FGW 1st Class - ongoing discussion of the benefits and their apparent reduction

[whole diary]

[Oxonhutch]

A consequence of FGW^▸ (First Great Western)/GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) removing First Class from their 165s (standard class only) is that if they roster them on a service advertised as having First Class accommodation, then First Class ticket holders can claim the difference in fares as per NRCoC^▸ (National Rail Conditions of Carriage), Section 38 when their expected 166 (First Class provided) is substituted.

This has now happened to me on two occasions: Tuesday last week and Tuesday this week.  I have emailed GWR on their feedback address fgwfeedback@firstgroup.com ([sic] Address given on the GWR site) to claim compensation and have received an acknowledgement and case numbers on both occasions with the promise of a response within 5 working days.  I have have received no further response on either to date. 

Can the group please suggest an avenue for me to take this further as I believe this is going nowhere; and if I have paid for an advertised service, I expect to receive it.

[Chris from Nailsea]

Hmm. This is another example of a very disappointing Great Western Railway 'customer experience', Oxonhutch. I'll repeat the wording I have used elsewhere, in another case:

We have many Great Western Railway staff here on the Coffee Shop forum as members, or just as casual readers, so I'm sure this latest example of the sheer frustration that can be felt by those trying to do business with GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) can be fed back.

And, by the way, I'll no doubt bump into a few senior GWR staff at the TravelWatch SouthWest meeting in Taunton this Saturday, so I'll mention it to them as well.

[Ollie]

Oxonhutch, when was it emailed in? I spoke to customer relations chasing a case for someone else, and they were up to 19th September for cases due to a bit of a backlog they unfortunately have at the moment.

[NickB]

I've found that writing in yields better results than emailing. I wouldn't say the response was fast but the results are more consistent. It's a free post address but does cost you an envelope.

[Oxonhutch]

Thanks Ollie. First claim was for the 22nd and the second for the 29th.  Maybe they're still working up to it.  I'll give it a couple more days before escalating it.

Notwithstanding, that is a serious backlog - either an overdose of problems recently, or an under-resourcing of customer services.

[plymothian]

Incidentally it's possible to buy a 1st advance single GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) only from Barnstaple - Bristol TM^▸ (Train Manager, or possibly Ticket Machine, depending on context) on 2 trains which don't have 1st class provision (it might not be now if the passengers actually complained like advised).

But as the fare was less than the standard fare, I'm not sure how the usual first-standard difference compensation would pan out!

[JayMac]

I've rarely, if ever, experienced a response, beyond an automated one, within five days when contacting Customer Services by email.

The five day thing should be removed from correspondence as it's an 'aim' that is rarely met.

[Fourbee]

A consequence of FGW^▸ (First Great Western)/GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) removing First Class from their 165s (standard class only) is that if they roster them on a service advertised as having First Class accommodation, then First Class ticket holders can claim the difference in fares as per NRCoC^▸ (National Rail Conditions of Carriage), Section 38 when their expected 166 (First Class provided) is substituted.

On the flip side of that, I've had an email from GWR saying that travelling in First Class on a Standard Ticket on a train advertised with no First Class is up to the discretion of the TM^▸ (Train Manager, or possibly Ticket Machine, depending on context).

[ChrisB]

If the 1st class fare has been removed, that effectively declassifys for that journey....

[JayMac]

A consequence of FGW^▸ (First Great Western)/GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) removing First Class from their 165s (standard class only) is that if they roster them on a service advertised as having First Class accommodation, then First Class ticket holders can claim the difference in fares as per NRCoC^▸ (National Rail Conditions of Carriage), Section 38 when their expected 166 (First Class provided) is substituted.

On the flip side of that, I've had an email from GWR saying that travelling in First Class on a Standard Ticket on a train advertised with no First Class is up to the discretion of the TM^▸ (Train Manager, or possibly Ticket Machine, depending on context).

 

Sometimes they either fail to understand the question or just haven't got a clue.

It's not about discretion, it is absolutely allowed to travel in Standard Class with a First Class ticket valid on that train. You may have a slight issue with certain RPOs if you have a First Class Advance and have chosen, for whatever reason, not to sit in your reserved seat on your booked train.

[Ollie]

Thanks Ollie. First claim was for the 22nd and the second for the 29th.  Maybe they're still working up to it.  I'll give it a couple more days before escalating it.

Notwithstanding, that is a serious backlog - either an overdose of problems recently, or an under-resourcing of customer services.

No problem, feel free to message us the references if you want me to chase it and see how the claims are progressing.

[Oxonhutch]

Thanks again Ollie - I will do so if I haven't received any feedback in the next couple of days.

That said, I could have also claimed for yesterday when they substituted a completely rammed 2-car 165 for the scheduled service that departed late and got later still as the journey progressed.  I took one look at that one and decided to take another train. I reckon they nicked the Greenford shuttle.

My feeling is that the advertised First Class services are not being that diligently provided for - relying on the financial outlay from claims being less than the commercial factors in stock rosters.  Maybe there is a genuine plan and I'm just being too cynical - but it's my age - sorry.

[Fourbee]

A consequence of FGW^▸ (First Great Western)/GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) removing First Class from their 165s (standard class only) is that if they roster them on a service advertised as having First Class accommodation, then First Class ticket holders can claim the difference in fares as per NRCoC^▸ (National Rail Conditions of Carriage), Section 38 when their expected 166 (First Class provided) is substituted.

On the flip side of that, I've had an email from GWR saying that travelling in First Class on a Standard Ticket on a train advertised with no First Class is up to the discretion of the TM^▸ (Train Manager, or possibly Ticket Machine, depending on context).

 

Sometimes they either fail to understand the question or just haven't got a clue.

Their reply contained absolutely no reference to my original question, it just looked like a boiler plate response. Which I waited over a week for.

[Jason]

I've come close on a few occasions but on Friday had my first instance of being unable to get a seat in 1st on a HST^▸ (High Speed Train (Inter City class 43 125 units)) service out of Paddington.
The train manager was very helpful as were customer services at Reading.
We shall see how well the claims process goes.

[LiskeardRich]

The HST^▸ (High Speed Train (Inter City class 43 125 units)) i am on now 0736 from liskeard to Penzance, 2.5 1st class coaches, a proper buffet and only 5 standard coaches. It's like the olden days coming back!
I assume this set forms a London service off Penzance around 10-11ish, so plenty of 1st class space on that up service!