SWR Help Anmeldelser 

Imagine paying years for tickets, for the toilets to never function. Decent value init…

The website was slow, and the prices were different from the National Rail website, which redirected me here. I selected a return ticket, and South West tried to sell me two singles.

I have a very negative view without even having travelled on a SWR train.
Booked advance tickets from Exeter to London. Train turned out to be cancelled with no notification whatsoever. Luckily helpful staff at Exeter Station got us on GWR train to Paddington.
Earlier I had e mailed SWR and was told to expect a reply within 2 weeks which was completely useless.

With grateful thanks to Glen Bessant who without his help we really don’t know how we would have got home. We had booked tickets with S W R from Portsmouth harbour for 5 pm to Oxfordshire but owing to a problem at Portsmouth harbour we were unable to disembark from the ferry and after nearly 2 hours waiting on the ferry we had to gp back to fishbourne and so consequently we were unable to board a train until almost 8.45 from a different station from a different port. Glen was wonderful helping us out with our tickets and finding a root back home from Waterloo station for us. Finally arriving home at 2am. S W R were Brilliant and Many Many thanks to Glen for all his help and kindness. Mrs L Ashby.

Due to delays on my original train, I boarded an alternative SWR service. When approached by a Revenue Protection Officer, I explained the situation and offered to pay the full fare or renew my railcard, which I had not realised had expired. Despite my willingness to resolve the issue, I was issued a penalty fare of the full ticket price plus £50.

Meanwhile, three white British men—whom the officer referred to informally as “lads”—boarded without tickets and were simply told to speak to the guard and buy one. No penalty was mentioned. I also overheard them saying that they rarely buy tickets and are “usually let off” or “never checked.”

This stark contrast in treatment raises serious concerns about the fairness and impartiality of your enforcement practices. As a British citizen of Asian origin, I cannot ignore the possibility that my ethnicity may have influenced the officer’s decision to penalize me while extending leniency to others. I do not make this allegation lightly, but the discrepancy is undeniable and deeply distressing.

SWR It's disgraceful that you can't replace a seoson ticket worth almost £2000 when its stolen or lost. So!basicly you have £2000 in the bank you lose your card and your bank tells you to forget about that money.How awfull is that

There trains were alright. To start off there trains weren’t the cleanest.I feel like they could clean the trains more regularly. When i went on the Weymouth to London waterloo i went to sit down there was doritos everywhere but on an other point. there trains for me i never have delays when i try to go to weymouth to dorchester and there always nice to me!

Toilets Grim in Southampton Central railway station. Urine puddled floor, no soap or no water in automated sinks - absolutely hilarious being left with soapy hands you can’t rinse off! In addition the doors are so ridiculously heavy I struggle to open them!! SWR - must do better.

Two months since, train halted due to signal failure. A claim and all associated paperwork
Sent. …..
No further to getting claim paid.

Trying to purchase a ticket online was complicated. I had to get my son to help after struggling for hours. The transaction went though just after midnight so the ticket ended up being issued for the wrong day. I did not notice as it was late and I was due on the train in only 7 hours. I got to Waterloo to ask where I needed to go to get to Clapham and the guard I asked noticed the error. He issued a penalty fare notice, which was really anxiety provoking and intimidating for someone who rarely travels to anywhere like London. I was made to feel like a criminal for a genuine error. The whole of Waterloo was then closed later that day 14.07.25 and it took me 5 hours to get home, again causing extream anxiety, costing me in extra childcare and also getting someone to perform my caring duties as well. very stressful.
An error by SWR - , absolutely fine, suck it up.
Your error, - pay through the nose, feel intimidated upset and be treated like a criminal.
I tried to appeal and explain it was a genuine error that had already cost me financially. I had bought a ticket. Absolutely no compassion or humanity. SWR you suck as a service provider.

How ridiculous that a train service runs from London to Southampton, Weymouth and Poole (all destinations for holidaymakers with luggage), with no thought or consideration for the fact that there is absolutely nowhere for this luggage to go.
My husband and I booked First Class, thinking it would be a nice way to start our cruise holiday. More like cattle class, with luggage strewn around the carriage due to lack of thought from the train operators.
On our return journey there wasn’t even room for the guard to walk through the carriages.
Sort it out SWR. People are paying for a service that is way below what is expected. Unfortunately there isn’t an alternative.

I had tickets for boat trip on the Thames …a birthday treat for my grandson. We were travelling from Fleet to Waterloo by train. Unfortunately Waterloo experienced a signal failure. 14 platforms closed. We travelled as far as Woking and then our journey had to be abandoned and we needed a cab to return to fleet. I reported to SWR by phone the next day. From then on they communicated with me promptly re proof of tickets etc. This all happened on 19th July and I have had a full refund for train tickets, cab and boat tickets already. They emailed regularly with requests for info they needed. I couldn’t be more impressed. We regularly use SWR and have never experienced problems. This first , very disappointing day for us has been resolved in a more than efficient, satisfactory way. 10/10 for customer service.

Hannah is an amazing member of staff at Addlestone Station. She is so helpful and greets you with a smile and goes out of her way to help. I’d be lost without her. She is a fantastic advocate for the organisation and she should be acknowledged for her excellent customer service

Travelled on 19th July 2025 and booked 10.30 from London Waterloo to Portsmouth Harbour. Train was delayed by over 120 mins and then cancelled. Told to claim by Delay repay which I did but refund has been refused.

Staff are so clueless they aren’t sure what train THEY are on. People are jumping off early because the guard is calling the wrong stations. Staff at the gates are rude and aggressive, kicking off at the slightest discrepancy in your ticket. All whilst the SWR website is terrible, delay repay is so difficult to apply they’re clearly trying to dissuade people before claiming.

Trains delayed through Woking and no information. Awful organisation by staff. Got an email from SWT saying about the delay and how to claim, then refused to pay. So they admitted a delay, told me how to claim and then refused. A total shambles of a company.

I had a very disappointing experience with Sami Ahmed, a train guard on South Western Railway, during my journey from London Waterloo to Exeter.

Midway through the trip, the train was due to detach at Salisbury — something I missed because I had fallen asleep. Instead of offering help or communicating this calmly, Sami Ahmed woke me up and spoke to me in a rude, condescending tone, as if I were being disciplined rather than helped. He questioned whether I’d listened to the announcement, even though he had just woken me, and proceeded to scold me for not paying attention.

His tone was cold and unnecessarily harsh, and he rushed me to move trains without giving clear instructions, making the situation stressful and confusing. I felt completely disrespected — not treated like a paying customer, but like someone being reprimanded.

It’s one thing to give directions, and another to talk down to someone who has done nothing wrong. This interaction was uncalled for and reflects very poorly on SWR’s standards for staff conduct.

I hope South Western Railway seriously reviews how staff like Sami Ahmed engage with passengers. Professionalism and basic human decency should be the bare minimum.

Not even a star!!!!
Very appalling drivers and staff
Arrogant and dismissive!

It's frustrating when the trains are delayed, cancelled or when they reduce capacity, which seems to happen more often than it should. Im not sure if i love the new trains - on one hand there are more seats and better conditioned but on the other hand it limits overall capacity which isn't great during peak hours when people cram on.

I've found their delay repay very easy to use - better than other train companies. Our local station manager is also lovely, and when I've contacted them online, they will get back to you, even if it's a couple of weeks or so.

All in all, the trains do run roughly on time most of the time, and I get its frustrating as when things go wrong, they can really go wrong and quite quickly too. But as a regular commuter it's overall fine.