On First Great Western Trains
First Great Western aim to deliver a safer travelling environment through a range of security enhancements such as:
- Police Community Support Officers;
- New interiors on some of the fleet;
- More visible customer focused staff; and
- More on-train CCTV.
All our trains will start their journeys clean and litter free. They will usually be thoroughly cleaned inside every day and we will wash the outside of all trains at least every other day. We will undertake turnaround cleaning at key locations.
5.1 Reservations
We operate a walk-on service, which means you can join any of our trains if you have a valid ticket. However, we recommend that you make reservations for our long distance journeys during peak times, as we cannot guarantee you a seat if you do not have a reservation. We offer an advance seat reservation service when you buy a ticket to travel on a reservable service. Only one reservation can be made per single journey.
If you do have a reservation and we do not provide you with a seat (either the one that you had reserved, or an alternative one), we will refund you the full cost of the single journey in National Rail vouchers. To claim your refund if a seat was not provided, please send in your original tickets (with seat reservation) and details of the service that you travelled on, to our
Customer Services Team.
5.2 Getting a seat
Whilst the purchase of a ticket does not guarantee a seat, we plan services so that customers boarding trains should be able to obtain a seat in normal circumstances. You should not have to stand on our trains during off peak times, and during peak times you should not normally have to stand for more than 20 minutes (or more than one station stop if this is longer).
If you hold a First Class ticket for a high speed service and have to stand for more than 20 minutes (or more than one stop where this is longer than 20 minutes), we will refund you in National Rail vouchers the difference between the cost of your First Class ticket for the affected leg of your journey and the corresponding Standard Class ticket. To claim your refund, you must contact a member of the on-board staff at the time of travel for verification, then make your claim by contacting our Customer Services Team.
5.3 Refreshments
Details of all our catering services will be published in the timetable and we will endeavour to notify you before you board the train if, for any reason, the advertised catering services are not available.
We offer a range of catering services, depending upon the length and type of journey. Services provided include a buffet service, an at-seat trolley service, and a restaurant service on selected trains.
5.4 First Class Service First Class accommodation will be provided on certain services and this is indicated in our timetable. There are a range of services for First Class customers on our high speed services, which include complimentary refreshments, on all services where a refreshment service is offered.
5.5 Cycles We welcome customers with cycles on all our services where they can be safely accommodated. However restrictions apply to peak services as space may be limited. We offer free reservations for cyclists on some services. Cycles that can be folded to a size that allows them to be carried safely in luggage racks, may be carried folded at all times.
To make sure your train leaves on time, please arrive at the platform at least 5 minutes before your departure time and allow plenty of time to get your cycle on board safely. All cycles are stored on trains at your own risk. We cannot be held responsible for cycles that are lost or stolen. Full details of cycling by train are contained in our Cycling by Train leaflet, which is available at all our staffed stations and our website.
5.6 Refunds If the train you planned to catch is delayed or cancelled and, as a result you decide not to travel, a full, immediate refund will be issued, provided you return the ticket as soon as you reasonably can, but no more than 28 days after the expiry date of the ticket, to any National Rail ticket office.
Refunds are available on most tickets purchased but not used, and on unused validity on season tickets in most cases. Tickets can be returned within 28 days after the expiry date of the ticket to any National Rail ticket office, except for season tickets, which must be returned to the office from which they were bought, with the refund applying from the date of surrender, or tickets purchased from travel agents, which must be returned to the travel agent. We may charge an administration fee (currently £10.00 at the time of going to press) for refunds.
Customers should note that certain discounted tickets are sold on the understanding that you are committed to travel and that refunds are not available. Please note that for refunds on tickets other than season tickets, applications must be received no later than 28 days after the ticket’s expiry date. The amount refunded will be based on the cost of the ticket when purchased, minus the cost of how much travel has been used.
For season tickets that are no longer required, the amount refunded is based on the difference between the cost of the season ticket originally purchased and the cost of a season ticket for the period up to the date the ticket is surrendered to First Great Western. Season tickets offer significant savings for the daily traveller and you may find that, if there is only a small proportion of the validity remaining, your refund will be little or nothing. For example, an annual season ticket has no refund value after 40 weeks.
Season ticket holders who, for reason of sickness, are unable to travel for more than 4 weeks may apply for a discretionary partial refund of the unused portion.We may ask for supporting documentation, such as a medical certificate, and we also ask that you notify us of your non-travel as soon as possible.
5.7 If Things Go Wrong
We recognise that information is very important if things go wrong. Staff at our stations will be provided with the tools and training to provide appropriate information.
We have contingency plans that will be put into place when disruption occurs to help minimise the impact on your journey. During times of severe service disruption, First Great Western will deploy additional staff where possible, to assist at affected stations and on-board.
If the train you are travelling on is delayed we will aim to:
- Get you to your destination station, with alternative transport provided if necessary;
- Where this is not possible, return you to a suitable station;
- In exceptional cases, overnight accommodation will be provided if it is not possible to get you to your destination or return you to a suitable station.
We will also offer complimentary non–alcoholic drinks on our high speed services when these services are running over an hour late (while stocks last). Where possible, our on-board staff will inform you if compensation is available and provide you with one of our Compensation Claim forms. We will ensure that all our trains have sufficient copies of these forms available when required.
5.8 Compensation arrangements
Single, Return and Weekly Tickets.
Journeys on (former) First Great Western services:
If your journey is delayed by more than an hour, we will compensate our customers, including Weekly Season Ticket Holders the full value in National Rail vouchers, of the part of the journey, which was delayed, i.e. 50% of the cost of a return, and 100% in case of a single ticket.
If you are delayed in excess of two hours, we will compensate customers the full cost of your ticket.
Compensation will not be available for disruption resulting from events beyond the control of the rail industry. These include trespass, vandalism, severe weather conditions and security alerts.
Journeys on (former) First Great Western Link Services:
If you hold a ticket for a single or return ticket, or a Weekly Season Ticket, and your train is delayed or cancelled due to the fault of the rail industry, you will be entitled to compensation in National Rail travel vouchers of at least 50% of the price you paid for the delayed journey if:
- You are delayed by more than one hour on a rail journey of an hour or more; or
- You are delayed by more than 30 minutes on a rail journey of less than an hour.
If you hold a Weekly Season Ticket, we will base your compensation on the daily value of your ticket. Compensation will not be available for disruption resulting from events beyond the control of the rail industry. These include trespass, vandalism, severe weather conditions and security alerts.
Journeys on (former) Wessex Trains services:
If your journey is delayed by more than an hour, we will, as a minimum, compensate our customers, including Weekly Season Ticket Holders to the value of 50% of the cost of your ticket, and 25% in case of a return ticket. If you are delayed in excess of two hours, we will compensate customers to the full cost of your ticket. Compensation will be paid in National Rail Vouchers. Compensation will not be available for disruption resulting from events beyond the control of the rail industry. These include trespass, vandalism, severe weather conditions and security alerts.
Season Ticket Renewal Discounts The following information outlines our punctuality and reliability standards and the level which triggers discounts on renewals for season ticket holders.
Punctuality and Reliability
Punctuality is the number of trains that arrive at their final destination ‘on-time’ (within the number of minutes of scheduled time as indicated in the table in
Performance Results). Reliability is the number of scheduled trains that actually run.
We are currently recording Punctuality and Reliability standards under the groups that were used prior to the start of the franchise in April 2006.
These are the the former First Great Western, First Great Western Link and Wessex Trains groups. Additionally, Wessex Trains targets are separated into four sub-groups. These groups and their standards are shown in
Performance Results.
Certain causes of delay are outside the control of the rail industry, and we do not include these when we calculate our punctuality and reliability results. These include vandalism, fatalities, security alerts and severe weather conditions.
If either the punctuality or reliability result falls below the trigger level during the last complete 12 months, Season Ticket Holders will receive 5% discount off the cost of their next season ticket. If both the Punctuality and Reliability triggers are activated, we will double this discount to 10%.
Annual season tickets, (Former Wessex Trains)
We are pleased to honour the previous arrangements by Wessex Trains, where annual season ticket holders were given additional discounts. For each complete four week period during the validity of your ticket, that average annual punctuality or reliability falls below our trigger, we will give a further 1% discount on renewal, up to maximum discount of 8%. Where both measures are triggered, the maximum discount is 16%. These discounts are only available when you renew your season ticket any time up to 28 days after your previous ticket has expired
5.9 Exclusion of Other Liability
Under the terms of the National Rail Conditions of Carriage, which apply to all train operating companies, First Great Western is not liable for any loss (including consequential loss) or extra costs incurred as a result of a train delay or cancellation. If travelling to an airport we request that you ensure that you allow sufficient time.
5.10 Planned Engineering Work
The First Great Western network requires a rolling programme of maintenance and renewal of the infrastructure, which may require amendments to train timetables and the substitution of trains with buses, in order to carry out essential maintenance work or to install improved facilities. Disruption will be kept to a minimum and information will be made available via posters and leaflets at stations and also from our website.
A leaf-fall timetable may be implemented on an annual basis during the peak autumn period and information published for customers.
When planned engineering work is required, we will display posters at staffed stations that inform customers of alterations, with amended timetables available in advance. Our aim is to display the posters four weeks in advance and to make the amended timetables available seven days in advance. National Rail Enquiries will be able to advise of scheduled or planned engineering work generally twelve weeks in advance.
5.11 Emergency Engineering Work
Occasionally we will need to implement an emergency train service and will communicate the amended timetable at our major stations.
Real-time train-running information about service disruption is also available on our website and via WAP enabled mobiles. A customised disruption alert service will also be available via SMS text messages and e-mails.