Recently, 26 coaches of a freight train derailed in Uttar Pradesh's Mathura. Due to which more than 100 trains running on Delhi-Mumbai railway route were affected. 34 trains had to be cancelled. More than 60 train routes were diverted. This was a major reason why trains had to be canceled or diverted, but trains in India usually arrive late, causing many problems for passengers.
Did you know that you have certain duties and responsibilities while traveling in railways, such as not traveling without a ticket, not drinking alcohol on the train or damaging railway property. Likewise, you also have certain rights.
If a citizen is traveling on a valid ticket by purchasing a ticket, Indian Railways is bound to meet his rail travel requirements. In case of any obstruction or hindrance, passengers are also given some rights.
According to these rights, if your train is delayed by more than 3 hours than the scheduled time, you can recover the full ticket amount from the railway administration. Similarly, people traveling in flights have many such rights. If the flight is delayed or cancelled, passengers can claim a full refund from the airlines.
So today in work news we will talk about what are the rights of passengers when their flight or train is delayed? You will also learn that-
- If the train is late, how will the passengers get a refund of the ticket money?
- What are the basic amenities a passenger is entitled to in case of flight cancellation or delay?
Q- What are the rights of the passenger if the train is delayed or cancelled? Answer- According to Indian Railways rules, if the train is running late for any reason, the railways will notify you by sending a message to your mobile. In this message you will be informed about how many hours the train will be late and when it will reach your station. Apart from this, information about rescheduling or canceling the train will also be given to the passengers. However, this information is provided only to reserved seat passengers. If the train is delayed by more than 3 hours, the passenger can demand a refund. Understand this from the following graphic.
Q- How to get refund on ticket cancellation? Answer- If the passenger has purchased the ticket by paying cash from the ticket counter of the railway station, upon cancellation, the cash will be refunded immediately. If the ticket is booked online through the IRCTC website or app, a Ticket Deposit Receipt (TDR) has to be filed. After this the refund may take around 90 days. Apart from this, passengers automatically get a full refund if the train is canceled by Indian Railways. The e-ticket refund reaches your bank account within 3 to 7 days.
Q- Once the chart is prepared, can the ticket be canceled and refunded? Answer- You cannot cancel your confirmed ticket or get a refund once the chart is ready. But even in this situation you are given a facility. You can submit a Ticket Deposit Receipt (TDR) with a valid reason for canceling the ticket. It is entirely up to the zonal railway department official whether they will give you a refund or not.
Q- What are the rules for passengers in case of flight delay or cancellation? Answer: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has given several rights to passengers traveling on flights. Passengers can exercise these rights in case of flight delay or cancellation.
According to the DGCA, if a passenger reaches the airport and his flight is delayed by more than 4 hours, the airlines will provide refreshments to the passenger free of charge. If the flight is delayed by more than 6 hours, the airlines have to arrange another flight for the passenger or give a full refund of the ticket.
If the airline company cancels the flight, the same conditions will apply. Either another flight will have to be arranged or the full ticket amount will have to be refunded. If the airlines do not inform the passengers about the cancellation at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time, they will have to pay compensation along with a full refund. This compensation amount can be Rs 5000, Rs 7500 or Rs 10000. This is determined based on the duration of the flight.
Q- When can airlines refuse to pay compensation? Answer- When flights are delayed or canceled due to reasons beyond the control of airlines such as political disputes, natural disasters, civil wars, aircraft attacks. Further, the airlines are not liable to pay any compensation if the flight is canceled due to security risk or weather conditions.
Q- When are refunds available for canceled flight tickets? Answer- According to the DGCA, if the ticket payment is made in cash, the payment will be refunded by the airlines immediately. In case of card payment, the airline has to refund the payment within 7 days. Even if the ticket is purchased through a travel agent or any third party Website, the airline will be responsible for the refund. However, in this case you may have to wait up to 30 days for the refund.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
