Train Cancelled? Exactly What You Are Owed Under EU Law

A cancelled train is more disruptive than a delayed one, and your rights are correspondingly stronger. EU Regulation 2021/782 is explicit: you are not simply entitled to an apology and a rebooked ticket. You have a legal right to choose between a full refund and rerouting, and financial compensation if your arrival is significantly delayed.

The fundamental choice: refund or rerouting

The most important right under EU 2021/782 in the event of a cancellation is the right to choose. The operator cannot unilaterally decide what happens next. You decide.

Option 1: Full refund. You can cancel the journey entirely and receive a full refund of the ticket price, including any seat reservation fees. The refund covers the unused portion of your ticket, and if the cancellation has stranded you partway through the journey, you are also entitled to a return train to your point of origin.

Option 2: Rerouting. You can request to continue to your final destination on the earliest available service under comparable transport conditions. "Comparable" means a similar class of service. The operator cannot force you onto a bus replacement service if trains are available, though you may choose to accept one.

You must be given this choice at the point of cancellation. If station staff or automated systems direct you straight to rerouting without offering the refund option, ask explicitly. It is your right to decide.

"In the event of cancellation or delay in departure of more than 60 minutes, passengers shall immediately be offered the choice between: reimbursement of the full cost of the ticket; continuation or re-routing, as soon as possible, to the final destination." — EU Regulation 2021/782, Article 18(1)

Who decides the alternative route?

If you choose rerouting, the operator is responsible for finding the earliest available connection to your final destination. You do not have to accept the first option presented if it is significantly slower or involves a substantially lower quality of service.

The key word in the regulation is "comparable." If your original ticket was for a high-speed service and the operator offers a regional train that adds 3 hours to your journey, that is not comparable. You can ask for the next available high-speed alternative, even if it departs later.

In practice, operators sometimes reroute passengers onto competitor trains when their own network cannot serve the route quickly. This is allowed and common after major incidents — DB, for example, has agreements with other operators to accept each other's tickets during disruptions. Ask at the desk or check the operator's app for the latest rerouting options.

If the operator fails to reroute you within a reasonable time and you arrange your own alternative transport, keep all receipts. Under EU 2021/782, you can claim reimbursement for reasonable alternative transport costs if the operator failed to provide rerouting.

Meals and accommodation for overnight delays

If the cancellation forces an overnight stay, your rights extend to accommodation and meals. The regulation entitles you to:

• Meals and refreshments: proportional to your waiting time at the station. A wait of more than an hour should be met with at least a meal voucher or reimbursement for a reasonable purchase.
• Accommodation: for one night if the rerouted service requires an overnight stay that was not part of your original journey. The operator must arrange the hotel or reimburse reasonable hotel costs if they cannot arrange it directly.
• Transport between the station and the accommodation: if the hotel is not adjacent to the station.

Keep all receipts for meals, accommodation, and transport. The operator will require these when you submit your claim.

Financial compensation on top of rerouting

Choosing rerouting does not mean you give up the right to financial compensation. If your revised arrival at the final destination is at least 60 minutes later than your original scheduled arrival, you are entitled to:

• 25% of the ticket price: for a delay of 60-119 minutes
• 50% of the ticket price: for a delay of 120 minutes or more

This applies even if the cancellation was entirely outside the operator's control. The compensation is calculated on the price you paid, not a nominal face-value fare.

If you chose a full refund instead of rerouting, compensation is typically not applicable on top, since the refund already makes you whole on the ticket cost. The financial compensation for delay is specifically linked to the disruption experienced during the rerouted journey.

Do strikes count? Does weather?

Yes. A key feature of EU 2021/782 is that it does not treat strikes or extreme weather as grounds to deny passengers their rights. This is a deliberate departure from the rules governing flight compensation under EU 261/2004, where airlines can use "extraordinary circumstances" to avoid paying out.

For train cancellations, the refund and rerouting rights apply regardless of cause. Financial compensation has a slightly narrower exemption: operators can avoid paying financial compensation (the 25%/50% amounts) if they can prove the cancellation was caused by circumstances beyond their control that could not have been avoided, such as severe flooding of the entire rail network. In practice, this exemption is interpreted very narrowly by national regulators and courts.

Strikes by the operator's own employees are generally not accepted as extraordinary circumstances, because the operator has some degree of control over its own industrial relations. Third-party strikes, such as a national transport strike, occupy a grayer legal area, though passengers retain their refund and rerouting rights regardless.

How to claim after a cancellation

Cancellation claims involve two separate elements: the refund or rerouting (which should be arranged at the station or through the app at the time of travel) and any financial compensation for the delay to your final destination (which is claimed separately after the journey).

At the station:

• Speak to station staff or use the operator's app to select your preferred option: refund or rerouting.
• If rerouting, confirm the rebooked service in writing (email or app confirmation).
• Ask for a cancellation certificate if one is not automatically issued. This documents the original cancellation.
• Keep receipts for any meals, drinks, or accommodation you pay for.

After the journey:

• Gather your original ticket, cancellation certificate, rerouted ticket confirmation, and all receipts.
• Calculate your delay at the final destination against your original scheduled arrival.
• Submit your financial compensation claim through the operator's website, app, or via TrainOwed.

The one-month response deadline under Article 27 of EU 2021/782 applies to cancellation compensation claims in the same way as delay claims.

What operators commonly get wrong

Operators sometimes conflate the refund option with closure of all claims. Accepting a refund for a cancelled ticket does not waive your right to claim for expenses incurred (meals, alternative transport, accommodation) or for the disruption itself. These are separate entitlements under the regulation.

If the operator tells you that accepting a refund means you cannot claim anything else, this is incorrect. Request the relevant sections of EU 2021/782 in writing, or escalate to your national enforcement body.