It has not been a good weekend for all those who had to catch a train in our country. The delays and cancellations that millions of users have suffered in recent days open a new claims period to recover the cost of the tickets in whole or in part. But, what are we entitled to depending on the company chosen?
The derailment suffered by a train without passengers last weekend in Madrid caused a twenty cancellations and many other delays that affected thousands of passengers. The most affected regions were, in addition to Madrid, the Valencian Community and Murcia, among others.
This unexpected event opens the door to a new claims period in which consumers have the right to ticket returntotally or partially, and even to receive compensation for damages, as stated by FACUA. But what are our rights?
Delays of 60 minutes or more
All those affected by a delay of more than 60 minutesboth on departure and arrival, have the right to receive the full amount of the ticket they have paid, the continuation of the journey under similar conditions of transport as soon as possible or the continuation of the journey by an alternative route on a date convenient to the traveler.
If they have passed 100 minutes from the scheduled time of departure, the traveler will have the right to seek his or her own alternatives and make said trip by his or her own means. In this case, the company with which we purchased the ticket will have to reimburse the passenger for the resulting costs.necessary, appropriate and reasonable”, following the instructions of the same organization mentioned above.
In parallel, European regulations also establish that passengers who suffer a delay or cancellation and their ticket is not refunded have the right to compensation of “25% of the ticket price in case of delay of between 60 and 119 minutes” and “50% of the ticket price in case of delay equal to or greater than 120 minutes””. In addition to these compensations, each passenger has the right to claim damages and losses suffered as a result of a cancellation or delay As happens, for example, if we have been forced to pay for a hotel night or we have lost a second ticket due to not being able to reach our stopover.
The same European regulations, as FACUA points out, require that if the delays are greater than 60 minutes, the railway company has to offer free food and snacks.
Renfe, Iryo and Ouigo have the same obligations
All of the above is applicable regardless of the company with which we had the train ticket. That is, both Renfe such as the private operators that circulate through the Adif network, such as Iryo or Ouigo, They have the same obligation to comply with the rules contained in Regulation (EU) 2021/782 of the European Parliament and of the Council, of April 29, 2021 regarding the rights and obligations of travelers.
All of the aforementioned legal frameworks include the minimum conditions that the different operators must offer. However, this does not mean that in some cases we find internal policies that establish their own compensation and that may be more beneficial to the user. Therefore, it is always advisable to consult them through their websites or by contacting the company with which we had the train ticket purchased.
