Train crash victims offered compensation package, but still waiting for answers

Two and a half months after the deadly train accident in the Paris suburb of Brétigny-sur Orge, France’s national railway company and the government have presented victims and families of victims with a compensation package.

An SNCF train was involved in the July crash. Reuters/Charles Platiau

A meeting was held in Paris on Saturday for those affected by the crash, in the presence of the French national rail company, SNCF, French railway owners Réseau ferré de France, insurance companies and members of government.

The groups have worked together to create a compensation package that will evaluate individual cases according to the injuries inflicted by the crash, both physical and psychological.

France’s Transport Minister Frédéric Cuvillier, in attendance at the meeting, did not give any revelations as to how investigations into the accident were proceeding, much to the chagrin of certain participants.

"We still don't know what happened," train passenger Jean-Robert Baroux told French TV outlet BFM-TV. "The cause [of the accident] still has not been determined."

However, the public prosecution of Evry, to the southwest of Paris, promised that there would be a preliminary report by the end of December to determine official charges.

Questions remain whether the cause of the accident was material failure, wilful misconduct or negligence.

Cuvullier stated during the meeting that it was up to the victims to accept amicably the proposed compensation package, or to seek additional legal action against those responsible.

On July 12, a passenger train carrying 385 people derailed and hit the platform at Brétigny-sur-Orge, to the south of Paris. Seven people were killed and dozens wounded.