French national railways, SNCF (Société Nationale des Chemins de fer français) has been fined for a train leaving on time!
Of course that's not the whole story.
The company had denied a passenger boarding because he arrived at the very last minute, just as the train was about to leave.
But unfortunately for SNCF, the passenger happened to be a lawyer, and he decided to take the company to court.
The incident dates back to July 21, 2009.
Jérôme Bertrand had a ticket for a train due to leave Gare de Lyon station in Paris for Bourg-en-Bresse in eastern France at 11.10am.
He was cutting things fine - to say the very least - and turned up with just one minute to spare.
But as far as SNCF was concerned, Bertrand was too late.
"I saw the train leave even though I was on the platform," he told BFM TV in a spoken style which surely says, 'Don't mess with me, I'm a lawyer'.
"I had been in a rush to arrive on time, but there was no way I was going to be allowed to board the train."
SNCF refused Bertrand a ticket refund or any sort of compensation because in its travel regulations and on its tickets the company pointed out that it "requested" passengers to present themselves for boarding at least two minutes before the scheduled departure time.
Bertrand wasn't to be outsmarted though. He was a lawyer after all and he was determined to see justice done.
He took his case to courts arguing that the "request" SNCF made for passengers to turn up at least two minutes before a train's departure did not make it a "requirement".
There was no mention in the rules and regulations, as far as he was concerned, that a passenger arriving at the station "on the dot" would be denied access to a train.
Almost two years later and guess what?
The court found in his favour and according to BFM TV, unless SNCF decides to appeal, Bertrand will be reimbursed the cost of buying an extra ticket - €129.30 - as well as one euro in symbolic damages.
So there you have it. SNCF fined for a train leaving on time.
Makes a change.
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2 comments:
Of course he had to be a lawyer.
It is time like these that you have to lowe lawyers. Hopefully, it wil not become a "requirement" to appear 5 minutes before departure now.
One thing that bothers us is who provides the time as no two clocks will ever tell the exact same time. Both may say 11:09 but the seconds can be 1/2 minutes apart.
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