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How much Northern pays
Northern uses Delay Repay 15: from 15 minutes late at your destination, it pays back 25% to 100% of the fare for the journey.
| Late by | Single | Return |
|---|---|---|
| 15 to 29 min | 25% | 12.5% |
| 30 to 59 min | 50% | 25% |
| 60 to 119 min | 100% | 50% |
| 2 hours or more | 100% | 100% |
More in Delay Repay with a Season Ticket. On a Railcard or Advance ticket, the bands apply to the price you paid: see Delay Repay with a Railcard and Delay Repay on an Advance ticket.
Railhop works this out for you: check your train and it shows how late it was, which band that is and what you're owed.
How to claim Northern Delay Repay
- Check your train on Railhop. Tell Railhop where you travelled and roughly when. It finds your Northern train, how late it really was from National Rail's data, and what you're owed: Northern pays from 15 minutes late.
- Railhop fills in Northern's claim form. In the Railhop iPhone app, or with Railhop's browser extension on a computer, Railhop opens Northern's own claim form and fills it in for you, with your journey, your ticket and your details. Northern's form needs an account: you sign in yourself, and Railhop never keeps your login.
- Check it and press submit. You check the claim and press submit on Northern's own form, within 28 days of travelling. You choose how to be paid: bank transfer, a credit or debit card refund, a NatWest PayIt payment, National Rail vouchers, a cashable voucher for Northern tickets (up to £50), or free Northern tickets for delays of 30 minutes or more. Northern pays you directly. Railhop never submits a claim for you.
Northern has automatic Delay Repay for some tickets: see below. For everything else, Railhop fills in the form.
Used Delay Repay Sniper? Railhop is the modern way to claim: it finds your delays and fills in the form, and you stay in control of the claim. Read what happened to Delay Repay Sniper.
Cancelled Northern trains
If a Northern train is cancelled on the day and you take the next train you can, the delay is measured at your destination against when the cancelled train was due.
If you decide not to travel, ask whoever sold you the ticket for a full refund, with no admin fee. You can have a refund or Delay Repay, not both. More in Delay Repay for a cancelled train.
Strike days and replacement buses have their own rules: see Delay Repay on strike days and Delay Repay on a rail replacement bus.
Check the cancelled train on Railhop: it shows the cancellation, works out what you can claim and fills in Northern's form for you.
Northern Delay Repay form and login
You claim on Northern's own Delay Repay form, which runs on the SmartRepay claim system. Railhop opens it and fills it in for you in the Railhop iPhone app, or with Railhop's browser extension on a computer: your details, the journey, the delay and your ticket. Northern's form needs an account: you sign in yourself, and Railhop never keeps your login. You need a Delay Repay account to claim online. It is separate from your Northern booking account, so use the same email address for both. You check the claim and press submit yourself.
Proof of travel
Northern accepts these, depending on your ticket:
- A photo or scan of your paper ticket, or your e-ticket.
- Your Smartcard number, instead of a ticket image.
- For a season ticket: a weekly paper season once it has expired, or a photocopy of a monthly or longer one.
Add your ticket in Railhop once: snap it in the app, or add it on the website, and Railhop attaches it to your claim where the form takes a file.
Automatic Delay Repay on Northern
If you buy an Advance ticket on Northern's website or app and your Delay Repay account uses the same email address, Northern emails you when the train is delayed and you accept the claim with one click. It does not cover a cancelled train.
For tickets the automatic scheme doesn't cover, check your train on Railhop and it fills in Northern's form for you.
How Northern pays, and how long it takes
You choose when you claim: bank transfer, a credit or debit card refund, a NatWest PayIt payment, National Rail vouchers, a cashable voucher for Northern tickets (up to £50), or free Northern tickets for delays of 30 minutes or more. The National Rail Conditions of Travel say a claim should be paid within 14 days of being agreed. More in how long Delay Repay takes. Northern pays you directly, and Railhop keeps the claim reference for each claim you make, so it's easy to follow up.
Split tickets
You can use two or more tickets for one journey (the National Rail Conditions of Travel, condition 14.2), and the delay is still measured at your destination. More in Delay Repay on split tickets. Railhop checks the whole journey and measures the delay at your destination.
If Northern rejects your claim
Ask Northern to look at it again, with your evidence: the train, the times and your ticket. If you're still unhappy after Northern has replied, you can take it to the Rail Ombudsman. More in what to do if a Delay Repay claim is rejected. Railhop's claims use the train's real times from National Rail's data, so they match what the train company sees.
About Northern
Northern runs local and regional trains across the north of England, including around Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield, Newcastle and Liverpool.
Northern is run by Northern Trains Limited, which has been in public ownership since 2020. Its April 2026 Passengers' Charter says the network is run by DfT OLR Holdings Limited (DOHL).
Good to know on Northern
- Multi-modal tickets such as MCard, Travelmaster, System One, Network One and Trio, Saveway or Walrus are not covered by Northern's Delay Repay: claim from your ticket provider.
- You can post a paper form to Freepost Northernrailway, but paper claims can't be paid by bank transfer: you choose a cashable voucher, National Rail vouchers or a free ticket.
- Taxi, hotel and other extra costs go through Northern's separate Make a claim process with your tickets and receipts, not the Delay Repay form. Expense receipts are not accepted as proof of travel on a Delay Repay claim.
Questions about Northern Delay Repay
How do I claim Northern Delay Repay?
Check your train on Railhop: it finds how late it was and what you're owed, then fills in Northern's own claim form in the Railhop iPhone app, or with Railhop's browser extension on a computer, with your journey, ticket and details. You check it and press submit within 28 days of travelling, and Northern pays you.
How much Delay Repay does Northern pay?
Northern uses Delay Repay 15, from 15 minutes late at your destination. On a single ticket you get 25% of the fare for 15–29 minutes, 50% for 30–59 minutes, 100% for 60–119 minutes and 100% for 2 hours or more. On a return ticket: 12.5%, 25%, 50% and 100% of the return fare. Railhop works out the amount for your train.
How long do I have to claim Northern Delay Repay?
28 days from the date of the delayed journey. Railhop shows the claim-by date for every delay it finds, and the app reminds you 3 days before it runs out.
Can I claim from Northern if another train company caused the delay?
No. You claim from the train company that caused the first delay to your journey. If you claim from Northern by mistake, Northern forwards your claim to the right company, emails you to say so and rejects its own copy.
Can Railhop fill in the Northern Delay Repay form for me?
Yes, in the Railhop iPhone app, or with Railhop's browser extension on a computer. Railhop opens Northern's own claim form and fills in your details, the journey, the delay and your ticket. You choose how to be paid, check the claim and press submit: Railhop never submits claims or sees your bank details.
Can I claim Northern Delay Repay if my train was cancelled?
Yes, if you still travelled. If a Northern train is cancelled on the day and you take the next train you can, the delay is measured at your destination against when the cancelled train was due. If you decided not to travel, ask whoever sold you the ticket for a full refund instead: you can have one or the other, not both. Check the cancelled train on Railhop and it works out what you can claim.
Do I need an account to claim Northern Delay Repay?
Northern's form needs an account: you sign in yourself, and Railhop never keeps your login. Railhop fills in the rest of the form for you.
How does Northern pay Delay Repay?
You choose when you claim: bank transfer, a credit or debit card refund, a NatWest PayIt payment, National Rail vouchers, a cashable voucher for Northern tickets (up to £50), or free Northern tickets for delays of 30 minutes or more. The National Rail Conditions of Travel say a claim should be paid within 14 days of being agreed.
What can I do if Northern rejects my Delay Repay claim?
Ask Northern to look at it again, with your evidence: the train, the times and your ticket. Railhop has the train's real times from National Rail's data. If you're still unhappy after Northern has replied, you can take it to the Rail Ombudsman.
Sources
- Northern: Delay Repay
- Northern: Automated Delay Repay compensation
- Northern: Passengers' Charter April 2026
- Northern: Make a claim (extra costs)
Delay Repay guides for other train companies.
Terms change. If something here doesn't match Northern's own terms, Northern's terms are right. Railhop fills in Northern's claim form for you, and you check it and submit it yourself. Railhop is not affiliated with Northern or National Rail.