THE number of ScotRail passengers applying for compensation has increased by 206 per cent in the past three years.

The new information was uncovered via a Freedom of Information (FOI) request by Fife MSP Murdo Fraser. 

ScotRail offers compensation to passengers delayed by 30 minutes or more and to those who miss a connection as a result of a delay.

Claims must be filed within 28 days and compensation is awarded on a sliding scale. 

Half of passengers’ ticket value and a quarter of their return trip will be refunded if the delay is between 30 and 59 minutes. 

Delays of more than an hour will see a full refund for single tickets and delays longer than two hours will see return tickets refunded.

In recent weeks, Press readers have been complaining about the amount of compensation paid out by ScotRail, with many saying the refund is not enough for the inconvenience passengers have to endure. 

According to the FOI request, there were 23,816 claims in 2015-16, 43,354 in 2016-17 and a whopping 72,984 in 2017-18.

As the Press has been highlighting in our Crush Hour campaign, ScotRail bosses have come under fire following delayed and cancelled trains as a result of the implementation of a new timetable.

Murdo Fraser MSP said: “These statistics show a huge increase in compensation claims being filed which underlines how bad things have got on our railways.

“Delayed or cancelled trains cause huge disruption for travellers and it is only right that they are fully compensated for a service that does not get to the destination on time.

“A significant number of these claims will have been filed by commuters travelling in Perth and Kinross, Fife, Stirling and Clackmannanshire and these customers deserve far better than what’s currently being offered up.

“People need to get to work and Scotland’s economy needs a transport system that’s fit for purpose.

“The SNP has failed to keep ScotRail on track and provide an efficient service for the travelling public.

“The ScotRail franchise is up for renewal in 2020 and Abellio must improve the situation before then and Scottish Government ministers must do more to hold them to account.”