Passenger sues French rail company after missing train

The beginning of this story is common place in France, but the ending is unprecedented.

On an early June morning in 2008, Remy Rouquette, a lawyer, boards a train in Melun station is the southeast suburbs of Paris. Bound for Paris’ Gare de Lyon station, the train leaves on schedule at 5:37am. But following a track switch mistake the train belonging to the national SNCF rail company arrives 19 minutes late. Rouquette misses his connecting train, a 7:24 regional to the southern city of Nimes. More importantly, he misses his scheduled 10am court appearance in that city.

Unfortunately for SNCF, that’s not the end of the story.

Rouquette and his law firm decide to file a lawsuit against the national rail company for its responsibility in the delay that kept the lawyer from being present in court. The lawyers sought compensation, not just for their financial loss to the law firm in the proceeding – a trial missed is a trial unpaid - but for the blow to the firm’s reputation.

A first in France

Unlike in the US, where massive payouts follow incidents of spilled coffee and drivers abandoning the steering wheel of their “cruise control” cars, French courts tend to look unfavourably on citizens demanding financial compensation from companies, especially when the company in question is state owned.

But the courts finally ruled in favour of Rouquette and his associates. On September 22 of this year, the Paris court of appeals ordered SNCF to reimburse the firm 2,836.12 euros – compensation for the lost day in court, plus the damage inflicted to its reputation, plus the train ticket. The judges also ordered the rail company to pay Rouquette 500 euros for the “anxiety and nervousness” he suffered and 1,500 euros to compensate the losses he himself incurred by hiring a lawyer for the lawsuit.

It’s the first time that SNCF has ever compensated a client for missing a day of work. "People usually do not complain for a few hundred euros in damages," said Anne-Laure Archambault, the lawyer handling the case on behalf of Rouquette. "A lawyer is expensive and these cases are difficult to win at trial.”

"I don’t think people should be afraid of suing these big companies, especially publicly-owned companies," said Rouquette. He added that he hoped the court’s decision would "encourage SNCF to treat people who live in the suburbs better and to meet its time schedule obligations."

A dangerous precedent?

Archambault is satisfied with the precedent she and her client have set. "Now every time there is a delay by SNCF and it’s for reasons outside its control, it may be required to compensate travellers," she explained.

According to Jean Sivardière, president of the national federation of public transport users (FNAUT), the rail company is responsible for about half of all delays.
Sivardière is happy with the court’s decision, but says lawsuits are only a last recourse.

"The traveller can first contact [SNCF’s] customer service, then the SNCF mediator. He can also address a complaint to an organisation representing rail users, who will indicate if it will accept to ask for a settlement of the traveller’s behalf. "

Sivardière says two such cases are in progress at the moment, both for professional injury compensation.

According to the SNCF website the company served 1.1 billion travellers in 2009.