AS MILLIONS are forced to cancel trips to see friends and family this Christmas, Martin Lewis has given his tips on how to get a refund.
With a series of tighter restrictions in place, many have had to cancel or curtail family visits, axe holidays, or rethink last-minute shopping.
But earlier this week, first minister Mark Drakeford confirmed that Transport for Wales would honour an agreement to ensure people were provided with refunds for travel.
The Money Saving Expert Mr Lewis said: "For journeys which begin or end in England or Wales, the Department for Transport and Transport for Wales told us you're entitled to a cash refund for tickets which are valid for travel on any date between December 23 and December 27 providing you bought the ticket on or after November 24 (when the Christmas travel window was announced) and no later than December 19, when the new coronavirus rules were announced.
"The refund applies to all ticket types – Advance which normally isn't refundable, Anytime, Off-Peak or Super Off-Peak – and you won't be charged an admin fee (usually £10).
"We've checked with SouthEastern, GWR, Avanti West Coast, LNER, Transpennine Express, and CrossCountry and they've all said this is how it works."
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Explaining how to get a refund, Mr Lewis said that refunds can be issue immediately, and you can apply for your money back on unused tickets up to four weeks from when you were due to complete your journey.
He added: "If you bought your ticket directly from the train company, the Department for Transport says to check your train operator's website for how to claim (you should be able to apply for the refund online).
"If you didn't buy your ticket directly from the train company, you'll need to apply for your refund from the retailer you bought it from, eg, Trainline – it's confirmed it's giving full refunds via an online form."
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