Industrial action

If you have an Advance ticket, you can get a full fee-free refund if the train you intend to use is cancelled or delayed, or you no longer wish to travel on an RMT strike day.

If you have an Anytime, Off-Peak or Super Off-Peak ticket you can get a full fee-free refund if the train you intend to use is cancelled or delayed.

If you didn’t buy your ticket from us, you will need to go back to the retailer you originally brought your ticket from.

If you no longer wish to travel on the strike date and you have a flexi season ticket or a monthly or longer duration season ticket, you can use our Delay Repay scheme to claim the value of one day's travel for the strike days on 30 March and 1 April.

It's not available for the day after the strike days.

Booked Passenger Assist? If you would like to cancel or rearrange your booking, please contact our Assisted Travel team.

Instead of you having to apply for a refund, there are some alternative travel date options for you. For the latest strike dates on:

30 March

If you have a ticket for Thursday 30 March (RMT strike day) you can use it on the day before the date on the ticket or any day from then through to Tuesday 4 April (inclusive).

1 April

If you have a ticket for Saturday 1 April (RMT strike day) you can use it on the day before the date on the ticket or any day from then through to Tuesday 4 April (inclusive).

Please note for all the above dates:

• If your ticket is for a through fare that includes the London Underground it will not be valid on London Underground services on an alternative date
• If you’re travelling on a different day and have an Advance Ticket, where possible, please try to travel on the same time as your original booked train
• If you have a seat reservation and choose to travel on a different day, you will not be able to use your original reservation, so please visit one of our Ticket Offices and we can try to reserve you a seat on the new travel date
• If your journey includes travel with a long-distance operator, particularly where seat reservations are required, you may wish to obtain a refund and rebook onto an alternative service. Trains running on days either side of strike days are likely to be extremely busy and a seat cannot be guaranteed.
• If you travel and your train is delayed, you will be entitled to Delay Repay, as usual. Note that delays will be calculated against the strike day timetable
• Booked Passenger Assist? If you need to change your booking to another day or time, please contact our Assisted Travel team
  

You can apply for a refund of your current ticket and purchase a new ticket for your intended date of travel. Please note we expect all services during this period to be extremely busy.

You can also change the time and / or date of travel at any of our Ticket Offices, this may be subject to a £10 change of journey fee (and any difference between the price you’ve already paid and the price of the best available ticket for your new travel date).

For further details on refund terms and conditions for each ticket type please refer to our refund FAQs below.

If you have a ticket and your train/trains are still running you don't need to do anything further. If you have yet to buy your ticket, then you may wish to consider only buying your Anytime, Off-Peak and Super Off-Peak tickets once you know the train you plan to take is running, as the cost of the ticket will not change and fees to refund may still apply.

If you travel and your train is delayed, you will be entitled to Delay Repay as usual. Note that delays will be calculated against the strike day timetable.

If you have an impacted assistance booking which starts on one of our services, we'll get in touch with you to make new arrangements. In the meantime, if you have any concerns then please contact our Assisted Travel team.

There will be no planned ticket acceptance on RMT strike dates on other train operator’s services. However, on RMT strike dates you may use:

• Any ticket on our other services (Southern, Thameslink, Great Northern) to travel to the destination on your ticket, but please note that train services are expected to be extremely busy and we do expect disruption
• Your paper ticket on TfL bus, Tube, tram or DLR services on any reasonable route to complete your journey

We expect the trains that are running to be extremely busy, so First Class areas will be declassified on RMT strike dates (all day) and until midday the next for customer safety and comfort on Southern, Thameslink and Great Northern trains. If you have a First Class ticket you can apply for compensation here.

On RMT strike dates only, anyone needing to complete an essential journey with us who holds an APCOA GTR car park season ticket will be able to park in any Southern, Thameslink or Great Northern carpark regardless of the location of their existing parking permit. Please check National Rail Enquiries to check which stations car parks this applies to. Car parks will be busier than usual due to the reduced services running on these RMT strike dates and availability cannot be guaranteed. Car Park season ticket customers do not have to do anything before parking at a different location other than arrive at a selected alternative location and park.

We expect that the trains will be very crowded on RMT strike dates. To maximise the space available for all customers, our cycle policy will remain in place on these RMT strike dates and we would encourage you not to travel with your bike. Some of our stations have Cycle Hubs, click here for more information.

Advance tickets are no longer available to buy for any RMT strike dates. If your journey involves another operator, please check with them.

The latest information on the availability of Advance fares can be found on this National Rail Enquiries website.

We expect stations and services to be very busy, as we will be unable to run our normal timetable. At all stations served by trains on RMT strike dates our station and onboard staff will be able to provide you with the assistance you need. If the train is too busy, we’ll work with you to find the best solution for you. If you’re unable to board the train, we may arrange alternative transport for you.

Onboard our trains our disabled customers have priority in the accessible carriages. We also have priority seats available for those that need them.

You can Book assistance for your journey for planned services on RMT strike dates but please note that train services are expected to be extremely busy.

If you have any queries or concerns then please contact our Assisted Travel team.

Upon arrival at the station please make yourself known to a member of staff.

On RMT strike dates 'Turn up and go’ assistance will continue to be supported on our services, in line with the strike date timetable in place.

Upon arrival at the station please make yourself known to a member of staff or contact us via a Help Point by using the Emergency button.

Please check before you travel as close as possible to your intended departure time on National Rail Enquiries, as your whole journey may include travel with other operators who are impacted by a strike.

If you have booked assistance through us and your journey is affected by an RMT strike, then, once strike date timetables are confirmed, we'll attempt to contact you to discuss your options. If you have any concerns then please contact our Assisted Travel team. We strongly recommend you check before you travel as close as possible to your intended departure time on National Rail Enquiries.

On RMT strike days, alternative accessible transport may be arranged, as per our Accessible Travel Policy, from stations which are unstaffed, or inaccessible due to a physical feature (such as steps to platforms) that have services stopping at them under our amended strike date timetables.

However, due to the high demand expected it may take us longer to book suitable alternative transport than usual. If you have any concerns, please contact our Assisted Travel team.

For monthly and longer Season Ticket holders

If you were unable to travel or followed our advice and chose not to travel on a strike date, you can claim compensation through our Delay Repay scheme by claiming a delay of 120+ minutes which will provide you with the value of one day’s travel.

This only applies to monthly and longer season ticket holders and not for weekly season tickets.

On this occasion, you do not need to have travelled or have been delayed to claim the compensation.

You need to apply for compensation online within 28 days of the strike date.

For Flexi Season Ticket holders

In order to claim compensation, you must activate a Day Pass on the strike date (not on days before or after). Once you’ve activated your Day Pass you can claim compensation through our Delay Repay scheme by claiming a delay of 120+ minutes which will provide you with the value of one day’s travel.

On this occasion, you do not need to have travelled or have been delayed to claim the compensation.

You need to apply for compensation online within 28 days of the strike date.

If you travelled and your train was delayed, you will be entitled to Delay Repay as usual. Note that delays will be calculated against the strike date timetable. Please do not claim Delay Repay compensation if the train you'd normally take is not listed in the revised timetable - compensation is only payable against an actual delay of fifteen minutes or more against the limited train service that will operate.

If your ticket is for a strike day and the alternative dates do not work for you then you can apply for a refund, although this may be subject to a £10 admin fee.

If you purchased your ticket (excluding season tickets) and you decide not to travel or you begin your journey but decide not to complete it because the service/s you originally intended to travel on were cancelled or delayed or rescheduled, or your reservation is not honoured, you can get a full fee-free refund.  

If you have a ticket on departure booking and you have not collected your ticket, please apply for a refund via the online refund form.

The following information is based on the different ticket types in place, if you hold a paper ticket and you’re not sure what type of ticket you have, please check the information printed on the orange stripe in the top left corner of the ticket for one of the following.

If you bought your ticket from us, then we can arrange a refund for you. If you bought your ticket from someone else, then you’ll need to go back to the original retailer of your ticket to arrange a refund.

If you have an Anytime, Off-Peak or Super Off-Peak ticket you can get a full fee-free refund if the train you intend to use is cancelled or delayed.

If you were planning to use the return portion of an Anytime, Off-Peak, or Super Off-Peak ticket on a strike day and haven't used the outward portion yet as the train you intended to use is cancelled or delayed.

You can also get a full refund of your ticket without paying an admin fee.

If you have already used the outward portion of the ticket, and no longer want to use the return portion as the train you intended to use is cancelled or delayed. Your refund will be calculated based on the travel you've already made, and you won't be charged an admin fee.

If you choose not to travel, you can apply for a refund on your ticket but this will be subject to a £10 admin charge.

You can obtain a refund via our online refund form (for all ticket types) or visiting one of our ticket offices (for paper or smartcard refunds).

If you bought your ticket from another retailer or train company, you will need to contact them to request your refund.

If you have an Advance ticket for a train that is scheduled for a strike day and you purchased your ticket from us you can get a full fee-free refund or change of journey.

This includes, if you have two Advance tickets which you intended to use as a return journey and;

• If one (either) of the legs is on a strike day and the train is cancelled, delayed or rescheduled, you can apply for a fee-free refund or change of journey for any unused legs/tickets
• If one (either) of the legs is on a strike day, and you choose not to travel because of the disruption, you can apply for a fee-free refund or change of journey for any unused legs/tickets

You can obtain a refund via our online refund form  (for all ticket types) or visiting one of our ticket offices (for paper or smartcard refunds).

If you bought your ticket from someone else, then you’ll need to go back to the original retailer of your ticket.

Unexpired Season tickets and Flexi Season tickets can be refunded at any time prior to the expiry of the ticket.

We will calculate how much is refunded based on the value left on your ticket on the day you submit your Season ticket less a £10 admin fee for refund.

You can find out how much refund you are due by using this calculator: Season ticket refund calculator

Please see our refunds process for tickets here, for full details.

For more information see the Season Ticket Conditions page.

Please do not date your carnet ticket until you know for certain that you are going to travel, as it is not possible to amend the date of travel with these tickets once dated.

We can only refund your Carnet tickets, subject to a £10 admin fee if they are:

• Within 28 days from the expiry date of the tickets
• A complete unused book of tickets

If you will not be using your car park season ticket for some time, you can request a refund by following the normal refund process through APCOA:

Great Northern

Southern

Thameslink