ScotRail pays out more than £100,000 in two months to passengers due to train travel disruption

More than £100,000 has been paid out by ScotRail to passengers due to rail disruption over a two-month period, new figures indicate.

Freedom of information requests reveal that 7,770 ticket refunds were made to travellers who faced disruption between April and May.

The payments were made under ScotRail’s Delay Repay scheme.

Over those two months, the figures show that a total of £107,439.49 was handed back to customers.

The requests for information were made by the Scottish Liberal Democrats.

Jill Reilly, the party’s transport spokeswoman, suggested there may be “many thousands more” passengers who had faced disruption but not claimed for a refund.

“Part of the reason that the contract was taken away from Abellio was that thousands of trains were regularly running late,” she said.

“This is a significant bill for the service to have racked up in just two months, an ill omen for the state of Scotland’s nationalised railway.

“This only accounts for those who go through the process of applying for a refund.

“There may be many thousands more who have been similarly inconvenienced but not claimed.

She added: “The Scottish Government needs to tell taxpayers how much money has been set aside to meet delay repayments and when they think they will have this under control.

“Commuters and rail users need a service that they can rely on if we are to tempt people out of private cars.

“For the good of the planet, the Government must ensure that all services are running once more and that the trains are arriving on time.”

Phil Campbell, ScotRail’s head of customer operations, apologised to passengers for disruption caused by the temporary timetable put in place due to industrial action.

“Providing the best possible service for customers is at the heart of the work we do, and our Delay Repay guarantee is an important part of that,” he said.

“We know how much of an inconvenience it is to customers when things don’t go to plan, and it is only right that they are compensated when that happens.

“We’re sorry to our customers for the disruption they have been facing as a result of the reduction in services due to the temporary timetable in place, and we share their frustration.

“We are hopeful that the pay offer will be accepted and encourage Aslef members to vote in favour so that we can refocus our efforts on attracting more people back to the railway as we recover from the impact of the pandemic and deliver for customers.”

A Transport Scotland spokesman said: “When a service is cancelled or delayed passengers are fully entitled to apply for a refund under the ScotRail Delay Repay guarantee and the Scottish Government continues to support this.

“During April and May 2022, services were affected by the temporary timetable in place due to train driver industrial action.

“In Scotland we have worked hard engaging with the employers to ensure the right offer is put on the table to reach a negotiated and agreed settlement on pay.

“We welcome that Aslef intends to present this very good pay offer to members via a referendum with a recommendation to accept.”