Licence obligations
Operators of railway assets in Great Britain must normally comply with a range of conditions relevant to the licensed activity.
For train operators required to hold European licences granted by ORR under the Railway (Licensing of Railway Undertakings) Regulations 2005, or by other European regulators, the conditions are set out in a Statement of National Regulatory Provisions (SNRP).
For other operators holding licences granted by ORR or by the Secretary of State under the Railways Act 1993, the conditions are set out in the licences.
ORR handles the overall licence and SNRP application and issuing processes, and is responsible for enforcement of the conditions.
A passenger train operator would normally have conditions dealing with the matters listed below. Other types of operator might have different conditions.
- Insurance against third party liability
- Claims allocation and handling
- Through-tickets and network benefits
- Timetabling
- Provision of services for disabled people
- Complaints procedure
- Liaison with the Passengerfocus and London TravelWatch
- RSSB membership
- Railway Group Standards
- Environmental matters
- Payment of fees
- Change of control
The usual text of the conditions can be viewed on the Model licences and SNRPs page, available in the left hand navigation.
ORR has published general guidance for licence and SNRP applicants. In addition, there is further guidance available on ORR’s approach to third party liability insurance arrangements. This can be viewed from the related links.
The SRA's responsibilities for Complaints Handling Procedure (CHP) and Disabled People's Protection Policies (DPPP) transferred to the DfT on 24 July 2005 under the Railways Act 2005. The SRA guidance on CHP is still valid and can be viewed in Related Links. For information on the DPPP, please email; railwaysforall@dft.gsi.gov.uk for the latest advice
In November 2006, we consulted on possible changes to ORR's Third Party Liability Insurance requirements (Insurance Review Consultation, November 2006). Our letter of 23 February 2007 set out our conclusions and how are going forward. In August 2007 we consulted on a proposal by Network Rail for jointly purchased insurance cover. Our letter of 31 October 2007 gave reasons why we will not be doing more work on that proposal.
