Our research and findings on the transparency of online rail ticket fees.
March 2025 update
In December 2023 we wrote to seven online rail ticket retailers to highlight concerns about the transparency of the fees they charge on their websites and apps during the ticket buying process. The seven retailers were MyTrainTicket, Omio, Raileasy, Rail Europe, Train Hugger, Trainline and Trainpal. In addition, in April 2024 we wrote to Seatfrog raising concerns about the transparency of fees charged for their auction service.
Throughout 2024, we had constructive and positive engagement with these retailers. We are pleased to confirm that all have all now made changes to improve the presentation of information about their fees that address our concerns. The changes made include incorporating fees into the total price at the earliest opportunity, making information about fees more transparent throughout the booking process, and providing improved FAQs on fees.
We have published our most recent correspondence with retailers.
The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 strengthens requirements for fees to be incorporated into the total price at the earliest opportunity. These changes are expected to take effect from April 2025. We recommend that all retailers familiarise themselves with the new requirements and satisfy themselves that they are and continue to be compliant as their systems and processes evolve over time.
| Retailer | Key changes implemented |
|---|---|
| MyTrainTicket | The booking fee is now included in the total price at the earliest opportunity with a clear price breakdown. |
| Omio | The help pages on the website provide new information about fees charged. The booking fee is now included in the total price at the earliest opportunity with a clear price breakdown. |
| Raileasy | The booking fee is now included in the total price at the earliest opportunity with a clear price breakdown. |
| Rail Europe | The booking fee is now included in the total price at the earliest opportunity with a clear price breakdown. |
| Seatfrog | The FAQs has improved information about the platform fee. The platform fee is now included in the total price at the earliest opportunity with a clear price breakdown. |
| Train Hugger | The booking fee is now included in the total price at the earliest opportunity, with a clear price breakdown. |
| Trainline | The help pages on the website provide updated information about fees charged. The booking fee is now included in the total price at the earliest opportunity with a clear price breakdown. |
| Trainpal | The help pages on the website provide updated information about fees charged. The booking fee is now included in the total price at the earliest opportunity with a clear price breakdown. |
March 2024 update
On 12 March we issued a press notice providing an update on our engagement with retailers in relation to the transparency of their fees.
We have had constructive and positive engagement from the seven retailers we wrote to with our concerns in December 2023. We have published our correspondence with them below. In their responses, some retailers said they have already made changes, while others have committed to do so later this year.
We will monitor progress with implementation of the changes and will hold the companies to account.
December 2023 review
On 11 December we carried out a review of 40 online rail ticket retailers’ websites and apps including train operators and third-party retailers (TPRs). The purpose of the review was to explore the transparency of fees charged by retailers to consumers who choose to buy their rail tickets via a digital platform.
We focussed on four main fee types:
- booking fees, charged by many but not all TPRs
- finder’s fees, charged by TPRs who offer a split ticketing service (split ticketing is where a journey is broken into sections, with a separate ticket for each part)
- fulfilment fees, charged by some retailers for some options for receiving tickets by post or by ticket vending machine
- refund fees, charged for cancelling or amending a ticket
We presented our findings in a report published in December 2023.
Next steps
We have written to seven retailers where we had the most concerns that their current practices could be harming consumers. We set out our concerns, asked the retailers to tell us more about the rationale for their current approach, and have asked them to make improvements. We have requested responses in January 2024. We plan to publish our letters, and the retailers’ responses, on this webpage.