The Federal Antimonopoly Service of Russia has developed new rules… (билет · возврат · фас)
The Federal Antimonopoly Service of Russia has developed new rules allowing railway operators to set refund fees for unused tickets up to 10% of the ticket price, aiming to reduce ticket returns and combat scalpers. This follows a significant increase in refunds since the pandemic-related reduction of refund costs in 2020.
Consensus
- The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) of Russia has developed new rules for railway ticket refunds.
- Railway operators will be allowed to set refund fees up to 10% of the ticket price.
- The current low refund fee, reduced in 2020 due to the pandemic, has led to a more than threefold increase in ticket returns compared to pre-pandemic levels.
- FAS believes these changes will reduce the number of refunds, decrease artificially created shortages, and ensure sufficient ticket availability during peak seasons.
- In 2025, over 25 million railway tickets were returned, with about 9 million remaining unsold.
Points of divergence
- As of May 30, payment by bank card at turnstiles and validators for MCD and suburban trains has been suspended unless passengers use the 'Moscow Metro' app or their bank's passenger portal, requiring a top-up for maximum travel distance. — vm
Coverage (3 sources)
- Antimonopoly Service Finds Way to Combat Resale of Railway Tickets — Вести
- FAS develops new rules for returning railway tickets to combat scalping — Вечерняя Москва
- FAS Suggests Rail Carriers Determine Refund Fees Themselves Within 10% of Ticket Cost — Интерфакс