Ten train companies with the worst customer satisfaction rates

Strike-hit Southern rail has been rated the worst UK train company by customers after months of cancelled and delayed services.

The latest annual survey by the consumer group Which? saw the train operator's customer satisfaction score halve from 44 per cent last year to 21 per cent this year.

The train company received just one-star ratings for punctuality, reliability, seat availability, frequency and value for money.

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"After months of disruption, it's no surprise to see Southern at the bottom of our customer satisfaction survey," said Vickie Sheriff, director of campaigns and communications at Which?

"Though Southern have performed particularly badly this year, the whole sector is continually failing passengers. Overcrowding, delays, short trains, carriages in poor condition – many services aren't providing even the basics. Enough is enough – we need rail services that finally deliver for their passengers."

South Eastern and Thameslink and Great Northern were also at the bottom of the list with scores of 31 per cent and 32 per cent respectively.

The top train company was Merseyrail, with a 72 per cent rating, followed by Virgin Trains West Coast and East Midlands Trains.

The UK continues to be one of the most expensive countries in Europe for rail travel, with many firms increasing train fares again at the start of the year by 1.8 per cent.

GTR, which owns Southern, acknowledged its performance was "unacceptable" and told This is Money it was "working hard" to improve. However, a spokesman also pointed the blame at what he called the "wholly unjustified industrial action being taken by Aslef and the RMT".

RMT general secretary Mick Cash said the report showed that Southern were the "absolute worst of a bad bunch when it comes to Britain's rotten, privatised railways".

The survey was carried out in October and November last year, and published yesterday.

Infographic by www.statista.com for TheWeek.co.uk.