Ted Pottage, a member of the Surrey Coalition of Disabled People, got in touch with the Rail Ombudsman to highlight the benefits of SMS, particularly for passengers with hearing impairments. Following a meeting with Mr Pottage and Stephen Rolph, the Surrey County Organiser for Railfuture, as well as a successful trial, the Rail Ombudsman is now introducing SMS to its list of communication channels, which include textphone, telephone, webform, email and twitter.
The Rail Ombudsman was established on the 26th November 2018 and can investigate unresolved complaints regarding rail issues including;

• Passenger assistance facilities for customers with disabilities and issues arising under the Equality Act 2010. 
• Availability and access to station facilities including toilets, lifts, escalators, waiting rooms, parking, cycle storage, announcements, ticket sales, and lost property.
• The quality of services available on a train including toilets, information, announcements, reserved seats and other advertised facilities.

Ted Pottage from the Surrey Coalition of Disabled People said: 
“I’m delighted that the Rail Ombudsman is now accessible by SMS. It is vital that disabled people can get in touch with the Ombudsman when they have unresolved disputes with rail companies. This is an important new service that should help us to get a better service on our railways.”

Billy Quinn, Managing Director of the Rail Ombudsman, said:
“As the UK’s first Rail Ombudsman, we are determined to listen and respond to passenger’s needs. We are very grateful to the Surrey Coalition of Disabled People for highlighting this issue and helping us to trial and launch this service.”

Please help us promote this service and the new SMS Number 07427 580 060

The Rail Ombudsman introduces a new SMS text service - making it more accessible to people with hearing impairments.