Rail passengers will be able to challenge the amount of compensation they receive for delays and cancellations under strengthened rules to take effect next month.

Rail Minister Paul Maynard said passengers who are unhappy with their compensation - which currently varies between operators - will be able to pursue their claim through the courts if they fail to resolve the issue with the train company.

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He said the Consumer Rights Act (CRA) introduced on October 1 last year should apply to all transport services, including mainline passenger rail services, from the beginning of next month.

A 12-month exemption from one of the CRA's compensation provisions, which was originally proposed to allow train operators time to move to a consistent scheme, is to be scrapped.

In a letter to Transport Committee chairwoman Louise Ellman, Mr Maynard said the Government was "now of the view that rail customers should not be denied any consumer rights or protections even for a temporary period while the rail industry works to put in place more consistent compensation arrangements between train operators".

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Existing compensation schemes will remain in place after October 1 and will continue to offer the main redress to customers.

He wrote: "The Government is committed to strengthening the standard compensation schemes that operators offer, including completing the roll-out of Delay Repay with our industry partners."

As it stands, many train companies have different rules and schemes in place, meaning it can be difficult for customers to work out how much compensation they are entitled to if their train is delayed or cancelled.

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Mr Maynard said: "We want to strengthen the rights of rail passengers to get compensation for poor service. We have decided to bring forward a provision in the Consumer Rights Act that will now allow rail passengers to challenge compensation amounts awarded for delays and cancellations where the train operator is at fault, in the same way that other transport providers can be challenged.

"Passengers will rightly be able to hold train operators to account from this October, when the Act comes into force for all transport providers.

"We have wanted to introduce the Act as early as possible for rail as well as other transport modes and now is the appropriate time. We will continue to work with train operators to improve their compensation schemes."