Hull Trains - Daily train services between Hull and London

About Our Staff

Our staff are very friendly and passionate about Hull Trains. They enjoy regular briefing, training and have direct access to the management team.

Because of our relatively small size, we also hold regular forums where all issues affecting our services, customers and staff are discussed in an open environment.

They will treat you in accordance with the policies outlined in this document and in the National Rail Conditions of Carriage. They are also encouraged to use their discretion in dealing with individual issues as they arise.

We will not however tolerate, in any circumstance, abuse of any member of staff. If our product does not come up to your reasonable expectations, they will provide the best possible service for you in the specific circumstances. We ask for your understanding that sometimes they may be required to ensure yours or other customers' safety as a priority, and therefore may not be immediately available to attend to specific queries.

We believe our staff deserve every possible protection from abuse and we will pursue action (including court action) against offenders. Our trains are fitted with remotely monitored and recorded CCTV surveillance for everyone's safety and security. This information is stored for several days before being deleted and may be used as evidence in the event of any incidents.

Planning Your Journey

We publish our timetables on our website, at stations on our route and at some travel agencies. It is also available on the National Rail website (www.nationalrail.co.uk). Real-time train running information can also be obtained from the Live Station Departure Board facility on this website.

Engineering Work and Disruption

We will endeavour, where possible, to advise customers of any planned or unexpected changes to our services.

Railway infrastructure maintenance and renewal such as track, overhead line and signalling is undertaken by Network Rail. Wherever possible, this is undertaken without disruption to train services and we work closely with Network Rail to ensure this is possible. Larger tasks do, from time to time require the lines to be closed or route capacity reduced and therefore services can be altered, particularly at weekends and bank holidays. Where service disruption is unavoidable, we will always do our utmost to offer through train services, provide as much advance notice as possible and to agree with Network Rail that the work is undertaken on the least busy days.

Customers can find details of any changes by contacting any of the information outlets above, on our website, displayed on posters at stations we serve, and from our staff who will be happy to be of assistance. Information is also available on-board the trains.

In the event of serious unplanned disruption, information can also be obtained from other sources such as BBC Ceefax (p430) or if you have a digital television, via BBCi on Digital Text.

Buying Tickets

Ticket types which do not require advance purchase may be obtained on board any of our trains from the Train Manager. In this circumstance it is your responsibility to approach a member of staff to make the purchase as soon as possible after boarding.

Hull Trains has a range of great value exclusive tickets, valid specifically on our services only and offering a discount on the interavailable (any operator) standard (open) single and return fares. When buying tickets we promise to provide fair and impartial advice about the ticket types available and also to sell you the most appropriate ticket for your journey.

Pioneer Advance Purchase and Saver tickets are intended to encourage the use of quieter, more lightly loaded services and there are restrictions on when your journeys can be made. Most Pioneer Advance Purchase tickets include a seat reservation. You must sit in your allocated seats and ensure that you travel on only the specified trains/dates to ensure that your ticket is valid for travel.

Hull Trains tickets can also be purchased at station ticket offices, by telephone, on the Internet, at rail appointed travel agents or on board the train. Information about our various fares is published on our website at www.hulltrains.co.uk and in leaflets at the stations we serve. Our dedicated telesales team will be able to guide you to purchasing the best ticket for your journey:.

08450 710 222

Hull Trains accepts all national railcards for most advanced purchase tickets on our services.

Hull Trains does not manage any of the Ticket Offices at stations on our route. We work with other train operators to ensure that you receive the best possible service with minimal queuing time.

Why you must have a valid ticket for your journey

Hull Trains receives no financial support for the provision of its services and the quality of service we are able to offer relies upon the receipt of income from ticket sales. Travelling with intent to avoid payment is an offence similar to shoplifting or theft.

The National Rail Conditions of Carriage states that all passengers must buy and carry a ticket valid for the date, time and journey they are making.

What happens if you travel with the wrong ticket or on the wrong train?

If, due to no fault of Hull Trains, you travel on our trains with an invalid ticket, you will liable to pay an excess fare. Where a Saver ticket is held, this will be the difference between the Saver fare and the relevant Standard or First Class Open fare. In respect of Pioneer Advance Purchase tickets, or any out of date ticket the full fare for the journey being made will be payable as though no ticket were held.

Advance Purchase Tickets are advertised as having no refund or exchange possible. You will not be entitled to any allowance of money already paid towards the cost of a new ticket.

If you travel on the wrong train because you have missed a planned legitimate connection from another main line train, you will normally be allowed to travel on the next available service, where the missed connection was demonstrably the fault of the rail industry.

If you travel on a Hull Trains service without a valid ticket and refuse to pay the relevant fare, you will be required to give us your name and address, with proof of identity and address so that we can bill you later. If you refuse to do this, you will be asked to leave the train at the next available stop.

Hull Trains operates a revenue recovery scheme in such circumstances and you should be aware that costs of payment can be significantly higher than the original fare would have been. Prosecution may be pursued in respect of unpaid fares.

Seat Reservations

We aim to provide a ten-week booking horizon, subject to the provision of sufficient advance information about timetable changes by Network Rail. Most Hull Trains tickets include a complimentary seat reservation. If you pay for a seat reservation that is not honoured, and the train manager is unable to find alternative seats elsewhere on the service, we will provide you with either a complimentary journey with Hull Trains or rail vouchers towards a future journey.

In most cases you may board Hull Trains services without a reservation, though at busy periods (including weekends and during engineering works), reservation is strongly recommended and may be compulsory. If you do not have a reservation, we may not always be able to provide you with a seat. At particularly at busy periods you may not be able to travel on the service of your choice if you do not have a reservation.

Smoking

Smoking is not permitted in any area of our trains at any time.This includes toilets and vestibule areas.

Luggage

We will try and accommodate passengers reasonable requirements for the carriage of luggage. For your safety, comfort and convenience, we strongly recommend that in addition to normal hand-luggage, passengers do not exceed one large suitcase per adult. Weight should not exceed 36kg per item and luggage storage space is limited.

For security purposes, all luggage must be labelled showing your name, destination station, coach/seat numbers and an emergency contact telephone number. Staff reserve the right to decline access to any unlabelled items of luggage. We hope passengers understand and support the importance of this security measure.

We reserve the right to enforce UK rail industry limitations for the carriage of excessively large or heavy items, as set out in the Conditions of Carriage, published by the Association of Train Operating Companies.

Passengers bringing excessively heavy (more than can be lifted comfortably by the passenger) or outsize objects may incur an additional charge or be unable to join the train of their choice.

For passengers boarding and alighting at Hull and London King's Cross stations, large items may be stowed in a secure area of the train. Passengers should approach a member of the train crew before boarding to take advantage of this facility.

Bicycles

Our trains include a cycle carriage area. However, as there are a limited number of spaces, passengers wishing to carry a bicycle or tandem are requested to reserve in advance..

Train Cleaning

Our Trains are cleaned continuously over the day, between services and overnight at our depots whilst under maintenance. We take the cleanliness of our trains very seriously, and welcome customer feedback on the state of our trains.

Lost Property

If you lose something on one of our services and it is found by one of our staff, it will be returned to the Hull Trains offices or the lost property office at London King's Cross station. Please contact Hull Trains customer relations if this is the case.

If you lose something in one of the stations we serve, you will need to contact the company that manages that station, and their staff will do their best to help you.

Please note that we are unable to forward any items of lost property by train due to liability reasons, and may charge you for storage and the cost of returning your property.

Assisted Travel, Special Needs and help for the Disabled Passenger?

Hull Trains welcomes all travellers, including those with special needs and disabilities. Whether you need help boarding or alighting trains, assistance with children or heavy luggage, or someone to meet you at a major station and guide you to a connecting service, we will be delighted to do all we can to make your journey as easy as possible.

Our Disabled Persons Protection Policy is available from our website, or alternatively copy can be procured from customer services. This documentation gives all contacts and details our commitment to promoting disabled persons' travel.

During your journey - what to expect

Our aim is to make your journey as enjoyable and as straightforward as possible. Our employees are easy to recognise by their distinctive uniforms and name badges. They are committed to the highest standards of service and are professional, helpful, courteous and friendly.

All trains have a Train Manager on board who will be available during the journey to answer any questions or advise you of any service alterations.

All Hull Trains services offer a buffet and an at-seat service in First Class. We will try to advise you before you board the train if there is any reason why we cannot provide you with our advertised catering service. Occasionally and particularly during or following any disruption, only limited provision may be available due to the perishable nature of many of the products.

Train Performance Standards

Hull Trains is proud to be one of the most reliable and punctual rail service operators in the industry.

We aim for:

Over 90% of our trains to arrive within 10 minutes of their published arrival times and 99% of all trains in the published timetable to run.

Both targets were achieved for the period April 2005 - March 2006.

91.22% of trains arrived within 10 minutes of their published arrival times.

99.24% of all trains in the published timetable ran.

What we will do when things go wrong

When our train services are delayed or disrupted, we will try wherever possible to keep you informed and get you to your destination as quickly as possible. Our control centre provides information to staff across our route, on trains and at stations, to enable them to keep you informed.

Before you travel, information on our service running can be found on the National Rail website (Live Departure Boards), through our telesales team, and through the National Rail Enquiry Service (see Useful Contacts.) For more serious delays, details will often be broadcast on local and national radio and television.

If you are waiting at a station you can check how your train is running using the National Rail Train Tracker service using your mobile phone SMS text service.

Text "dep howden to london kx" for example, to 484950, will return you a list of the next services from Howden station to London showing whether they are on-time (ok) or delayed e.g. (+15m). It is important to do this before your train is due to leave the station however as the information is not available after the scheduled departure time currently.

Text "dep Howden" to 484950 will return a list of departures from Howden station.

Text "arr Brough" to 484950 will return a list of arrivals at Brough station.

In severe weather, railways often continue to operate when roads and airports have closed. However, speeds may be reduced, delays can build up and schedules can be disrupted. To minimise disruption to your journey, you can ask at manned stations, visit our website, or ring our telesales team, all of whom will try their best to provide you with the most up-to-date information on the running times of our services.

We aim to provide all of our passengers delayed over an hour or more from published timetables at least one free non-alcoholic drink, stocks permitting.

If delays occur during your journey, we will do our best:

To get you to your destination as quickly as possibleest

To arrange alternative transport in some circumstancesst

Or if your journey has become impossible, return you to an appropriate station.

If you are travelling on a Hull Trains service which is cancelled or terminated en-route, we will do our best to get you to your destination station by other means, including other train services or by alternative mode of transport. If we are still unable to get you as close as reasonably possible to your destination, we will arrange overnight hotel accommodation until we are able to get you to your final destination station on the following day.

What we will do to make it up to you

You may apply for a refund on an unused ticket as long as certain conditions have been met:

If you choose not to travel because you have been informed that your arrival at destination is likely to be more than 60 minutes late or your train has been cancelled you will be entitled to a refund in respect of the affected leg of your journey. In this circumstance, you can return your unused ticket to any Ticket Office.

If you decide not to make all or part of your journey for any other reason, and you return your ticket within 28 days of the ticket’s expiry date to a travel office, depending on the type of ticket you have, you will receive a refund less our administrative fee. The amount of the refund will reflect any use you have already made of the ticket, and in some circumstances, no refund will be paid out. Some of our tickets are not valid for refunds and are advertised as such.

We will not accept claims for a refund if we have previously published an amended timetable or given details of an alternative route due to engineering work.

We do not accept liability for any loss (including consequential loss) caused by delay to and/or cancellation of any train, missed connection, or closure of the railway. This is in accord with paragraph 46 of the National Rail Conditions of Carriage in the Great Britain mainland.

The fastest way to apply for a refund is to return the ticket to the place where it was sold to you.

If you bought your Hull Trains ticket from Hull Trains Telesales, you should post your ticket, along with a covering letter, to:

Hull Trains Ticket Refunds, PO BOX 131, Plymouth, PL4 6XTD

If you bought your ticket online, in a travel agent or at a station booking office, you will need to return the ticket to the place of sale.

If you bought your ticket from a travel agent, you can also apply for a refund from them.

Exceptions

We do not normally accept claims for refunds if we have published a revised timetable or offered alternative routes owing to engineering work. We will not accept liability for any loss caused by delay to your journey, cancellation of any train, missed connection or closure of the railway.

Where incidents beyond the control of train companies cause disruption, we do not offer compensation or refunds. Such incidents include:

Industrial Action

Rioting

Acts or threats of vandalism or terrorism

Suicides or accidents involving trespassers

Fires or gas leaks in property adjacent to the railway

Severe weather conditions affecting other forms of transport

Line closures arising from Police or emergency service request

Season Ticket Compensation up to you

Hull Trains does not currently sell season tickets exclusively for use on its services. As a consequence, we do not offer any compensation to season ticket holders. Season tickets are, however, valid for use on Hull Trains services, offering you, as a season ticket holder, more opportunities to travel.

Useful Contact

Hull Trains Customer Relations
Room 302
Premier House,
Ferensway
Kingston upon Hull, HU1 3UF

Telephone 01904 525220

Network Rail

If you would like to make a complaint related to the condition or maintenance of the railway network, you will need to contact the UK rail network infrastructure operator: Network Rail.

For urgent or safety critical matters, call Network Rail's national helpline on 08457 11 41 41. This line is open 24 hours a day.

Alternatively, Network Rail can be contacted via the following means:

Network Rail,
40 Melton Street,
London,
NW1 2EE

Telephone 020 7557 8000

Fax 020 7557 90007 8000

Using the train to reach the Airport or Eurostar terminal?

We would always recommend when planning your journey that you schedule your arrival for no later than two hours before your check in period closes. We are not liable for any costs incurred should you miss your flight. We also recommend that you allow at least one hour to transfer between King's Cross station and any other main line terminus in London, including Victoria (for Gatwick), Paddington (for Heathrow), Liverpool St. (for Stansted) or Waterloo (for Eurostar).

St. Pancras Station is adjacent to King's Cross and Euston is approximately a 15 minute walk westwards along Euston Road from King's Cross.

If your train is cancelled or delayed ask a member of our train crew or station staff for help; or call our telesales office if you are unable to speak to a member of staff. They may be able to arrange alternative transport provided you have left a reasonable amount of time for this. If you choose to arrange your own transport you will not normally be able to claim these costs back at a later date.

If you are travelling abroad, we recommend that you hold appropriate travel insurance and check that it provides adequate cover to meet your personal needs and requirements of your journeys.

Am I entitled to a seat. What if I have to stand or am otherwise unable to board if the train is too full?

As a long-distance operator, we aim to provide a seat to all passengers. During occasional times of disruption however services may become very busy as other passengers make use of any available services.

You will only be entitled to a seat on your train if you have made a reservation in advance. Reservations can be made at the point of purchase or later if you produce your ticket. There may be a charge for this service. Many tickets purchased in advance include reserved seats.

If you have not made a reservation we are unable to guarantee that there will be a seat available on your journey, or during exceptionally busy periods, that you will be able to travel on the train of your choice. You are not entitled to receive compensation if you have to stand or are unable to join the train in these circumstances.

Can I travel on the train with my wheelchair?

You can take a standard sized reference* wheelchair on our trains. This is a requirement of the Disability Discrimination Act (1995) and all our trains have special spaces to accommodate wheelchairs in both First and Standard Classes. Disabled toilets are also provided close to the wheelchair spaces. To ensure you receive the assistance you need we always recommend contacting us before you travel. This helps the train crew to be prepared for you, ready with the ramp when you join, particularly at intermediate stations. We can provide information on station and train facilities and arrange additional assistance for your journey if required.

We ask for at least 24 hours notice if you need assistance. If the dedicated spaces for wheelchairs are full or already reserved, you may have to travel by another train if you have not reserved one of them.

*The dimensions of a reference wheelchair are total length 1200mm, total width 700mm, sitting height (from ground to top of head) 1350mm and height of footrest above floor 150mm.

Do I have to pay for my children to travel on the train?

Up to two children under the age of five can accompany each fare paying passenger free of charge. However, children under the age of five who are travelling free can only occupy a seat if it is not required by a passenger who has paid for their fare.

Do I have to pay for my children to travel on the train?

Children between the ages of five and sixteen are entitled to a discount of at least 50% on most tickets.

Can I travel with my pets on the train?

Each passenger may travel with up to two small domestic animals free of charge on most train services. A charge of half the adult fare will be charged up to a maximum of £5.00 single and £10.00 return for each further animal transported.

Animals should be on a lead, muzzled or in a container. You may be asked to move to a different part of the train if other passengers object to travelling with animals.

How far in advance of departure do I need to arrive at the station?

It is your responsibility to ensure you arrive in adequate time to catch your intended train. Please remember to allow time for car parking/payment, and enough contingency time to allow for any problems which may arise if you are arriving by bus, tube, taxi or connecting train service. Minimum train-to-train connection times are published for relevant stations.

At certain stations, including London King's Cross and Hull, platform barriers may be closed to access up to one minute prior to scheduled departure to ensure punctual and safe departure of the train. We therefore recommend that you plan to arrive on the platform at King's Cross or Hull stations not less than five minutes prior to the advertised departure of our services.