On the day that a consumers’ watchdog warned of difficulties in claiming compensation for late trains, Greater Anglia insisted its Delay Repay scheme was one of the best in the country.

Consumer group Which? said its study of online claim forms showed customers seeking payouts for disruption face a "fragmented and confusing" system.

Greater Anglia had one of the most complex forms for passengers to use, demanding 24 separate details before a claim can be submitted.

It is one of the companies offering Delay Repay 15, which enables payouts for delays of more than 15 minutes.

Which? said customers are often asked for "seemingly irrelevant details" which creates "unnecessary barriers" to receiving the money they are owed.

However Greater Anglia said figures revealed its scheme was one of the most efficient in the country.

While people did have to fill in forms, season ticket holders only had to make an initial claim for compensation - which stored their details so any subsequent claims were very quick.

Greater Anglia's Head of Customer Service, Lynsey Flack, said, "We're really proud of our Delay Repay scheme. It's been developed and improved by listening to our customers, making it quick and easy for them to claim.

"If you register online the system remembers all your details so you don't have to resubmit information into a lengthy form - it's all done for you.

"We're also really proud that we've reduced the amount of time trains have to be delayed before you can make a claim to 15 minutes - and we've sped up the processing time for claims so that customers get their money back quicker too."

Which? managing director of public markets Alex Hayman said: "It's clear this fragmented and confusing compensation system leads to people losing out on a lot of money when they have already suffered enough from unacceptable levels of delays and cancellations.

"The technology exists to deliver compensation automatically, but the industry continues to drag its heels, while benefiting from a system that deters passengers from claiming the money they are owed."