On 31st January their first reply which in synthesis says they cannot refund "For safety reasons, Network Rail advised that we could not run services because of the risk of falling trees and other debris, therefore Southern and Gatwick Express services were suspended, until Network Rail could inspect the line, clear the debris and declare the route safe for passenger traffic."
So why trains were en-route??? For safety reason?
"Dear Andrea
Thank you for contacting us on 16 January 2014. Please accept my apologies for the delay in our response.
I would like to begin by sincerely apologising for the experience you had with us on Christmas Eve. I can certainly appreciate your frustration with the matter and how we had handled the disruptions. On Christmas Eve, we had experienced a lot of disruptions which included flooding, trees on the line, landslips and two fires at different locations. All of these factors added together, made it extremely difficult for us to run the services in which we had planned, bearing in mind that our services was reduced due to planned engineering works. The landslips had caused major disruptions and some were so severe, and have continued to fall, and some are still affecting our line today. I am sorry that there was no bus replacement service for your journey, we had already arranged some bus replacement services for the reduced services which we had due to engineering works but unfortunately, we were unable to accommodate for every service which had been affected by weather.
Southern operate around 2,300 services each week day and because all services were suspended until Network Rail declared it safe to run, that is a significant portion of our train service. In addition most other train operators in the Southern half of the country were similarly affected and as such we would not have been able so source sufficient replacement buses to provide an alternative for customers. For safety reasons, Network Rail advised that we could not run services because of the risk of falling trees and other debris, therefore Southern and Gatwick Express services were suspended, until Network Rail could inspect the line, clear the debris and declare the route safe for passenger traffic. I am very sorry for the delay and inconvenience caused, however this event was outside our control and we worked with Network Rail to ensure services were restored in the quickest yet safest way possible.
In addition many roads were adversely affected which would have prevented buses from running on certain routes. We did advise customers only to travel if absolutely necessary and ticket acceptance was arranged with London Buses and London Underground.
In order to apply for a refund, you will need to send your request into our Refunds Team within Customer Services.
You can print a refund application form via our website, by following the link below:
Please include all printed tickets & any booking references along with this form, to ensure our Refunds Team can adequately process your refund request.
You can post this form, or alternatively send a covering letter along with your tickets, to the address below:
Gatwick Express Refunds
PO Box 10240
Coalfield Way
Ashby-De-La-Zouch
LE65 9EB
Once received, our Refunds Team aim to process your refund within 20 days. You will then be contacted by this team once your request has been processed, in order to obtain your payment card details if a refund is due.
If you wish to contact us further regarding your query, please contact our Customer Service team directly at comments@southernrailway.com, by phone on 08451 27 29 20 or in writing to:
Southern Customer Services
PO Box 3021
Bristol
BS2 2BS
quoting ticket number [159473-1389887291] on all communication.
For the latest travel information, why not follow us on Twitter @southernrailUK and @GatwickExpress
Kind regards
Southern Customer Services"
