Renfe ordered to compensate passenger over 1,000 euros for missed flight to Cuba after train delays

Renfe has had to reimburse a passenger for the 1,099.89 euros she had to pay for a new plane ticket and extra taxi fares after delays on her train to Madrid caused her to miss her scheduled flight to Cuba.

The woman had an Alvia ticket to travel on 26 July 2024 from Santander to Madrid. The train was scheduled to arrive at 11.19am, giving her more than three hours to travel to Barajas Airport.

However, this straightforward journey turned into a nightmare. Firstly, the train left Santander 45 minutes late due to a problem with the doors. Later, a breakdown at Torrelavega forced all passengers to switch transport and complete the journey by road to Valladolid, where they boarded another train that finally took them to Madrid. This journey caused the passenger to arrive two and a quarter hours late at Barajas. Check-in for her flight had closed and the plane heading to Cuba was about to take off.

Faced with this setback, the passenger bought a new ticket for 1,046.24 euros to travel to Havana with another airline that had a flight departing two hours later.

Upon her return, she asked Renfe to recompense her for both the plane ticket and the taxi fares she paid to Barajas, but the railway company only reimbursed her the 59.50 euros that corresponded to her train ticket from Santander to Madrid.

The woman sought help from Facua-Consumidores en Acción (an independent organisation in Spain that fights for consumer rights), which referred the case to Cantabria's regional transport arbitration board. This body has finally ruled in favour of the passenger, arguing that the railway company breached "its main obligation", stating that it was a clear example of "lack of business diligence that goes beyond mere culpable conduct".