Please sign in to post.

Need help contacting SNCF by email re refund error

I have been unable to file a request for a refund due to a train cancelled during the June 10 strike using the SNCF app or via the official complaint form (I get partway through the form and it just stalls). I no longer have an international phone plan and even if I did I don’t think I could communicate well enough to make the request. Does anyone know of an email address I can use to make my claim?

Here’s what happened: in January I purchased 2 senior tickets from Paris to Saumur for travel on June 10. The tickets were for Paris to Angers (€50 each) and Angers to Saumur (€11.30 each). On the evening of June 8 I got a notification that the tickets were cancelled due to the strike. ( We were subsequently able to pay for a completely different set of tickets on a regional train and got to our destination.) On June 8 my credit card was refunded €100 by SNCF for the 2 tickets from Paris to Angers. Separately on June 8 my credit card was refunded €11.30 bySNCF for ONE of the tickets from Angers to Saumur. On June 10 I tried to get a refund for the remaining ticket using the app on but kept getting error messages. I just received my credit card statement and can now confirm I didn’t get a refund for the other Angers to Saumur ticket. It’s all very weird as the 4 tickets were purchased together and 3 were refunded with no difficulty. There was obviously some glitch that happened that prevented the 4th ticket reimbursement.

It’s not a lot of money, I know. But the principal of the thing is driving me crazy. I just want to state my case and cannot find a way to do so. Can anyone help me out with a way to contact them via email?

PS — I’m also out about $40 that I paid for BlaBlaBus tickets as a backup that would have gotten us part way (Paris to Angers) in the event NO trains were running on June 10. I paid extra for what I thought were “fully refundable” tickets. However when we were able to book onto the regional train, getting us all the way to Saumur in half the time, I submitted a refund request and I received a BlaBla voucher good through December 31. I emailed BlaBla to let them know I believed I had paid extra for fully refundable tickets and could not use a voucher as I would not be in France between now and December 31; they replied that all refunds are only issued as vouchers. I assume that was my mistake. In my rush to obtain back up transportation due to the strike I probably didn’t see or translate the “fully refundable” fine print. So that’s money I’ve lost but probably my fault. The train refund is clearly an error on the part of SNCF, and because of that I’d really love to get my money back, even though it’s not a lot of money.

Thanks for your help!

Posted by
36916 posts

I haven't ever used BlaBlaBus but I have seen recent threads saying that there is a clear statement in their conditions of their screens that refunds are only ever to vouchers. You aren't out the money because you have a voucher.

In your case when you won't use the voucher I'm afraid that bit is on you.

Only you can decide how much effort and expense you want to spend chasing the €11.30 with the SNCF.

Posted by
1000 posts

Nigel I thought I was pretty clear in owning up to making the mistake with BlaBlaBus.

Posted by
1173 posts

Ruth I take it you are either in Paris or will be shortly. Why not just go to one of SNCF's ticket offices and talk to them there? Might be a lot easier than emailing them.

Posted by
1000 posts

Hi Ed — we were in France from June 5-24. We’re back in the USA now