06 March 2026 •
From 1 April 2026, customers who purchase an Anytime, Off-Peak, Day Travelcard, Rover or Ranger ticket and decide not to use it will have until 23:59 the day before it becomes valid to request a refund (from the retailer who sold it). Only refund claims for services which have been delayed or cancelled will be considered on or after the day of travel.
Why the change?
Fare evasion costs Britain’s railway hundreds of millions of pounds every year, and ‘refund abuse’ – when a customer claims a refund for an unscanned or unendorsed ticket that they have used, falsely reporting that they have not travelled – is believed to account for around £40m each year in lost revenue.
To help combat this issue, the refund conditions in the National Rail Conditions of Travel (NRCoT) are changing from 1 April 2026. These updated conditions, which have been approved by Government, will help to prevent false refund claims for non-use of tickets moving forward.
What’s changing?
- From 1 April 2026, walk-up tickets (Anytime, Off-Peak, Day Travelcard, Rover or Ranger) will only be refundable up to 23:59 the day before they become valid for travel
- Should a customer no longer wish to travel on a pre-purchased ticket, then they must put in a refund claim (either online or in person) by no later than 23:59 the day before their planned journey
- From the date a ticket becomes valid for travel, customers will have no right to a refund if it is not used
- Refunds will no longer be available to customers who simply decide to change their plans on (or after) the day their ticket is valid for travel
- Refunds will only be given (on or after the date of travel shown on a ticket) if a customer has either not travelled, or has abandoned their journey and returned to their point of origin, due to disruption or cancellation
What’s not changing
- Existing refund arrangements for Season and Flexi-Season tickets remain in place
- Advance tickets remain non-refundable
Exceptional circumstances
Please tell the retailer who sold you it as soon as you realise your mistake, they might be able to resolve the problem then and there.
If you discover your mistake after you have started your journey, you may need to buy another ticket to be able to complete your journey. If you then contact the retailer’s customer services and provide evidence of your mistake they will consider issuing a refund.
Refund rules for tickets bought before the change on 1 April
- Customers who make refund requests for non-use of tickets bought up to and including the 31 March 2026, whether they are for travel before, on or after 1 April, will be treated under the current NRCoT v.6 refund rules. This means they have 28 days after the expiry of the ticket to make a claim.
- Customers who make refund requests for non-use of tickets bought on or after the 1st April will be treated under the new NRCoT v.7 refund rules.
Further information
For full ticket and refund conditions, check details on the National Rail website or see conditions 29 and 30 of the National Rail Conditions of Travel, valid from 1 April 2026