How can I apply for a refund or cancel my ticket?

During times of disruption, customers who decide not to travel are entitled to a full refund straightaway providing they can return the ticket at that time to any National Rail ticket office.

Even if the train service is running normally and you decide not to use a ticket for your own reasons, you can apply for a refund. Refunds are available on most tickets which have been purchased but not used, as well as unused validity on season tickets in most cases.

Tickets can be returned to any National Rail ticket office, except for season tickets, which must be returned to the office from which they were bought, and tickets purchased from a travel agent, which must be returned to that agent. An administration fee (£10 at the time of going to press) may be charged for refunds. You should note that certain discounted tickets are sold on the understanding that you are committed to travel and that refunds are not available.

For refunds on tickets other than season tickets, applications must be received no later than 28 days after the ticket's expiry date. The amount refunded will be based on the cost of the ticket when purchased, minus the cost of any travel that has been used.

For season tickets that are no longer required, the amount refunded is based on the difference between the cost of the season ticket originally purchased and the cost of a season ticket for the period of validity up to the date the ticket is surrendered to c2c.

Because season tickets offer significant savings for the daily traveller, you will find that if there is only a small proportion of the validity remaining, your refund will be little or nothing. Please note that an annual season ticket has no refund value after 40 weeks.

Season ticket holders who for reason of sickness are unable to travel may apply for a discretionary partial refund of the unused portion. We may ask for supporting documentation, such as a medical certificate.