fee for doing so. 

There are many reasons why you may need to ask for a refund, not just train strikes, and  according to Network Rail, if your service has been cancelled, delayed, or rescheduled, you ‘may’ be entitled to a fee-free change or refund from the original retailer of your ticket.  

If you have advance tickets and can’t – or chose not to – travel because of the cause of the delay you should also be able to get your money back. But train operators have a few caveats to this, which is why the Network Rail statement features the word ‘may’ when mentioning refunds. 

For example, when services aren’t completely suspended, some train operators say they will allow you to use your ticket on alternative services instead. This could be travelling on an earlier or later train or possibly by a rail replacement bus, for example. But if there is an alternative on offer, the train company may deny you a refund.     

However, if you can’t get the service (be it the actual train or a replacement) and you’re denied a refund, you can make a formal complaint to the train operator. If this doesn’t work, you can also make a complaint to the Rail Ombudsman. 

Martyn James is a leading consumer rights campaigner, TV and radio broadcaster and journalist. 

Photo credits: Pexels

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From the increasing fraud cases to the cost of education and ways to save on rail tickets – here are our favourite must-know money stories this week to help you get your head around your personal finances. 

UK losing £2,300 per minute to fraud 

Victims lost £1.2bn to fraud in the UK in 2022, equal to £2,300 every minute, according to banking industry group UK Finance, report Tom Espiner and Daniel Thomas for BBC News.  

Fraud is now the most common crime in the UK, with one in 15 people falling victim each year. In 2022, around three million scams took place, down 4% compared to the  year before. While romantic frauds rose, investment frauds fell by a third amid cost-of-living pressures. Fraud involving payment cards was the most common. 

UK Finance boss David Postings said that while banks were legally obliged to refund so-called unauthorised fraud, they did not have to cover the costs of scams where victims were tricked into agreeing to send money – resulting in banks refunding only about 59% of the losses. 

The government recently launched a new fraud strategy, allowing banks to delay payment processes to allow for suspect payments to be investigated. The strategy will also include banning cold calls on all financial products to help stop scams at source. 

£39 a week to send your child to secondary school 

Sending a child to a state secondary school costs at least £39 each week, and £19 a week for children at primary school, according to a study by the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG), reports Richard Adams for The Guardian.  

After combining associated costs of transport, lunch, uniform, school trips and learning materials, 14 years of a child’s education – at primary and secondary school – would cost over £18,000, per 2022 prices.  

Low-income families from England faced the highest costs, about £30 a week, compared to those in Scotland, paying £16 a week, owing to the Government’s wider availability of benefits – such as free school meals and grants for expenses including as uniforms. 

Kate Anstey, head of the CPAG’s “cost of the school day” programme said: “Our research shows there’s a hefty and often hidden price tag for just the basic essentials needed for school. For struggling families, it can feel more like pay-as-you-go than universal education.” 

Ways to save on rail tickets 

After rail ticket prices rose almost 6% in March, Katie Binns writes for Money Week as she rounds up the ways by which you can save on your tickets. These include: 

1. Free annual Gold Card: An annual season ticket in the south of England or an annual travelcard on the London Underground comes with an annual Gold Card – covering almost all the Network Railcard area plus East Anglia and the West Midlands. With this, you can receive a third off pay as you go (PAYG) off-peak fares on the Underground and Railways, or buy another one-year railcard for just £10, subject to eligibility. 

2. Cashback offers: Certain credit cards offer cashbacks when you buy train tickets. LNER currently offers from 12% on some American Express cards to 5% on cards from multiple other banks such as Halifax and Barclaycard. Cashback offers are generally time-limited, but some train firms let you buy vouchers that can be used later. 

3. Split ticketing: Splitting a ticket involves buying two or more tickets, via an intermediate station. There are multiple sites that calculate split tickets such as myTrainPal – which is free – or  Split My Fare, TrainTickets.com,  Split Your Ticket, TrainSplit and TrainSplitting which take around 10-15% of what you save.  

Photo Credits: Pexels

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If you travel by train more than three times per year, it’s worth getting a railcard.

They get you a third off the ticket price when travelling for a whole year.

You do have to pay to get a Railcard, but right now there’s a code that gets you money off your purchase of a railcard – making it even cheaper and a no brainer to get one if you haven’t already.

Here’s all the details and the code that you need:

What is in the deal exactly?

When a railcard is used on train travel, it reduces the price of your train travel by a third. So if your return train from London to Manchester costs £60, you pay £40.

This can seriously add up over time if you use the train network frequently. And even if you don’t, just a few uses will more than pay for the price of a railcard.

You can use railcards both when buying tickets online, and also at train stations 365 days a year and includes trains on London metro services.

Usually you pay around £30 for a one year railcard or £70 for three years… but currently there’s a code that gets you 33% off the price of one.

Entering the code 33NEWTERM at the checkout of the Trainline website will reduce the price of your railcard to £20 for one year, or £47 for three years – which is a great deal!

If you’re approaching renewal of your railcard, now might also be a good time with the discount.

This offer applies to the following railcards:

• Network Railcard (London and the South East for any adult)
• 16-17 Railcard
• 16-25 Railcard
• 26-30 Railcard
• Family & Friends Railcard (Up to 4 adults and 4 children traveling together)
• Two Together Railcard (2 named people travelling together)
• Senior Railcard (Over 60s)

Why should I care?

The cost of travel is high right now (whether it’s car or train), so anything you can do to cut down the costs is a good thing.

Once you have a railcard, using it online is as simple as clicking one button to reduce the price.

This is one of the cheapest times to get a railcard, so now is a good time to get one.

What’s the catch?

If you’re aged between 30-60, it might be trickier for you to get a railcard and money off travel.

The Network Railcard is a good option if you live around London, or if you have a spouse that you always travel with, then you can benefit – but of course it’s not as straight forward.

What other options do I have?

If you wanted to get cheaper train tickets on longer journeys, it’s worth looking at split ticketing.

Say you were traveling from London to Edinburgh on the train – you might actually get a better deal by purchasing a one way ticket from London to Newcastle, and another separate ticket on the same train from Newcastle to Edinburgh.

It might sound longwinded, but you wouldn’t have to leave your seat, and it could save you a lot on your ticket.

Where can I find out more?

To get the railcard and the discount, head over to the Trainline website.

Photo by Silver Ringvee on Unsplash

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