Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to reconsider their decision not to give refunds or compensation to people unable to use railcards as a result of (1) the COVID-19 pandemic, and (2) their advice to avoid public transport.

The Department recognises that Railcard holders have been unable to use their cards while travel restrictions were in place in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. We took immediate action at the outbreak of the pandemic to support passengers and the rail industry by keeping the services people depend on running, protecting jobs, delivering refunds and removing charges for cancellations. To date, over £480m has been refunded for people whose travel plans unexpectedly changed due to the pandemic. Fares revenues fell to less than 5% of pre-Covid levels in the Spring and are still at just 30% of previous levels. Looking to the post-COVID-19 recovery, we need to build a rail network which is fit for the future. In this context we must ensure the demands placed on taxpayers are fair and balanced and that Government focuses its investment on maintaining services, to enable social distancing and support our economic recovery. I recognise that the emergency situation has meant that railcard holders have not been able to benefit to the fullest extent over recent months. However, many passengers are able to recover the cost of their railcard in a single trip. Having carefully considered the situation, we can confirm that railcards will remain non-refundable and will not be extended.