ScotRail racks up £2k a day bill for poor service
BELEAGUERED rail chiefs are paying £2,000 a day in compensation to angry passengers who have experienced long delays.
ScotRail was forced to pay out £587,527 to commuters in the nine months from April to December 2016 following a troubled year beset by cancellations and overcrowding.
The majority of payments were made to customers who claimed for delayed trains. This accounted for £340,000 of the total, while £52,000 was paid to others as a ‘gesture of goodwill’.
It has also been revealed £178,000 was paid out by ScotRail for full or partial refunds following complaints about poor service. More than 40,000 people successfully sought compensation from the firm in the nine-month period.
There was a dramatic spike in the number of payouts during the year, figures released under Freedom of Information show.
In April, 1,963 customers received £24,244 in from ScotRail – which rose to 9,224 disgruntled commuters getting £94,878 by December.
The Delay Repay scheme means passengers can claim compensation if their train is more than 30 minutes late or if a delayed service causes them to miss a connection.
Last night Scottish Conservative transport spokesman Liam Kerr said the half-a-million-pound compensation bill reflected ‘a nosedive in quality and reliability on Scotland’s trains’.
He said: ‘As well as passengers, you have to feel for the staff who are doing their best with no help from the Scottish Government, and they will be wondering how Transport Minister Humza Yousaf ever allowed it to get this bad.
‘And even if this cost isn’t coming directly from the public purse, passengers and taxpayers – including those who never use a railway – will end up paying. It’s vital the situation is sorted out.
‘What worries me the most is, as with so many other public services, the Scottish Government has been completely neglectful, focusing on a renewed drive for independence rather than running the country.’
Earlier this week it was revealed ScotRail, run by Dutch firm Abellio, is still failing to meet key service targets – despite punctuality improving. Following a run of poor performance, Mr Yousaf introduced an improvement plan that he and ScotRail say should have been fully met by March. But critics have questioned this timescale and claim the ‘clock is ticking’.
Last month ScotRail boss Phil Verster quit his position after less than two years in charge.
A ScotRail Alliance spokesman said it was fully supportive of the Delay Repay system, adding: ‘Due to the ongoing investment and improvement of the railway network, there have been more delays than normal and we’re compensating customers as a result.’
A Scottish Government spokesperson acknowledged ScotRail’s performance had fallen short but said it was encouraged by the significant improvement since the performance plan was launched.