Half of people don't claim compensation on their delayed train journey
Don’t let your delayed journey go to waste – read our guide to claiming your compensation and learn how to easily donate it to vulnerable children.
Author: Con Enzler | Date: 5th November 2025
Trains delays can be a real inconvenience. Yet, not many people know they can claim money back if their train is late. BBC Breakfast recently reported that only about 50% of people claim money back through Delay Repay, despite being eligible for it.
So here’s a handy guide explaining the scheme and how you can use to claim compensation after a delayed journey or, and if you choose, donate it to us!
Delay Repay is a national scheme that allows you to get money back when your train journey is delayed. You can usually receive compensation it if your journey has been delayed by 15-30 minutes or more. How much you’ll get depends on:
There are two ways to make a claim:
You’ll need to submit proof of your purchased ticket with your claim. This could be a receipt, a screenshot of your e-ticket, or a photo of your paper ticket.
If your claim is successful, there are several ways you can receive payment – by bank transfer, debit/credit card, or some companies let you donate your compensation to one of their chosen charity partners, one of which could be us!
If the train operator for your delayed train is one of the below, you can choose the option to donate the money to help vulnerable children on the railways, instead of getting a refund:
Simply select this option on the claim form and choose whether you want the money to go to us or another charity partner.
About 11,000 vulnerable children are reported to British Transport Police on the rail network every year.
Alone and vulnerable at stations and trains, they’re at risk of dangers like exploitation, abuse and self-harm, from the likes of County Lines Gangs.
We support children who have been found to be at risk on the rail network, helping them and their families tackle their issues and find a brighter path forward.
Railway Children will join partners from the Rooted Futures collaboration at the 2026 Skoll World Forum to lead an interactive session on family strengthening and child protection reform.
Over 200 supporters from the rail industry raised more than £60,000 at Railway Children’s Night At The Station event, spending a night in stations across the UK to protect vulnerable children at risk.
Through our flagship youth participation programme, Youth Platform, young people are shaping our training materials, influencing key decisions and ensuring the rail industry truly understand youth vulnerability.
Learn about safeguarding and how it relates to child protection on transport networks.
No child wants to survive on the streets. And, through understanding and empowerment, together, we can ensure no child has to.
Julia, 24, grew up as a boy but knew, early on, that the gender she’d been born into was not who she was. Here, she talks to Youth Platform about her journey, and what she wishes she’d know as a ten-year-old boy.
