Southeastern trains

You could be owed money if you travel to London on Southeastern train routes

Southeastern rail is being sued for £36m for overcharging 885,000 rail passengers.

The court has rejected a train overcharging claim. The Competition Appeal Tribunal has dismissed a claim that three major train companies overcharged passengers by failing to make cheaper “boundary fares” available to Transport for London (TfL) Travelcard holders.

Southeastern rail was sued for £36 million for overcharging around 885,000 million rail passengers.

Sign up to stay updated if you have a London Travelcard and travel on Southeastern lines.

Train passengers paying twice for fares in London

The lawsuit is about the lack of access for passengers to so-called ‘boundary fares’. This is where travellers holding a TfL Travelcard should be offered discounts on tickets to take them from the boundary of their travelcard to their final destination.

Southeastern rail is accused of not making boundary fares sufficiently available for Travelcard holders to buy. 

It’s claimed that millions of customers are paying a higher fare than is necessary because their Travelcard already covers them for part of their journey.

Are you one of thousands of rail passengers owed money?

You could be eligible for compensation if:

• You owned a TfL Travelcard at any time from October 2015, and 
• You bought a rail fare from a station within the zones of your Travelcard to a destination outside the zones. 

The claim against UK train companies

Justin Gutmann, a consumer rail campaigner, is representing all affected people who travel using Southeastern trains. He accuses Southeastern of breaching UK competition laws by charging Travelcard holders twice when travelling on certain routes.

Gutmann has instructed the law firms Charles Lyndon and Hausfeld & Co LLP to represent him in the consumer collective claim to seek compensation for the millions of affected customers. This claim is funded by Woodsford Group Limited.

How to claim compensation

The Competition Appeal Tribunal gave the green light in October 2021 for the claim to go to trial. Those people affected will not be charged legal fees if it goes to trial, and do not need to contact lawyers yet.

You are automatically eligible for compensation if you live in the UK, unless you opt-out. You can still claim if you live outside the UK but you must proactively opt-in to be eligible. Sign up to Consumer Voice to stay updated and to find out when you can claim.