Red Spotted Hanky refund policy

[OliReading]

I took a journey over Christmas but one leg was 1 1/2 hours late so I went back to the Red Spotted Hanky site to apply for a refund, as I've done in the past.

My ticket was not selectable (it says "Select ticket(s) to refund" and "Selected ticket(s) cost: £0.00" but there's no way to select the ticket!)

When I went to the FAQ, there's a lot of ambiguous terminology (part of it says I should be able to do just what I tried to do) but one of the sections says I have to get details in writing from TOCs about the delayed services then write to RSH (on actual paper!) to get the refund, all within 28 days. I can't believe the TOC will respond very quickly to a written request of old service information.

Is this legal? I read about "Delay Repay" although I don't know if it applies to RSH.

If they require this written documentation, it feels like they're making it as difficult as possible for the end user. Surely this is basically going to be the termination of their business as consumers see how they're working against the needs of the consumer, whereas there's plenty of other ticket sellers who will honour "Delay Repay" which seems a comparatively trivial effort to get a legitimate refund.

What's the deal?

 

[Haywain]

I took a journey over Christmas but one leg was 1 1/2 hours late

Did you travel and experience that delay, or did you choose not to travel because of the delay?

 

[OliReading]

Did you travel and experience that delay, or did you choose not to travel because of the delay?

Good question - I set off at the scheduled time, and the delay was during the journey - one cancelled service and one severely delayed.

 

[Haywain]

Good question - I set off at the scheduled time, and the delay was during the journey - one cancelled service and one severely delayed.

So you completed the journey, albeit with a delayed arrival at your destination?

 

[OliReading]

So you completed the journey, albeit with a delayed arrival at your destination?

Yes, arrived 1 1/2 hours after originally predicted time.

 

[Haywain]

In this case you should be claiming Delay Repay from the train operator that was responsible for your delay. You are only entitled to a refund from the retailer if you did not travel.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

@OliReading. Usually you have 28 days from the date of the delay to get your 'Delay Repay' claim sent in to the relevant train operating company, so a delayed journey made over Christmas shouldn't yet be out of time.

 

[Haywain]

I read about "Delay Repay" although I don't know if it applies to RSH.

Further to my previous comments, RSH and other retailers are not involved in Delay Repay unless they also happen to be a train operating company

 

[OliReading]

Further to my previous comments, RSH and other retailers are not involved in Delay Repay unless they also happen to be a train operating company

Thanks - I've gone to the GWR website and it was straightforward putting in the claim! Not sure if I'm going to get a problem because the one ticket spans two operators, but we'll see...

However I will be still mounting a complaint to RSH about the atrocious lack and ambiguity of information on their website! They replied to my initial mail telling me exactly what you've said, but if that was in their FAQ this would have been a lot less painful.

Thanks again for your help

 

[30907]

Thanks - I've gone to the GWR website and it was straightforward putting in the claim! Not sure if I'm going to get a problem because the one ticket spans two operators, but we'll see...

Train operators often reject claims when they see the name of another company, it seems to confuse them. In that case using email rather than an online appeal system may prove necessary, so be prepared persistent!

 

[OliReading]

Thanks everyone, I applied to GWR, took about 5 minutes to fill the forms in and I got the refund the next day!

RSH's FAQ is so misleading it's awful - I will lodge a complaint with them but I'm confident it will do no good at all so I'll buy elsewhere in future.