Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether train-operating company participation in the Rail Ombudsman will be compulsory.

The Rail Ombudsman is being introduced on a voluntary basis. In this way, the scheme will be delivered far more quickly than could be achieved through a compulsory route, enabling the benefits to be felt by passengers as soon as possible. The Rail Delivery Group issued a press release on 4 August 2017 confirming that the train companies have collectively committed to introducing a new independent ombudsman to investigate and rule on unresolved customer complaints.