END QUOTED TEXT
Back to Crowsnest Guide to British Railways
The Crowsnest is sponsored by The Unicorn Connection Limited
LinkExchange Member
B Validity of tickets
C Use of tickets
D Passengers' responsibilities
E Rights to refunds on tickets
F Additional conditions applying only to season tickets
G Use of photocards with season tickets
H Duplicates and refunds for season tickets
I Accommodation on trains
J Reservations
K Timetables and train services
The National Conditions of Carriage apply to all domestic (non-international) journeys by scheduled passenger train services on the main line railway network of Great Britain. The Train Companies may give you more extensive rights than those set out here but they may not give you less. The National Conditions of Carriage therefore set out the minimum level of service you are entitled to expect.
A ticket that has been issued to you is evidence of a contract between you and the person from whom you bought it (whether a Train Company, a travel agent or another authorised person) and each of the Train Companies whose trains you have the right to use. If the ticket entitles you to any goods or services from another person (including the right to travel on another person's transport services), it is also evidence of a contract between you and that person.
2. You may not transfer your ticket
A ticket may only be used by the person for whom it has been purchased It cannot be resold or passed on to anyone else.
3. Requirement to hold a ticket
You have the right to use a Train Company's trains if you hold a ticket or other authority to travel which is valid on those trains for the journey you wish to make.
4. Conditions on which tickets are issued
Each ticket is issued subject to:
(a) these Conditions;
(b) the bye-laws and conditions set out in the notices and other
publications issued by the Train Companies whose trains you
are entitled to use; and
(c) if the ticket entitles you to obtain any goods or services from
another person, the conditions set out in the notices and other
publications issued by that person
. Copies of each Train Company's notices and other publications are available from the ticket offices at which the ticket is offered for sale and from that Train Company's registered office. Copies of the notices and other publications issued by any other person that is to provide you with any goods or services are available from that person.
Where a Train Company's special conditions apply to a ticket you wish to buy, the person selling it will take reasonable steps to make this clear to you at the time.
5. Scope of each Train Company's responsibilities
A Train Company or travel agent which issues a ticket that entitles you to use the trains of another Train Company (or entitles you to any other goods or services from another person), does so as agent for that other Train Company or other person.
The person whose trains you have the right to use, or who has agreed to provide you with any other goods or services, is responsible for providing the goods or services it has agreed to provide. However, it is not responsible for any failure by another Train Company to run any trains or by another person to provide any other goods or services. Nor is it liable for any losses that occur while you are travelling on that other Train Company's trains or are using those other goods or services.
Each Train Company will, however, assist you if you have a claim in respect of your journey, either by dealing with the matter itself or by passing it on to an appropriate person.
6. International tickets
Tickets issued for journeys from Great Britain to the Continent or the Republic of Ireland (and vice versa) are subject to the Conditions of Carriage (International Traffic) and the International Conditions of Carriage (CIV). Both these sets of conditions are available for inspection at the places at which such tickets are sold. The National Conditions of Carriage do not apply to such journeys.
7. If you join a train without a valid ticket
If you travel on a train without a valid ticket, you will be liable to pay the full single or return fare for the journey you have made or wish to make (and you will not be entitled to any discounts or special terms which would otherwise apply).
However, this does not apply if:-
(a) you were unable to purchase a ticket because there was no ticket office at the station where you started your journey (or, if there was, it was closed) and there was no issuing or validating machine there (or, if there was, it was not in working order); or
(b) the notices and other publications issued by the Train
Company on whose train you are travelling indicate that tickets may be purchased on that train from the conductor (which is often the case on less busy routes).
In these circumstances, you need only pay the fare that would have been payable if you had bought a ticket immediately before your journey. Special arrangements may apply if you are disabled. Details of these arrangements can be found in each Train Company's Disabled People's Protection Policy.
If you are unable to purchase an appropriate ticket for a journey you wish to make because only a restricted range of tickets is available at the station from which the journey is to start, before you travel you must (if you can) purchase a ticket that entitles you to make at least part of the journey. You will then be entitled to exchange that ticket later for any other ticket you could have purchased for the journey if a full range had been available. If you do this as soon as you reasonably can, the first paragraph of this Condition will not apply.
8. Penalty Fares
Where penalty fare regulations apply to a journey on a train and you travel on that train without a ticket entitling you to use it, you may have to pay a penalty fare under those regulations. In this event Condition 7 will not apply. Copies of each Train Company's penalty fare regulations are available from its ticket offices.
9. Children's tickets
Reduced fares are available for children under the age of sixteen. In addition, up to two children under five years of age may accompany each fare-paying passenger free of charge, except where the notices and other publications of the Train Company whose trains that passenger wishes to use state otherwise. However, children under five who are travelling free may only occupy a seat if the seat is not required by a fare-paying passenger.
B. VALIDITY OF TICKETS
10. The trains on which you can travel
Some tickets are valid only for the trains of a particular Train Company or Train Companies. This will be shown clearly on the tickets.
If you have purchased such a ticket you may not use it on any other Train Company's trains. If you do so, Condition 7 or 8 will apply.
However, you will be able to claim a refund under Condition 25 if you do not use the original ticket, or any portion of it.
11.The period during which your ticket can be used
The period during which a ticket is valid is printed on the ticket or stated in the notices and other publications of the relevant Train Companies. If you travel with a ticket after its expiry date, you will be treated as having joined a train without a ticket and Condition 7 or 8 will apply.
If your ticket expires during a journey (for instance your train does not reach its destination until after midnight), its validity will be extended to allow you to complete the journey. However, you will not be able to break your journey during this extension unless your train is extensively delayed.
12. The times you can travel and the trains you can use
Reduced and discounted fare tickets (including those bought with a railcard) are usually subject to restrictions as to the dates, days, times within a day and trains on which they can be used. These restrictions are set out in the notices and other publications of the Train Companies whose trains you are entitled to use.
If you travel on a train with a ticket which is not valid on that train because of such a published restriction, you will have to pay the difference between the price of that ticket and the price of the cheapest ticket(s) available for which no pre-booking is required that would have entitled you to travel on that train for the journey shown on your ticket. In the case of some types of discounted ticket, however, you will have to pay more than this. If so, this will be stated in the notices and other publications of the relevant Train Companies.
13. The route you can take
Subject to any restrictions stated on your ticket, you have the right to travel on any of the following routes:-
(a) if the ticket states that it can be used in a particular zone or zones, on any route within such zone or zones; and
(b) to the extent that the ticket entitles you to travel otherwise than in a specified zone or zones, on:
(i) the route taking the shortest distance that can be travelled on regular scheduled passenger services between the stations stated on the ticket; and
(ii) any other route(s) that are permitted for your journey (details of which are available at staffed sales points).
Together, these are known as the "permitted routes" for the journey.
If you make your journey by any other route, you will be liable to pay the difference between the price of your ticket and the price of the cheapest ticket(s) available for which no pre-booking is required that would have entitled you to travel by that route on the service(s) you have used.
14. Photocards
Certain types of tickets are only valid if a photocard is held.
Details of the conditions that apply to photocards and the tickets that require them are available from the offices of the Train Companies which issue them.
C. USE OF TICKETS
15. Breaking or ending a journey at intermediate stations
You have the right to break and resume a journey covered by your ticket (in either direction in the case of a return ticket) at any intermediate station, provided that your ticket is valid for the trains you wish to use. You may also end your journey short of the destination shown on your ticket at any such intermediate station. However, these rights may not apply to certain tickets. If so, this will be stated in the notices and other publications of the relevant Train Companies.
If you break or resume your journey when you are not entitled to do so, you will be liable to pay the difference between the price of your ticket and the price of the cheapest ticket(s) available for which no pre-booking is required that would have entitled you to break or resume your journey on the service(s) you have used.
If you end your journey at an intermediate station when you are not entitled to do so, you will have to pay the difference between the price of your ticket and the price of the cheapest ticket(s) available for which no pre-booking is required that would have entitled you to end your journey at that station on the service(s) you have used.
Please note that a ticket which entitles you to travel on London Underground does not entitle you to break and resume your journey at any of its stations unless it is a season ticket or a Travelcard.
16. If you travel further than you are allowed to
If you travel to a station or zone beyond the one specified on your ticket, you will be treated as having joined the train without a valid ticket for that additional part of your journey and Condition 7 or 8 will apply to it as if it were a separate journey.
17. Combining two or more tickets
You may use two or more tickets to travel on one train journey provided that:-
(a) they cover the entire journey; and
(b) one of the following applies:
(i) they are both zonal tickets;
(ii) the train you are on calls at the station(s) where you change from one ticket to another; or
(iii)one of the tickets is a season ticket and one of them is not and any train operated by the same Train Company calls at the station(s) where you change from one ticket to another.
If you make a journey using two or more tickets when these conditions are not met you will be treated as having joined the train without a valid ticket for that part of the journey not covered by the tickets you hold and Condition 7 or 8 will apply to it as if it were a separate journey.
18. Withdrawal of tickets
If you fail in a material respect to comply with any condition that governs the use of a ticket, the staff or agents of any Train Company may withdraw the ticket. If they do so, they will confirm this to you in writing.
D. PASSENGERS' RESPONSIBILITIES
19. Please check tickets and change at the time of issue
At the time you purchase a ticket, you should ensure that it is for the journey you wanted and that you have received the correct change. If possible, you should draw any apparent errors to the attention of the staff at that time. If you do not, the Train Company or travel agent which sold you the ticket will only consider claims about such errors if you can show to its reasonable satisfaction that an error was made. No other Train Company, including those whose trains the ticket entitles you to use, will consider such a claim.
20. Make sure you are on the correct train and that you get off at the right station
You are responsible for making sure that you join the correct train (and the correct part of it) and that you get off at the right station. The Train Companies will only be responsible for any loss or delay that is caused if you do not do so if this is due to the negligence of one of the Train Companies or a Rail Service Company or any of their staff or agents.
21. Please keep your ticket ready to show or hand over
A ticket (and any accompanying photocard that is required) must be shown or handed over when required to the staff of any Train Company. If you fail to do so, you will be treated as having joined a train without a valid ticket and Condition 7 or 8 will apply.
22. If your ticket is defaced or damaged
If your ticket has become spoiled or has been tampered with or altered in any way, it is not valid for travel. However, if you return it to the Train Company or travel agent which sold it to you, that Train Company or travel agent will issue a replacement ticket unless it is reasonable for it to refuse to do so. A reasonable administrative charge may be made for this.
23. If you lose or mislay your ticket
The safekeeping of your ticket is your responsibility. Consequently, the Train Companies will not replace a lost or mislaid ticket (or a portion of a ticket) or make a refund in respect of it. They may, however, at their discretion, replace certain season tickets in the circumstances described in Condition 33.
24. When you have to change trains
If you have to change trains on a journey you are making, you will be responsible for transferring yourself and your luggage between the trains and, if necessary, between stations unless you have made other arrangements with one of the Train Companies in advance.
E. RIGHTS TO REFUNDS ON TICKETS
25. Refunds on tickets you decide not to use
Where for any reason you decide not to use a ticket or a portion of a ticket (other than a season ticket):-
(a) if a train you want to catch is delayed or cancelled, or a reservation you have requested has not been made available, and you return your ticket to the ticket office where you bought it as soon as you reasonably can (or, if you bought it from a self-service machine, to the ticket office indicated on the machine), the Train Company which operates that ticket office will give you an immediate and full refund for any unused portion;
(b) if paragraph (a) above does not apply and you return your ticket to the ticket office where you bought it (or, if you bought it from a self-service machine, to the ticket office indicated on the machine) not later than 28 days after the ticket's expiry date, the Train Company which operates that ticket office will refund your money but may make a reasonable administrative charge;
(c) if you return your ticket not later than 28 days after the ticket's expiry date to any other ticket office, the Train Company which operates it will forward your claim to the office where you bought the ticket (or, if you bought it from a self-service machine, to the office indicated on the machine), which will deal with the claim as described in paragraph (b) above; or
(d) if you purchased your ticket from a travel agent, you should return your ticket not later than 28 days after the ticket's expiry date and it will make a refund within a reasonable time, although it may make a reasonable administrative charge.
Please note that different conditions apply to certain tickets, for example, to those with advance purchase requirements. These may affect your right to receive a refund in respect of those tickets. They are set out in the notices and other publications of the relevant Train Companies.
26. Method of refund
If your ticket was paid for with a credit card or a charge card, any refund will be made by the issue of a credit voucher. If the ticket was paid for with a warrant, the relevant warrant account will be credited. If your ticket was paid for with cash and you have the right to an immediate refund under paragraph (a) of Condition 25, the refund will be made in cash. Otherwise, the refund will be made in cash or by cheque at the discretion of the Train Company or travel agent which makes it.
F. ADDITIONAL CONDITIONS APPLYING ONLY TO SEASON TICKETS
27. Application
Conditions 28 to 35 apply to season tickets. If there is any conflict or inconsistency between them and any other Conditions, Conditions 28 to 35 will apply.
28. Validity of season tickets
A season ticket gives you the right to travel between the stations or within the zones specified on it for the period shown on it up to and including the expiry date shown on it. This includes the right to break and resume your journey, as described in Condition 15. If you use the season ticket to travel to another station, or within another zone, you will be treated as having joined the train without a valid ticket for that additional part of your journey and Condition 7 or 8 will apply to it as if it were a separate journey.
The routes you are entitled to take with a season ticket are explained in Condition 13.
29. Surrender of season tickets
A season ticket does not become your property and, after it expires, must be handed in on demand to the Train Company which issued it.
30. Renewal of season tickets
A Train Company may, at its discretion, refuse to issue or renew a season ticket if it is reasonable for it to do so.
G. USE OF PHOTOCARDS WITH SEASON TICKETS
31. Presentation of photocards
Where a photocard is required to buy a season ticket, the season ticket is not valid unless it is produced, together with the photocard to which it relates (bearing a true likeness of the holder and a serial number corresponding with the one on the ticket), at the request of the staff or agents of a Train Company. If the season ticket and photocard are subsequently produced, the Train Company which sold you the season ticket may, at its discretion, refund any excess fare or penalty fare paid (less a reasonable administrative charge). However, it will not refund to you more than two claims in any twelve month period.
32. Loss or change of photocards
If a photocard is lost or the true likeness of the holder changes, a new photocard is required before it can be used with a season ticket. The Train Company which sold you the season ticket will issue a replacement season ticket bearing the new photocard serial number in these circumstances. It may make a reasonable administrative charge for doing this.
DUPLICATES AND REFUNDS FOR SEASON TICKETS
33. If you have lost your season ticket
If you lose your season ticket, the Train Company which sold it may, at its discretion, replace it provided that:-
(a) you inform the office from which it was bought as soon as you reasonably can and you give any explanation of the loss that is reasonably required;
(b) you agree to return the lost season ticket immediately, if you find it, to the office from which it was bought;
(c) the lost season ticket is of one month's duration or longer; and
(d) you pay a reasonable administrative charge for the issue of the replacement season ticket.
Only one replacement will normally be allowed in respect of any lost season ticket. However, a second replacement will usually be allowed if:
(i) the original season ticket is returned to the Train Company which sold it within one month of it having been notified of the loss; or
(ii) the first or second request for a duplicate arose as a result of theft, robbery, fire, or other exceptional circumstances the facts of which have been reported to the police, the fire service or another appropriate body.
No more than two duplicate season tickets will be issued in any twelve month period in any circumstances.
34. Getting a refund on a season ticket you are no longer using
If you decide not to use or to stop using a season ticket a refund will only be made if the season ticket is handed in to the ticket office from which it was bought with at least seven days' validity remaining (in the case of a season ticket which is valid for a month or more) or with at least three days' validity remaining (in the case of any other season ticket).
Refunds are calculated from the date the season ticket is handed in. If, however, it was not possible to hand the ticket in earlier because of illness, a refund will be calculated from the date the illness started, provided that a medical certificate or other evidence satisfactory to the Train Company is produced covering the period from the start of the illness until the ticket is handed in. For example, a letter from your employer on headed notepaper may be sufficient.
The basis of the refund is not pro rata but is the difference, if any, between:-
(a) the price paid for the season ticket; and
(b) the total cost of the appropriate combination of shorter season tickets (where available) and full return tickets that are necessary to cover one return journey per day up to the date the season ticket was handed in, less a reasonable administrative charge.
Refunds are not usually made on a duplicate ticket that has been issued to replace a lost season ticket. However applications for such refunds will be considered:
(i) where the original season ticket is returned to the Train Company which issued the duplicate ticket within one month of it being notified of the relevant loss; or
(ii) in circumstances such as the redundancy or prolonged illness of the holder provided supporting evidence satisfactory to the Train Company which is to make the refund is supplied.
35. Changing one season ticket for another
If you surrender a season ticket which, on issue, was valid for one month or more at the same time as buying another season ticket for a different type of journey, you will be entitled to a refund on the original ticket, calculated pro rata to the number of days of validity remaining on the date the ticket is handed in. The validity of the new ticket must, however, start on the day after the surrender of the old one and must be for a period that is at least as long as that of the old one when it was issued. No administrative charge will be payable.
Although refunds are not usually made on duplicate tickets that have been issued to replace lost season tickets, applications for refunds under this Condition in respect of duplicate tickets will be considered.
I. ACCOMMODATION ON TRAINS
36. Where there are not enough seats
Subject to any advertised restrictions you may join any train for which your ticket is valid, but unless you have a seat reservation the Train Companies are unable to guarantee to provide you with a seat. Nor do they guarantee that the accommodation appropriate to your ticket will always be available. However:-
(a) if you have a First Class ticket (or the equivalent) and no First Class accommodation (or the equivalent) is available, you may travel in Standard Class accommodation (where it is provided) and you may claim a refund of the difference in fare (in which case you should ask any ticket staff on that train to provide you with evidence to enable you to obtain the refund);
(b) if you have a Standard Class ticket (other than a season ticket) and no Standard Class accommodation is available, with the prior permission of the ticket staff on that train you may travel in First Class accommodation (or the equivalent) without extra charge.
The on train ticket staff may give you permission to use First Class accommodation (or the equivalent) if they are satisfied that it is not required by anyone with a First Class ticket and the Standard Class accommodation on the train is full. You may be required to return to Standard Class accommodation during the course of the journey if such accommodation becomes available or if a person holding a First Class ticket requires the accommodation.
If you have a Standard Class ticket and you travel without permission in First Class accommodation (which includes occupying seats or standing in any part of the carriages), you will have to pay the difference between the price of the ticket actually purchased and the price of the First Class ticket for the service you have used.
37. Travelling in First Class accommodation with a Standard Class season ticket
If you have a Standard Class season ticket, you only have the right to travel in First Class accommodation (which includes occupying seats or standing in any part of the carriages) if you have paid:-
(a) the difference between the full single fare for First Class accommodation and the full single fare for Standard Class accommodation before the journey starts; or
(b) any other applicable supplement specified in the notices and other publications of the Train Companies.
In all other cases, holders of Standard Class season tickets who travel in First Class accommodation (or the equivalent) will be treated as having joined the train without a valid ticket and Condition 7 or 8 will apply.
38 Refusal of access
Any person who a Train Company believes is likely to act in a riotous, disorderly or offensive manner may be refused access to, or may be required to leave, trains, platforms or stations.
J. RESERVATIONS
39. Ability to make reservations
You can reserve seats in advance on many trains. A fee may be charged for this.
40. Fee refund
If you have paid a fee for a seat reservation which is not honoured, but other seats are available, the Train Company on whose train you are travelling will refund the reservation fee. If you reserve a seat and have to stand for all or part of the journey that Train Company will, in addition, compensate you for your inconvenience. However, the compensation will not exceed the price of the full single fare for the journey you have made.
If you hold a sleeper reservation which is not honoured, the Train Company on whose train you are travelling will refund the reservation fee. If it is unable to provide alternative sleeper accommodation, it will, in addition, compensate you for your inconvenience.
However, the compensation will not exceed the price of the full single fare for the journey you have made.
TIMETABLES AND TRAIN SERVICES
41. The Passenger's Charter
Where delays, cancellations or poor service arise for reasons within a Train Company's control, you are entitled to compensation in accordance with the arrangements set out in the latest edition of that Train Company's "Passenger's Charter", which can be obtained from ticket offices.
42. Compensation for delays
If your journey is delayed by circumstances within the control of a Train Company or a Rail Service Company and as a result you arrive more than one hour late at your destination station, you will be entitled to compensation in the form of vouchers that entitle you to a discount off the price of your next rail journey. If your journey involves more than one train service, you must allow at least the connection time shown in the Great Britain Passenger Timetable for the "Principal Connections Stations" or five minutes at any other station.
The face value of the vouchers you will receive will be equal to 10 per cent of the amount you paid for your rail journey, unless you were using a season ticket, in which case it will be 10 per cent of the amount you paid for the ticket divided by the number of days for which your season ticket was valid when you bought it.
To be eligible to receive this compensation you must submit a claim to one of the Train Companies' ticket offices within two working days of completing the journey in question, stating the timetable departure time of the train or trains you intended to catch for the journey. You must, at the time you make your claim, present a ticket (or other authority to travel) which was valid for the journey.
This Condition does not apply to season tickets to which a discount regime in a Train Company's Passenger's Charter applies. Nor does it apply if you are entitled to a refund in respect of the ticket under Condition 25.
43. Help from other Train Companies if you are stranded
If disruption caused by circumstances within the control of a Train Company or a Rail Service Company leaves you stranded short of your destination and the Train Company whose trains you are entitled to use fails to get you to your destination by other means, any Train Company which is in a position to help will, if it reasonably can, either arrange to get you to your destination, or arrange overnight accommodation for you.
44. Circumstances that are within a Train Company's control
For the purposes of Conditions 41 to 43, circumstances that are within a Train Company's control include:-
(a) the acts or omissions of its staff or agents, but does not include any industrial action they take; and
(b) the acts or omissions of a Rail Service Company or its staff or agents, but does not include any industrial action they take.
Circumstances that are not within a Train Company's control include:-
(a) acts or threats of vandalism or terrorism;
(b) suicides or accidents to trespassers;
(c) motor vehicles striking bridges or level crossings;
(d) gas leaks or fires in lineside buildings not caused by a Train Company or a Rail Service Company or any of their employees or agents;
(e) line closures at the request of the police or emergency services;
(f) exceptionally severe weather conditions;
(g) industrial action, riots or civil commotion; and
(h) fire or mechanical failure due to electrical failure or a defect (except where this is caused by a Train Company or Rail Service Company or their employees or agents, or as a result of the condition of a Train Company's trains).
45. Exclusion of liability
Except as provided in Conditions 41 to 43, the Train Companies do not accept liability for any loss (including consequential loss) caused by the delay and/or cancellation of any train, by any missed connection or by the closure of the railway.
CONDITIONS OF CARRIAGE RELATING TO LUGGAGE AND
LOST PROPERTY
46. Acceptance of luggage
A Train Company will accept accompanied luggage (including animals) on its trains free of charge unless, in its opinion:-
(a) it might cause injury or inconvenience or damage to property;
(b) there is not enough room for it;
(c) the loading and unloading of the luggage may cause delay to trains; or
(d) the luggage is not carried or packaged in a suitable manner.
A Train Company may refuse to accept luggage in these circumstances even if the luggage has been accepted before or is normally accepted.
47. Larger items of luggage
Where accompanied luggage is not accepted under Condition 46 because there is not enough room for it a Train Company may agree to carry it in a luggage van. A charge may be made for this, although it will not exceed half the adult fare for the journey that is to be made. Unless you have made a reservation for the luggage, there is no guarantee that it can be carried on any particular train. However, if you are unable to take it with you on your journey any fee paid will be refunded. Luggage that is carried in a luggage van will not be released until proof of ownership has been established. Please note that certain items of luggage are not accepted on trains, even in a luggage van.
48. Labelling of 'luggage
All luggage given into a Train Company's custody must be clearly labelled with the passenger's name and destination station.
49. Train Company's liabilities for luggage
A Train Company will only be liable for any loss or damage to, or delay in the delivery of, luggage or its contents which have been brought on to its trains or premises if the loss damage or delay was caused by the neglect or default of a Train Company or a Rail Service Company or their staff or agents. A Train Company's liability in respect of any item of luggage, will not exceed the value of that item or £1,000, whichever is the lower.
50. Your responsibilities
If you bring any luggage onto a Train Company's trains or premises, you will be responsible for any injury, damage or loss caused by it as a result of your failing to take reasonable care of it.
51. Additional conditions applicable to certain items
Special conditions may apply to items which do not fit in the luggage space provided. Details can be obtained from the Train Companies' ticket offices.
52. Liability for losses of luggage
If you leave behind an item of luggage on a Train Company's premises or one of its trains, that Train Company will not be responsible for loss, damage or delay resulting from the loss of that article.
53. Retrieval of articles
A Train Company may restrict or refuse access to retrieve an article left on its premises or one of its trains if it is reasonable to do so.
54. Lost luggage
Items of luggage which are found on a Train Company's premises or trains may not be regarded as belonging to the finder and must be handed over immediately to a Train Company's staff (or, in the case of money, to the British Transport Police) for safekeeping.
55. Examination and destruction of luggage
If luggage is left on a Train Company's trains or premises, it has the right to open it and examine the contents before removing it to a secure place. The Train Company may, without being liable, remove or destroy any luggage, or its contents, and any other property, which might in its opinion cause injury or inconvenience to persons or damage to property.
56. Charges for lost property
A Train Company may make a reasonable charge for the return of lost or unclaimed luggage to the owner depending upon:-
(a) the type of article; and
(b) the period during which the Train Company has held it before it is claimed.
57. Disposal of unclaimed luggage
All items of luggage found which have not been claimed by the owner within one month of being found will be regarded as having been abandoned. They may then be sold or otherwise disposed of and the proceeds of the sale retained by the Train Company which has custody of them. Articles of a perishable nature may be disposed of earlier.
58. Additional conditions for left luggage
Left luggage conditions are exhibited at stations where this facility is offered.
MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
59. Authority of a Train Company's staff or agents
A Train Company's staff or agents have no authority to waive or change these Conditions, or to extend or vary the scope of any Train Company's liability under these Conditions.
60. Carriage by road vehicles
Where relevant, these Conditions apply to the carriage of passengers and their luggage in road vehicles which a Train Company owns or which are operated by any other party on its behalf except when notice is given that different conditions apply. For these purposes, the term "train" includes any road vehicle owned or operated by a Train Company or on its behalf.
61. Parking of motor vehicles and bicycles
Conditions for parking motor vehicles and bicycles are available at stations where this facility is offered.
62. Claims against a Train Company
If you have a claim against a Train Company for breach of these conditions or for any other loss or damage you have suffered, you may, instead of taking proceedings against that Train Company, use the Railway Claims Handling procedure. This is a procedure which is designed to help you make such claims and will avoid you having to show which Train Company (or other railway company) was at fault. The procedure does not, however, apply to claims for compensation under a Train Company's Passenger's Charter.
The address to write to is:-
Railway Claims Limited
Room E214
Macmillan House
Paddington
LONDON
W2 1FT
Further details of this procedure are also available from the offices of the Train Companies.
63. Governing law
These Conditions will be governed by English law except where a ticket is purchased in Scotland for travel wholly in Scotland, in which case these Conditions will be governed by Scots law. Any person bringing an action under these Conditions irrevocably submits to the jurisdiction of the English or Scottish Courts, as applicable.
DEFINITIONS
In these Conditions:-
(a) "London Underground" means London Regional Transport and its subsidiaries and Docklands Light Railway Limited;
(b) a Train Company's "Passenger's Charter" means the document of that name published from time to time by that Train Company or, if it has not published one, the document of that name published from time to time by the British Railways Board;
(c) "Rail Service Company means Railtrack PLC, any person (other than a Train Company) who operates a station and any person who hires rolling stock to a Train Company, but does not include London Underground;
(d) "season ticket" includes season tickets, Travelcards, and multi-journey tickets, having a validity of more than one day; and
(e) "Train Company" means a company which runs domestic scheduled passenger trains on the rail network in Great Britain and includes the British Railways Board, but not London Underground.