Disgruntled passengers were able to request a full refund for all train tickets for a year.
Ed Weiss, 29, is expected to have refunded all tickets booked in 2023 due to forecast train delays on the West Coast of Avanti.
He believes he saved at least £1,000 within three years of starting his delay plan.
Avanti West Coast offers 25% off with a 15 minute delay, 50% off with a 30 minute delay, and a full refund for over an hour delay.
Wise wrote Vance, a personal finance newsletter with her colleague Joe Mancterow Pym, and said she paid “Parasitized Avanti Vampire Zero” and “Road for Free.”
He said he began planning delays after returning from his vacation in Italy, where he booked an equivalent trip there at a cheaper price.
Wise states:
Even after purchasing a rail card, using ticket splits and booking trips to cheaper stations, he still pays heavily and is fighting for the delay.
He used three main factors to predict when trains would be delayed.
The strike action means operators will suffer a shortage of staff, and Wise has found that it usually has a knock-on effect for days before and days of planned lawsuits.
Unions must provide two weeks of notice prior to planned industrial measures. This was used as a pre-warning of delays.
Trains may be intentionally delayed so that engineers can work on the railroad and perform other maintenance.
These delays are published on the website by National Rail.
Extreme weather was the third element of Wise's so-called “train delay prediction paradigm,” an event that was likely to delay trains.
He said: “Match the planned engineering work and combine winter weather with strike action. The train is late. There's no doubt.”
Wise also found official statistics showing stations that are likely to experience delays.
According to data, the stations with the most cancelled cancellations between April 2024 and March 2025 were Ellesmere Port, Inse and Elton, with more than five-fifths of scheduled trains being cancelled.
Both are operated by Northern trains.
Wise admitted there was a “pretty brutal all-day” but he used the delay to do remote work, which hasn't always worked.
Once, the cancelled train meant more passengers to service, and Wise had a “uncomfortable” experience left without a seat for two hours.
Nevertheless, he generally calls it a “perfect” opportunity to get the job done, adding that he treats it as a “Starbucks of the Wheels.”
He said the experience was “fun” and he felt that he was “winning.”
On the usual five-hour journey from London to Carlisle, the average delay was over an hour.
Wise states:
For those considering using the system, he advised to use his time to get serious work done and only try a way to travel for more than three hours.
He added: “Put some sandwiches, thermos and books.”
UK railway fares are the highest in Europe, but about 40% of trains are behind.
Wise said that after his story was published in his newsletter, several people reached out to him.
