Service Quality Report

Last updated: 27 May 2022

Introduction

Welcome to CrossCountry’s Service Quality Report for 2021/22, covering the period 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022. This provides an overview of our customer experience processes and our performance against key indicators.

This has been developed in accordance with Article 28 of the PRO Regulation requirements.

More information about our work can be found in our latest Customer Report, available here.

CrossCountry are proud to have been named one of the top 20 improved organisations in customer satisfaction by the Institute of Customer Service.

Information and Tickets

Provision of travel information during the journey

Information about the train journey is provided by our on-board colleagues before and after each station stop, when there is key information to share such as a change to the journey time and when walking through the train speaking to customers one to one.

Live travel information is also available through our WiFi landing page, website and Train Tickets app.

Confirmation of the train service is provided on the train exterior screens and on the passenger information screens in the carriage.

How requests for information are handled at the station

Information about the facilities available at each station we call at are available on our website or by contacting our Social Media or Customer Relations teams.

We provide each company that manages the stations with information about our services, customer charter and other useful information such as accessibility to ensure station staff have all the information they need to be able to advise our customers.

We meet with the Station Management teams regularly to understand what types of enquiries our customers make, what further information would be useful and to make sure station leaflet and poster space is kept up to date.

How information about our train schedules, tariffs and platforms is provided

It’s easy to create your own timetable using the pocket timetable feature or to view our timetables as a PDF. Using the live journey planner on our website and Train Ticket app makes it simple to see what options are available. This information is also available from station staff, our Social Media team and Customer Relations team.

Fares information is provided when you search for train tickets or by talking to a member of station staff, our Social Media team or Customer Relations team.
Platform information is provided in our live train information on the Train Tickets app and via the station information screens.

Ticket buying facilities

Tickets can be bought via our Train Tickets app, our website, by calling telesales (03447369123), at the station ticket office or ticket vending machines and through our Passenger Assistance team when making an assistance booking (see our Accessible Travel Policy for more information). Information about station facilities can be found here.

Availability of staff at the station for information provision and ticket sales

Information about station facilities is available on our stations page or by contacting our Social Media team or Customer Relations.

How information to disabled people and persons with reduced mobility is provided

Our Accessible Travel Policy [PDF] and Making Rail Accessible [PDF] guide details available information for disabled customers and those who require assistance.

Our Social Media team ensure changes to accessible facilities on the train and at the station are highlighted on our JourneyCheck page and through Twitter and Facebook.

As well as our Passenger Assistance team, who help customers book the right assistance for them, our on-board colleagues are trained to identify customers needing additional support.

Punctuality of services 

Delay of Services 2021/22

*CrossCountry do not capture this information in any reporting systems.

Contingency plans

Passenger Information During Disruption (PIDD) is a coordinated approach by the rail industry to enable the timely and reassuring provision of correct and consistent information to passengers during major disruption/delays so that they can make well-informed travel decisions. The industry has agreed a Code of Practice that sets out high-level guidance about generic good practice for the provision of information to passengers during disruption; a framework that individual train operators can tailor according to local circumstances. This Code of Practice can be found below, together with our 'PIDD Local Plan' which is our approach to ensuring the PIDD Code of Practice is delivered for our customers. 

• ATOC Approved Code of Practice [PDF]
• CrossCountry PIDD Local Plan [PDF]

In addition, we are working with other industry partners to deliver against a set of customer pledges regarding customer information. These can be viewed here.

Cleanliness of rolling stock and station facilities 

Cleaning intervals

All trains go through a deep clean process at the end of each day, with regular cleaning throughout our fleet's service. We have increased staffing levels to help keep our trains clean during the day and our on-board cleaners clean the equivalent of 264 football pitches every day. We have introduced more frequent walk-throughs to clean surfaces on a more regular basis and have ensured our team are fully aware of the importance of maintaining good hygiene themselves.

Availability of toilets

Our toilets are cleaned and maintained when at the depot overnight and any toilets not available when the train starts its journey or during the journey are locked and marked 'out of use', this is communicated to our Control Centre. This ensures we can report the issue to the train maintainers, cleaners and to our customers via the JourneyCheck web pages. We aim to fix any issues as soon as possible.

Customer satisfaction survey

While key industry research programmes have been paused and fewer customers have been travelling, we have worked hard to continue to measure key aspects of our service. This insight allows us to better focus on the issues that matter to customers most and forms the basis of our period business planning.

Complaint handling refunds and compensation for non-compliance with service quality standards

Our complaints handling policy which forms our commitment to customers when they need redress, can be viewed here. 

The latest ORR Complaints Handling Survey where CrossCountry ranked top for customer satisfaction with the way the complaint was handled and customer satisfaction with the outcome of the complaint, can be viewed here.

Received complaints 

The number of complaints received between 1 April 2021 and 31 March 2022 was 5,960. Complaints form a very small percentage of our customer contacts with approximately 90% of the contacts received being Delay Repay claims. 

The main categories are below with some commentary. 

Train Performance (delayed or cancelled) – This complaint type was largely driven by timetable changes throughout the year and the reduced frequency of serves and/or removal of stops brought on by our Covid service plan.  

First Class & Catering – Reduced staffing as a result of Covid resulted in some services not having the advertised catering provision and/or the full range of products.  

Tickets and Refunds – Customer contacts increased and we experienced staff shortages in the customer call centre, resulting in delays to refunds being processed

Processed complaints 

The percentage of complaints processed between 1 April 2021 and 31 March 2022: 

• 75% within 20 working days. 
• 24% within 10 working days. 

 Average Response Resolution Times 

The average response time between 1 April 2021 and 31 March 2022 was 15.1 days for complaints and 19.6 days for delay repay.

Assistance provided to disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility

We provide a booking facility for customers who need assistance on their journey using the industry Passenger Assistance platform. Although we do not directly provide assistance at most stations, we do support customers at unmanned stations or when something has gone wrong. We work closely with stations teams to improve our assistance provision.

For more information about any aspect of our performance please view our Key Performance Indicators.