Regulator welcomes code as a major step towards meeting customer expectations

25 June 2003
ORR/11/03

The Rail Regulator, Tom Winsor, today approved Network Rail's code of practice covering its dealings with its customers and others wishing to provide rail services or facilities - the dependent persons code of practice. It comes into effect immediately.

Network Rail is required, under its network licence, to establish and comply with a code of practice committing it to act, in the words of the condition, with due efficiency and economy and in a timely manner, including in all respects with that degree of skill, diligence, prudence and foresight which should be exercised by a skilled and experienced network facility owner and operator.

Mr Winsor said "I welcome the code of practice for dependent persons as a demonstration of Network Rail adopting a customer-focused approach to its dealings with customers. I believe that customers will have surety that the monopoly provider of railway infrastructure shall be prompt, responsive, reasonable and competent in its dealings with them."
The industry and other interested parties were consulted in April 2002 about the form the code of practice should take. The new Board of Network Rail reviewed the proposals developed by Railtrack before submitting the code that is approved today. The code covers all Network Rail's dealings with all its dependent customers.

Further supplemental parts of the code covering specific categories of dealings will be submitted for the Regulator's approval during the remainder of the year to a timetable also approved by the Regulator.

Notes to Editors:

1. Condition 25 of the company's network licence requires Network Rail to prepare and have in place a code of practice for its dealings with dependent persons. The condition allows for the licence holder to prepare parts to deal with specific categories of dealings and types of person. Network Rail has submitted a list of specific categories of dealings and persons which will benefit from separate parts of the code, a timetable for the implementation of the specific parts of the code and the criteria used to draw up the list and review the code all of which were approved by the Regulator earlier this month.
2. Dependent persons code of practice: final conclusions is available to download on the right hand side of this page and from the ORR Librarian, Sue MacSwan, 1 Waterhouse Square, 138-142 Holborn, London EC1N 2TQ, tel: 020 7282 2001, fax: 020 7282 2045.

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