BOSSES at a rail operator - which runs most of Bolton's local services - say they have recouped £10m via anti-fraud work in 18 months.

Counter-measures by investigators working on behalf of Northern, to tackle fare refund cheats have been highlighted.

And the tally is nearly double what the scheme paid out - around £6m - since March 2020.

Under Northern's 'delay repay' scheme, passengers are entitled to varying levels of compensation for hold-ups to their journeys.

This can range from 12.5 per cent of a single ticket cost, for a 15 to 29 minute delay, to a full refund for a two-hour wait.

Northern officials say they have been working with colleagues at the popular ticketing app and website Trainline to block fake claims, which are said to cost the industry as a whole ten of millions of pounds each year.

Jason Wade, the operator's retail operations head, said: "Our customers are at the heart of all we do and we want to ensure we are able to reinvest as much money as possible into making the improvements those customers want to see across the Northern network.

"Sadly, all too often, our investigators find there are those who try to make fake refund claims to effectively steal public money from the railway.

"This doesn’t just harm Northern as an operator, it means those funds are then not available to put back into making the network the best it can be.

"We have to stay one step ahead of people trying to make fraudulent claims and our team, together with our partners at Trainline, are constantly developing new methods of identifying fake claims and then blocking future claims from offenders."

Champa Magesh, Trainline's president, added: "Working with Northern to reduce fraud has meant we are saving taxpayer money and helping our partner reinvest these funds for the good of their customers.

“This reinvestment will, ultimately, help make the train travel experience for rail users in the North even more seamless, encouraging more people to choose the train over other less sustainable forms of transport."