Only one fifth of those who overpaid Dublin Bus fares last year cashed in the receipts for their refunds.

In a possible indicator of consumer buoyancy, far fewer passengers are claiming the money back than in the depths of the recession five years ago.

A Dublin Bus spokesman said drivers issued on average €1 million in receipts for overpayment of fares annually, and last year 20 per cent of the fund – or €200,000 – was claimed back in refunds.

The company would not give a breakdown of the number of passengers involved, saying “this information is sensitive”.

However, it provided figures showing the proportion of those cashing in their receipts rose following the economic crash but has since declined.

Rise and fall

In 2007, 26 per cent of refund receipts were cashed in. This rose to 28 per cent in 2008, 29 per cent in 2009, 31 per cent in 2010 and 33 per cent in 2011.

A third of receipts were claimed in 2012 but this fell to a quarter in both 2013 and 2014, before falling to a fifth last year.

Dublin Bus said a rolling fund was retained to allow customers to reclaim their change at any time by submitting their receipts at Dublin Bus Head Office on O’Connell Street. There is no expiry date on the refund receipts.

Since 2003 the company has allocated a portion of the unclaimed change to the Dublin Bus Community Spirit Awards. Each year grants are awarded to Dublin charities and voluntary groups as part of the programme.