Compensation claim now possible for South Western Rail passengers

Transport for London Travelcard holders who have travelled on South Western Railway trains can now claim compensation

The £25 million settlement between Stagecoach South Western Trains and consumer rights activist Justin Gutmann is now available to affected rail passengers to claim their share of compensation.

This agreement only applies to Stagecoach South Western Trains, which operated the South Western railway franchise between February 1996 and August 2017.

In a £57 million lawsuit filed by Justin Gutmann, South Western’s rail companies – including Stagecoach South Western Trains and First MTR South Western Trains – were accused of defrauding 2.1 million rail passengers.

The Competition Appeal Tribunal approved the settlement between Gutmann and Stagecoach in May. Stagecoach agreed to the settlement without admitting liability.

The first of two trials against First MTR South Western Trains – the current operator of South Western Rail – took place in June.

Are you one of the 1.4 million SW rail customers who are entitled to compensation?

If you held a Transport for London travelcard and travelled on South Western Railway trains between 1 October 2015 and 20 August 2017, you may be entitled to compensation.

The South Western Rail Line runs between London (Waterloo station) and the larger cities in the southwest.

These include Reading, Woking, Guildford, Portsmouth, Basingstoke, Southampton, Bournemouth, Weymouth, Salisbury, Exeter, Bath and Bristol.

You must have held a valid Travelcard for one or more Transport for London fare zones and the rail fare you paid must have overlapped with those zones.

You can make the claim on behalf of yourself or someone you purchased tickets for.

Sign up so we can keep you updated on the progress of the Stagecoach settlement and ensure you are the first to hear the outcome of the First MTR case.

How much compensation can be claimed?

The £25 million settlement was split into three pots – with each pot requiring a different level of proof that you are entitled to compensation.

Our table summarises how much you are entitled to and what evidence is required to assert your claim:

To make your claim, visit the Cross Border Fare Compensation Claims website. You have until 10 January 2025 to submit your compensation claim.

About the lawsuit against Stagecoach

Stagecoach has been sued for £39 million for allegedly overcharging rail passengers by not providing enough ‘border fares’ for customers who also bought TfL Travelcards.

Border fares allow Travelcard holders to receive discounts on tickets that take them from their Travelcard border to their final destination.

For example, if you have a Travelcard for Zones 1-4 but need to travel between Waterloo and Reading, you should be able to buy a ticket from the edge of Zone 4.

Gutmann claimed that these cheaper fares were not readily available online and were rarely offered at ticket counters.

Related claims

South Western Railway is being sued for £57m for overcharging millions of rail passengers. Sign up to stay up to date.

Govia Thameslink Railway is being sued for £73.3m for overcharging 3.2m passengers. Sign up if you use Thameslink, Southern or Great Northern trains.

Southeastern Rail is being sued for £36m for cheating 885,000 rail passengers. Sign up to stay up to date.