Heathrow Express will carry you between London and Heathrow. In the event of disruption within our control, we will take you to your Heathrow Express destination by train, coach or taxi or by a combination of these at our discretion. Our liability is limited to the cost of providing a taxi to that destination. We are not liable for any consequential loss or any other loss.
Subject to any advertised restrictions, you may join any train for which your ticket is valid, but we do not guarantee to provide you with a seat.
For the purposes of Condition 1.1, disruption within our control includes that caused by the acts or omissions of our staff, but does not include any industrial action they take.
Other circumstances outside our control include:
Your airline or travel agent will tell you the minimum check-in time - the time by which you have to be at their check-in desk.
You should allow adequate time to get from the train to the check-in desk for your minimum check-in time. We recommend at least fifteen minutes for this at Terminals 2 and 3, and at least ten minutes for your minimum check-in time at Terminals 1, 4 and 5. Remember that there may be queues at check-in desks during busy periods.
When you buy a ticket, please make sure that it is for the journey you wanted and that you have received the correct change. If possible, you should draw any apparent errors to the attention of the staff at that time. Otherwise, whoever sold you the ticket will need reasonable proof that an error was made before putting it right.
Please make sure that you join the correct train (and the correct part of it) and that you get off at the right station. We cannot be held responsible for any loss or delay if you do not do so, unless we or any of our staff or agents have given you incorrect information.
Tickets are not needed for journeys solely between the Heathrow stations when travelling in Express Class. A ticket or valid authority to travel is needed for all other journeys.
You have the right to use our trains if you hold a ticket or other authority to travel, as long as it is valid on those trains for the journey you wish to make. You must have a valid ticket or other authority to travel when travelling on Heathrow Express (apart from journeys between the Heathrow stations) or you may be treated as having joined a train without a ticket and charged the full on-board fare.
Passengers travelling without the means to pay will be asked to provide full contact information, and will be invoiced for the full on-board fare and an administrative charge of £5.
Please note that Heathrow Connect tickets are not valid for travel on Heathrow Express.
We recommend that you buy a ticket before you start your journey. Our ticket offices and a variety of outlets at Paddington and at Heathrow, and national rail and underground ticket offices, sell a range of tickets. You can buy a more restricted range of tickets on the train. However, if you wish to purchase a carnet or season ticket or use a railcard or travel warrant, you must do this at one of our ticket offices. Only holders of Disabled Persons' Railcards may use a railcard to purchase tickets on board.
You may buy a ticket on board using cash in sterling, or with the following credit and debit cards: VISA, Mastercard, American Express, JCB, Diner's Club, Maestro and Switch. If you buy a ticket on board, you will only be given a receipt with credit card transactions. A premium is charged for on-board purchases.
Some types of ticket may only be purchased from specified Heathrow Express ticket offices.
Railcards may normally only be used to purchase Express Class tickets: the only exceptions are Disabled Persons' Railcards and Senior Railcards.
You may also buy e-tickets from our website at www.heathrowexpress.com where you can choose to have your tickets sent by email or to your mobile phone. All you will need to do is to show it to our Customer Service Representative on-board the train who will scan and validate the code. Please visit www.heathrowexpress.com for more details.
You must show or give your ticket (and any accompanying photocard that is required) to our staff for inspection when requested. If you do not, you will be charged the full on-board fare.
Reduced fares are available for people between 5 and 15 years old (inclusive) Children under five travelling free may only occupy a seat if it is not required by a fare-paying customer.
Single tickets are valid for three days. Return tickets are normally valid for one month from the date of issue. Carnets are valid for a specified number of journeys within 12 months of the date of issue - see section 8 below.
Weekend singles are issued at a substantial discount for groups of four or more adults travelling together on Saturdays or Sundays.
The period during which a ticket is valid is printed on the ticket or stated in our notices and other publications.
If the validity of your ticket expires during a journey (if, for instance, your train does not reach its destination until after midnight), its validity will be extended to allow you to complete the journey.
If your ticket is for a journey where this is possible, you have the right to break and resume a journey covered by your ticket (in either direction in the case of a return ticket) at any intermediate station, provided that your ticket is valid for the trains you wish to use. You may also end your journey short of the destination shown on your ticket at any intermediate station. However, these rights may not apply to certain tickets. If so, this will be stated in the notices and other publications of the relevant Railway Operators.
If you break or resume your journey when you are not entitled to do so, you will be liable to pay the difference between the price of your ticket and the price of the cheapest ticket available for immediate travel that would have entitled you to break or resume your journey on the service you have used. Please note that a ticket which entitles you to travel on London Underground does not entitle you to break and resume your journey at any of its stations unless it is a season ticket or a Travelcard.
If you end your journey at an intermediate station when you are not entitled to do so, you will have to pay the difference between the price of your ticket and the price of the cheapest ticket available for immediate travel that would have entitled you to end your journey at that station on the service you have used.
If you travel to a station or zone beyond the one specified on your ticket, you will be treated as having joined the train without a valid ticket for that additional part of your journey. You will be charged the fare for it as if it were a separate journey. Some operators may charge a penalty fare for this.
With the exception of carnets, a ticket may only be used by the person for whom it has been purchased. If resold or passed on to anyone else, it is no longer valid.
If you return an unused Heathrow Express ticket to whoever sold it within 20 minutes of purchase, you will be given an immediate full refund (if the vendor is Heathrow Express, another Railway Operator, London Underground or a rail appointed travel agent).
If you buy a ticket from our website and decide not to travel, you may cancel it at any time within three months of the date you booked it. You may do this by letter, phone or email to us. After this time, no refund will be made.
Other applications for refunds will be considered at our discretion. The amount refunded will normally reflect any use you have made of your ticket.
Applications for refunds should be made in writing within a month of issue of the ticket, to whoever sold it to you or if we sold it to you then to: Customer Services, Freepost RLXY-ETJG-XKZS, Heathrow Express, London W2 6LG, explaining the circumstances involved. A reasonable administration charge of up to £10 may apply.
Our Customer Service Representatives will supply, on request, a Customer Refund form which should be completed and sent to us to obtain a refund. Refunds will normally be made by crediting a credit or debit card account or by cheque. Refunds on tickets bought on our website will be made by crediting the card account used for their purchase. Cash refunds will be given under certain circumstances. However the method of refund is at our discretion, and special arrangements will apply especially if a currency other than sterling is involved.
If your journey on Heathrow Express is delayed by more than 15 minutes for reasons other than those outside our control as set out in section 1.2 above, you will be entitled to compensation equal to the Heathrow Express fare you paid. Applications should be made in writing within a month of issue of the ticket, to: Customer Services, Freepost RLXY-ETJG-XKZS, Heathrow Express, London W2 6LG, explaining the circumstances involved. Our staff will be able to give you a Customer Refund Form to assist you with this.
Subject to any advertised restrictions you may join any train for which your ticket is valid. We are unable to guarantee to carry you, or to provide you with a seat, on a particular train. Nor do we guarantee that the accommodation appropriate to your ticket will always be available.
However if you have a First Class ticket and no First Class seats are available on the Heathrow Express train you wish to catch, you may either travel in an alternative class of accommodation on that train or catch the next one. In either case, a full refund will be given. Please ask for a Customer Refund Form which should be completed and sent to us to obtain the refund.
First Class accommodation is not available on Heathrow Connect: if you decide to travel on Heathrow Connect with a First Class ticket, you will not be eligible for a refund.
If you have an Express Class ticket and you travel, without the permission of our staff, in First Class accommodation, you will have to pay for an upgrade. This is the difference between the price of the ticket actually purchased and the on-board price of the First Class ticket for the service you have used (normally the full First Class fare).
If you have an Express Class season ticket or carnet, you may only travel in First Class accommodation if you pay the difference between the full single fare for First Class accommodation and the full single fare for Express Class accommodation for the service you have used.
Travelling in First Class accommodation includes occupying seats or standing in any part of the First Class compartments.
Upgrade vouchers can only be used with Express Class tickets: they are not valid for travel on their own.
We will normally accept accompanied luggage on our trains free of charge. However we will not carry it if in our opinion:-
We reserve the right to refuse to accept luggage even if it has been accepted on a previous occasion or is normally accepted.
Please note that certain items of luggage are not accepted on our trains.
Normally, prams should be folded in the interests of other customers.
Articles which do not exceed 1580 mm in overall dimensions (length plus height plus depth) and musical instruments which you are capable of bringing on board without assistance will be carried free, unless they occupy a seat required by a customer.
For larger articles or where a seat required by another customer is occupied, you will be liable to pay an additional fare equal to the one you paid for your Heathrow Express journey. No powered vehicles will be carried except wheelchairs, which will be carried free. There are at least two wheelchair spaces on each train.
Each customer may take with them, free of charge and subject to the conditions below, a maximum of two dogs, cats or other small animals provided that they do not endanger or inconvenience customers or staff. Dogs must be kept on a lead at all times unless in a basket or pet carrier. Dogs without leads, cats, birds and small animals must be carried in an enclosed basket, cage or pet carrier. This must be rigid and not open (to prevent escape) and the animal must be able to stand and lie down in comfort.
Railway Bye-law 16 of 22 June 2005 allows train companies to refuse carriage or entry to any animal. If a customer objects to the presence of an animal, the owner must move it to another part of the train.
Bicycles are carried subject to these conditions of carriage. They are not carried on trains leaving Heathrow between 7.30 and 10.00 or Paddington between 16.30 and 19.00 except on Saturdays and Sundays.
If you bring any luggage onto our trains or premises, you will be responsible for any injury, damage or loss caused by it as a result of its condition or your failure to take reasonable care of it.
We will only be liable for any loss or damage to luggage or its contents which have been brought on to our trains or premises if the loss, damage or delay was caused by the negligence or default of ourselves, our staff or our agents. Our liability in respect of any item of luggage will not exceed the value of that item or £5,000, whichever is the lower.
Lost property found on our premises or trains may not be regarded as belonging to the finder and must be handed over immediately to a member of our staff for safekeeping. It will be given into the custody of Heathrow Airport Ltd's Lost Property Services.
If you leave behind any property on our trains or premises, Heathrow Airport Ltd's lost property services (the Excess Baggage Company) will do their best to return it to you - call them on 020 8745 7727 or email them at heathrow.lostproperty@excess-baggage.com. A reasonable charge of £5 may be made for the return of lost or unclaimed property to the owner, depending upon the type of article and the period during which it has been held before it is claimed.
We will not be responsible for any loss, damage or delay unless this is caused by the negligence of ourselves, our staff or our agents.
Any items which have not been claimed by the owner within three months of being found will be regarded as having been abandoned. They may then be sold or otherwise disposed of and the proceeds of the sale retained by whoever has custody of them. Articles of a perishable nature may be disposed of earlier.
If luggage is left on our trains or premises, we have the right to open it and examine the contents before removing it to a secure place. We may, without being liable, remove or destroy any luggage or its contents and any other property which might in our opinion cause injury or inconvenience to persons or damage to property. We may restrict or refuse access to retrieve an article if it is reasonable to do so.
In the interests of security, customers may be asked to identify their items of luggage. We or our agents may ask to search or scan your luggage, and we will only accept liability for any loss or damage caused if this is caused by the negligence of ourselves, our staff or our agents. If you refuse permission for a search or scan, we may refuse to carry you or your luggage or both on our trains and we will only be liable to refund your Heathrow Express fare.
Heathrow Express may at some time introduce season tickets. Conditions 7.2 to 7.9 cover our policy on them. If there is any conflict or inconsistency between them and any other Conditions, Conditions 7.2 to 7.9 will apply.
Separate conditions apply to the Airports Travelcards: these are available from the issuing agents.
A season ticket can be used between the stations or within the zones specified on it, for the period specified on it. The routes you are entitled to take with a season ticket are explained in Condition 8.13. If you use a season ticket to travel to another station, or within another zone, or outside its validity, you will be treated as having joined the train without a valid ticket for that additional part of your journey and you will be charged as it that part of your journey was a separate journey. Some operators may charge a penalty fare for this.
After a season ticket expires, it must be handed in to whoever issued it.
We may, at our discretion, refuse to issue or renew a season ticket if it is reasonable for us to do so.
Where a photocard is required to buy a season ticket, the season ticket is not valid unless it is produced, together with the photocard to which it relates (bearing a true likeness of the holder and a serial number corresponding with the one on the ticket), at the request of our staff or agents. If both photocard and season ticket cannot be produced at the time of travel, you will be treated as having joined the train without a ticket.
If the season ticket and photocard are subsequently produced, whoever sold you the season ticket may, at their discretion, refund any excess fare or penalty fare paid (less a reasonable administrative charge not exceeding £10). However, they will not refund to you more than two claims in any twelve month period.
If a photocard is lost or the true likeness of the holder changes, a new photocard is required before it can be used with a season ticket. Whoever sold you the season ticket will issue a replacement season ticket bearing the new photocard serial number in these circumstances. A reasonable administrative charge not exceeding £10 may apply.
If you lose your season ticket, whoever sold it may, at their discretion, replace it with a duplicate season ticket provided that:-
Only one duplicate of any ticket will be provided, and no more than two can be issued to a customer in any twelve month period unless:-
In these cases, sympathetic consideration will be given to issuing another duplicate.
If you decide not to use or to stop using a season ticket, a refund will only be made if the season ticket is handed in to the ticket office from which it was bought with at least seven days' validity remaining (in the case of a season ticket which is valid for a month or more) or with at least three days' validity remaining (in the case of any other season ticket).
Refunds are calculated from the date the season ticket is handed in. If, however, it was not possible to hand the ticket in earlier because of illness, a refund will be calculated from the date the illness started, provided that a medical certificate or other evidence satisfactory to the Railway Operator is produced covering the period from the start of the illness until the ticket is handed in. For example, a letter from your employer on headed notepaper may be sufficient.
The refund will be the difference, if any, between:-
less a reasonable administrative charge not exceeding £10.
We do not normally make refunds for any unused validity on a duplicate season ticket unless the original lost ticket was found and returned to us within one month of the date you reported it lost. However, if you stop using a duplicate season ticket for a reason such as redundancy, pregnancy or prolonged illness, we will consider making a refund if you provide satisfactory evidence.
If you surrender a season ticket which, on issue, was valid for one month or more at the same time as buying another season ticket for a different type of journey, you will be entitled to a refund on the original ticket, calculated in proportion to the number of days of validity remaining on the date the ticket is handed in. The validity of the new ticket must, however, start on the day after the surrender of the old one and must be for a period that is at least as long as that of the old one when it was issued. No administrative charge will be made.
Although refunds are not usually made on duplicate tickets that have been issued to replace lost season tickets, applications for refunds under this Condition in respect of duplicate tickets will be considered.
Conditions 8.2 - 8.6 cover our policy on carnets. If there is any conflict or inconsistency between them and any other Conditions, Conditions 8.2 - 8.6 apply.
Heathrow Express carnets can be used between the stations specified for the specified number of single journeys within 12 months of the date of issue. If they are used for travel to another station, or within another zone, or outside their validity, you will be treated as having joined the train without a valid ticket for that additional part of your journey and you will be charged as it that part of your journey was a separate journey. Some operators may charge a penalty fare for this.
After a carnet expires, it must be handed in to whoever issued it.
We may, at our discretion, refuse to issue or renew a carnet if it is reasonable for us to do so.
If you decide not to use or to stop using a unexpired carnet, a refund will be made if you send it to Customer Services (Freepost RLXY-ETJG-XKZS, Heathrow Express, London W2 6LG). The refund will be the difference (if any) between the price paid for the carnet and the ticket office price of the tickets needed for the journeys actually made less a reasonable administration charge of up to £10.
Carnets are transferable but are not valid if resold. They may be used by a group of people travelling together.
Some designs of carnet need to be dated before use. If this kind of carnet is used for a group of people travelling together, the same date should be put in the number of boxes equal to the number of people travelling.
Each ticket is issued subject to Railway bye-laws, these conditions and the conditions set out in the notices and other publications issued by Heathrow Express. Copies of our notices and other publications are available on written request from Customer Services, Freepost RLXY-ETJG-XKZS, Heathrow Express, London W2 6LG. Railway bye-laws are available for inspection at our offices during normal office hours.
If the ticket entitles you to obtain any goods or services from another person (if, for example, it allows travel on another railway), it is also issued subject to the conditions set out in the notices and other publications issued by that person.
A ticket that has been issued to you is evidence of a contract between you and Heathrow Express (if it allows travel on Heathrow Express) and between you and anyone else from whom it entitles you to services.
We will do our best to give you impartial advice about tickets, train travel, and any restrictions on the use of particular tickets. Please note that our ticket offices do not sell a full range of national rail tickets, although those of the national railways at Paddington and elsewhere do.
A Train Company, travel agent or authorised third party which issues a ticket that entitles you to use our trains does so as our agent.
Neither our nor any other Railway Operator's staff or agents have any authority to waive or change these Conditions, or to extend or vary the scope of our liability under these conditions.
If you fail in a material respect to comply with any condition that governs the use of a ticket, our staff or agents or those of any Train Company may withdraw the ticket. If they do so, they will confirm this to you in writing.
If your ticket has become spoiled or has been tampered with or altered in any way, it is not valid for travel. If however you return it to whoever sold it, they will (unless it is reasonable for them to refuse to do so) issue a replacement. A reasonable administrative charge (not exceeding £10) may apply.
You are responsible for looking after your ticket. We do not guarantee to replace a lost or mislaid ticket (or a portion of a ticket) or make a refund in respect of it. Railway Operators may however, at their discretion, replace certain season tickets in the circumstances described in Condition 7.7.
Except as provided in Condition 1.1, we do not accept liability for any loss (including consequential loss) caused by the delay or cancellation of any train, by any missed connection or by the closure of the railway.
Any person whom we believe likely to act in a riotous, disorderly or offensive manner may be refused access to, or may be required to leave, trains, platforms or stations.
If you have to change trains on a journey you are making, you will be responsible for transferring yourself and your luggage between the trains and, if necessary, between stations unless you have made other arrangements with one of the Railway Operators in advance.
Tickets are only valid on Heathrow Express trains if they say so explicitly. Heathrow Express tickets are also valid for travel on Heathrow Connect services.
Tickets, including reduced and discounted tickets and those bought in conjunction with a railcard, may be subject to restrictions as to the dates, days, times within a day and trains on which they can be used. These restrictions are set out in the notices and other publications of the Railway Operators whose trains you are entitled to use.
If you travel on a train with a ticket which is not valid on that train because of such a published restriction, you will have to pay the difference between the price of that ticket and the cheapest ticket available for immediate travel that would have entitled you to travel on that train for the journey shown on your ticket. In the case of some types of ticket, you will have to pay more than this. If so, this will stated in the notices and other publications of the relevant Railway Operators. On Heathrow Express, you may instead have to buy a single ticket for your journey and apply for a refund of the difference as described in Condition 4.1.
If a particular route or service is specified on your ticket, you can only use that route or service. Otherwise where your ticket allows travel on Heathrow Express and beyond Heathrow Express destinations, subject to any restrictions stated on your ticket, you have the right to travel on any of the following routes:-
Together, these are known as the "permitted routes" for the journey.
If you make your journey by any other route (except when travelling by a through train), you will be liable to pay the difference between the price of your ticket and the price of the cheapest ticket available for immediate travel that would have entitled you to travel by that route on the service you have used. On our trains it may not be possible to pay the difference (it may only be possible to pay the difference before you start your journey). Therefore you will be charged the full fare and will have to claim a refund on your unused ticket.
These Conditions do not apply if a ticket is issued for an international rail journey within Europe (including any journey wholly within one country to connect with an international rail journey) In such cases, carriage is subject to the Uniform Rules concerning the Contract for International Carriage of Passengers and Luggage by Rail (CIV), these being appendix A to the Convention concerning International Carriage by Rail (COTIF) of 9 May 1980 in the version of the Protocol of Modification of 3 June 1999. Both of these documents are available on the web-site of the International Organisation for International Carriage by Rail (OTIF), www.otif.org. To the extent provided in the CIV, the conditions of the carrier in question also apply.
These Conditions apply to the carriage of customers and their luggage in road vehicles which we own or which are operated by any other party on our behalf. For these purposes, the term "train" includes any road vehicle owned or operated by us or on our behalf.
If you have a claim against a Railway Operator for personal injury or any loss or damage to property, you may, instead of taking proceedings against that Railway Operator, use the railway claims handling procedure. This procedure is designed to help you make such claims and will avoid you having to show which Railway Operator (or other railway company) was at fault.
The address to write to is The Registrar, Crawford & Company, Tempus, 249 Midsummer Boulevard, Central Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, MK9 1YA.
In all other cases, claims under these conditions should be made initially to whoever sold you your ticket.
These Conditions will be governed by English law. Any person bringing an action under these Conditions irrevocably submits to the jurisdiction of the English Courts.
In these Conditions:
"Heathrow Express" means Heathrow Express Operating Company Ltd., "Heathrow Connect" means the train operation between Hayes & Harlington and Heathrow Airport operated by or on behalf of Heathrow Airport Ltd; and "London Underground" means Transport for London and its subsidiaries and the Docklands Light Railway Limited;
"Train Company" means a company which runs domestic scheduled passenger trains on the rail network in Great Britain, but not London Underground, Heathrow Connect or Heathrow Express;
"Railway Operator" means a Train Company, Heathrow Connect or Heathrow Express;
"Railway Service Company" means Network Rail, any person (other than a Railway Operator) who operates a station and any person who hires rolling stock to a Railway Operator, but does not include London Underground, Heathrow Connect or Heathrow Express;
"agent" means a travel agent, a Train Company, a Rail Service Company, Heathrow Airport Ltd. or London Underground or any agents acting on behalf of Heathrow Express, but for the purposes of section 6 does not include airline check-in staff;
"season tickets" includes any ticket which gives you the right to travel between the stations or within the zones specified on it for the period shown on it up to and including the expiry date shown on it. This includes the right to break and resume your journey, as described in Condition 3.6. The definition includes season tickets, Gold Cards and Travelcards having a validity of more than one day but not carnets or Airports Travelcards; and
"us" and "we" means Heathrow Express; and "our" means Heathrow Express's.