A Suffolk council worker is seeking his day in court over what he says are repeated delays to his journeys.
Halesworth resident Joseph Pochin has applied to the small claims court for compensation from Abellio Greater Anglia.
He told the East Anglian Daily Times that his journeys to and from work in Ipswich had deteriorated since he began making the trip in February.
A Greater Anglia train on Mr Pochin's route
After a one-hour delay heading home on a Friday night, he applied for the delay repay compensation. He said he ‘received what can only be described as a paltry sum of £2.20’.
He started keeping records and now estimates that his total delays in the last six months amount to about 14 hours.
Following a further delay last week, involving a rail replacement bus service, he arrived home frustrated but determined. He said: ‘I filled out and submitted the forms on the Gov.UK website and am now going to have my day in court with them. I feel I have a very strong case for compensation.’
A Greater Anglia spokesperson said: ‘We have been in correspondence with Mr Pochin to try to help him directly with his complaints and to explain the reasons for delays he has experienced and what we are doing, with Network Rail, to improve our service. We are sorry for any inconvenience caused by delays.
‘Performance on the East Suffolk Line is currently just under 86%. Network Rail has just laid new track on the line, which should lead to a more reliable railway. We are investing in improving the reliability of our current trains and we will be getting brand new trains from 2019 which should improve reliability further.’
Last October the Government extended the Consumer Rights Act in full to all transport services, including mainline rail passenger services, allowing passengers to challenge the amount of compensation they are offered by rail companies.
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