Not Just a Ticket Refund: Rail Regulator Targets Disability Discrimination

A sweeping change to how Britain’s rail companies compensate disabled passengers is on the horizon, after the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) confirmed it will consult on stronger redress rules for assistance failures.

According to Disability News Service (DNS), the move follows a legal challenge by wheelchair user and activist Doug Paulley, who argued that payouts linked only to the ticket price "bear no relation to the distress caused by discrimination". The regulator’s letter to all train and station operators – published on its own news site – states that claims should be assessed "on the circumstances in each case" rather than capped at the fare paid. ORR Newsroom notes that the consultation, due later this month, was prompted by court and Rail Ombudsman decisions that have "awarded significant sums" far above standard offers. 

Stephanie Tobyn, ORR’s director of strategy, policy and reform, said: "We’ve listened to affected passengers and we believe it is right to review redress policies." She added that operators must learn from assistance failures and provide "fair redress" when they occur. 

The Catalyst: One Passenger’s Fight

Paulley’s experience on the Caledonian Sleeper in March 2023 became a test case for the system. Pre‑booked help to board never arrived; although staff eventually found a ramp, Paulley described the incident as "stressful and humiliating". When he took his case to the Rail Ombudsman, the award was £125. Paulley refused and pursued a county‑court claim, ultimately securing £1,325 – roughly ten times the ombudsman’s sum.

The Guardian reports that the court applied Equality Act "injury to feelings" damages, where the minimum band starts at £1,200. "I’m basically on a crusade to make the industry pay proper compensation," Paulley told DNS. "Assistance failures aren’t customer‑service blips – they’re illegal discrimination."

Data That Proves the Problem

ORR survey figures show that in 2023‑24, 5 % of passengers who booked the Passenger Assist service could not complete their journey because help failed to materialise, yet only 23 % sought any compensation.  Campaigners say low payouts discourage claims, masking the true scale of the issue.

Former Paralympic champion Tanni Grey‑Thompson’s widely shared account of dragging herself off a train at King’s Cross last year illustrates the ongoing risk. "It affects whether disabled people trust they can travel safely," solicitor Claire Hann of Leigh Day told The Guardian, after issuing a legal warning to ORR on Paulley’s behalf. 

Was just fully denied the right to travel today at Liverpool St Stn, on any train, because @networkrail staff collectively refused to deploy a ramp for me.

Why? One of them claimed I was “rude” for telling him I didn’t need the lecture he was giving me on why they’d failed to …

— Anna Landre ♿️ (@annalandre) May 18, 2025

What Will Actually Change?

Under current rules, every operator must publish an Accessible Travel Policy (ATP) approved by ORR. The regulator now proposes that ATPs state explicitly that financial redress is not automatically linked to the ticket cost; instead, staff must weigh the passenger’s personal impact, relevant equality law and precedents.  Operators have been asked to submit views before ORR finalises the guidance later this year.

Paulley welcomed the letter as "a big step forward" but warned that the draft wording covers only booked assistance. "Turn‑up‑and‑go passengers deserve equal consideration," he said. 

Industry Response

A spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group, representing train and station firms, told The Guardian: "We want every passenger to travel with confidence, and we acknowledge that challenges remain." The group said it was committed to "building a more accessible, inclusive railway" and would engage with the consultation. 

Behind the scenes, companies are studying the potential financial impact. Legal advisors note that if Vento‑band compensation – starting at £1,200 – becomes the norm, rail operators could face much higher liabilities for every confirmed failure.  Accessibility charities argue that meaningful payouts could drive systemic change. "Given the moral imperative hasn’t worked, the financial cost might," Paulley told DNS.  Hann agreed, saying fair damages would "concentrate minds and incentivise better staff training and investment in equipment".

Regulator proposes changes to redress policies for when disabled passenger assistance fails //t.co/KxinMtiyTo

— Rail Business UK (@RailBusinessUK) May 9, 2025

Next Steps

ORR’s consultation will run for several weeks, with revised guidance expected in the autumn. If adopted, the rules would force operators to review thousands of historic ATP cases and update internal compensation protocols.  Tobyn stressed that prevention remains the primary goal. "Our work is first and foremost to ensure assistance is delivered," she said, but stronger redress "helps focus attention on getting it right every time".

Sources: The Guardian; DNS; ORR