Suffered at the hands of Southern, Thameslink, Great Western or South West Trains? How to claim a refund
Sweltering heat has plunged the country into travel chaos over the last couple of days
RAIL services went into meltdown on the hottest day of the year yesterday - as sweaty commuters piled into overcrowded stations to endure lengthy delays.
If your journey into work has been plunged into travel misery by delays, cancellations, or even a sinkhole, find out below how to cool off and claim a refund.
Southern:
Much-maligned rail operator Southern is at the centre of a petition launched by MP Tom Brake, who claims commuters have put up with their "incompetence and thoroughly dreadful service for far too long".
If your Southern train has been delayed or cancelled you can claim money back if it is more than 30 minutes late.
You must claim the refund within 28 days of your delayed journey and you must provide proof of travel such as a ticket or receipt.
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If your train is between 30 and 59 minutes late you are eligible for 50% of a single ticket price and 25% of a return price.
Delays of more than 1 hour get you a full refund for a single and 50% for a return.
Delays of more than 2 hours will get you a full refund on both single and return tickets.
To apply for compensation .
But be warned - Southern's own site says they are "currently experiencing high incoming volumes of delay repay applications so please bear with us while we process your claim".
South West Trains:
You are only entitled to compensation from South West Trains if your journey is delayed by 60 minutes or more.
The firm will also only refund you if the lateness was within their control.
South West Trains will refund you the full cost of a single ticket, but just half the price of a return.
If you own a weekly season ticket you will be refunded the full cost of a single ticket.
For owners of monthly or annual season tickets the odd lateness might not earn you any refund at all.
According to the firm's "Passenger's Charter", they offer customers a "5% discount on the price of your season ticket renewal if, on average, over the last 12 months, our punctuality has been more than 2.5% below our Passenger's Charter standard; or if our reliability has been more than 1% below our Passenger's Charter standard".
Wondering if you're eligible?
If you want to claim a refund from South West Trains
Great Western:
Great Western have different refund structures for different types.
On their London to Thames Valley service you can claim a refund if your train is delayed by more than 30 minutes on a journey that would have been less than an hour.
If your journey was going to be longer than 60 minutes, your train would need to be more than an hour late for you to be eligible for a refund.
Great Western fail to make clear how much compensation you are eligible for if you experience these delays.
If you travelling by one of their High Speed trains you can claim the full value of a single ticket, or half the value if it's a return, if your train is more than 60 minutes late.
For their Bristol Suburban, Devon, Plymouth & Cornwall, and South Wales - South Coast service trains, you are eligible for a refund when your train is delayed by more than an hour.
You will be eligible for a 50% refund on the cost of a single ticket or 25% on the cost of a return.
Passengers are eligible for a full refund if their train is more than 2 hours late.
Compensation claims have to be made by post. For address details and for the form itself .
Thameslink
If you've suffered at the hands of Thameslink you must apply for a refund within 28 days of the delay.
For trains between 30 and 59 minutes late they will refund you 50% of a single fair, but 25% if you bought a return and only one journey is affected.
If your train is between one and two hours late you are entitled to 100% of the single, and 50% of the affected journey if you bought a return.
You will get a full refund whether it's a single or a return if your train is more than 2 hours late.
If you have a season ticket your are eligible for compensation, but the price of single journey is worked out by dividing the cost of your ticket by 464.
For more info
To apply for a refund
Have we missed your regular train operator off the list? Email [email protected]