Supporting fair and transparent rail retailing: updated guidance for retailers
20 January 2026
The guidance is aimed at rail-sector retailers and is designed to support them in understanding and meeting their obligations when selling rail tickets and products to consumers. It may also be helpful for passengers to understand the information that retailers should provide.
What is the guidance about?
Any company that sells rail tickets to consumers must comply with consumer protection legislation. We have concurrent powers with the Competition & Markets Authority to enforce certain pieces of that legislation.
While consumer protection law generally applies across the economy, it is not written specifically with rail retailing in mind. Our Guidance on Rail Retailing explains how that legislation applies in a rail context, using examples relevant to the way rail tickets and products are sold.
Although the guidance is written for retailers, its ultimate aim is to support clear, accurate and timely information being provided to passengers at the point of sale.
Why did it need updating?
A lot has changed since the original Code of Practice on Retail Information for Rail Products and Services was published back in 2015.
Since then, new consumer protection legislation has come into force, and the way people buy tickets has changed significantly with digital retailing through websites and apps becoming the primary way many tickets are sold. There have also been organisational changes across the rail sector, including changes to the names and roles of some bodies – including our own.
We therefore reviewed and updated the document, and renamed it as Guidance to better reflect its purpose as a practical aid to compliance, rather than a set of additional rules.
What does the guidance cover?
The guidance sets out a series of principles reflecting retailers’ fundamental obligations under consumer protection legislation. At its core is the requirement that retailers provide consumers with the information they need to make informed purchasing decisions.
It includes rail-specific examples to illustrate how these principles may apply in practice, such as
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making ticket restrictions and validity clear before purchase
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ensuring prices and any mandatory fees are transparent throughout the purchase journey
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avoiding misleading promotional claims
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clearly communicating rail replacement services or significant service changes
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signposting where certain ticket options are not available through a particular digital sales channel
The guidance itself does not introduce any new requirements or obligations. Instead, it is intended to be a helpful tool for retailers, supporting compliance with consumer protection law and promoting fair, transparent retailing across the rail sector.
