This is a theoretical question. On Thursday I went to collect some TOD tickets from the machine. It said it could not make contact with system do go to ticket office. Ticket office was shut due possibly to failure of staff to arrive on time. Machine was dispensing tickets upon payment. As it happened the tickets I was collecting were for another day but had I wanted to travel immediately would I have to have bought new tickets and if so how does one get a refund for the uncollected ones. Could one risk getting on the train and collecting tickets at destination where presumably the machine would be working?
-
Our new ticketing site is now live! Using either this or the original site (both powered by TrainSplit) helps support the running of the forum with every ticket purchase! Find out more and ask any questions/give us feedback in this thread!
no ticket but machine working to sell tickets
- Thread starter dcd
- Start date
- Status
Sponsor Post - registered members do not see these adverts; click here to register, or click here to log in
R
RailUK Forums
At the TOC I work for, when there are issues with TVMs and booking offices machines communicating with the TOD system - we get emails asking us to use discretion with customers who have been unable to collect their tickets. This does require someone reporting a problem, and it affecting multiple customers, though.
As for boarding the train having been unable to collect tickets, you could well find yourself paying for a new ticket - as this is what staff are instructed to do under normal circumstances. You should also then be advised to approach the seller from whom you purchased your TOD to get a refund.
As for boarding the train having been unable to collect tickets, you could well find yourself paying for a new ticket - as this is what staff are instructed to do under normal circumstances. You should also then be advised to approach the seller from whom you purchased your TOD to get a refund.
bb21
Emeritus Moderator
- Joined
- 4 Feb 2010
- Messages
- 24,465
I would say as a general rule, if you can, buy another ticket and claim the cost of this additional ticket back from the TOC who runs the ticket machine.
Except where the contract explicitly makes alternative provisions, your claim should surely always be made against the company from which you purchased the original tickets. How that claim is resolved between that company and its agents is none of your concern.
If you don't like the idea of dealing with a remote help desk when problems occur, then buy your tickets directly from your local ticket office!
This is what the KnowledgeBase tells staff to advise passengers.
The customer service teams can then sort out who is responsible between themselves.
Flamingo
Established Member
- Joined
- 26 Apr 2010
- Messages
- 6,806
Whenever I see this, I wonder how many people get away with showing their booking e-mail on the train, giving the usual excuses, then claim a refund later...
But if I book a very cheap Advance for a long distance journey for, say, £20 I might end up having to pay over £100 for a walk on fare to allow me to travel.
A couple of years ago I arrived at Milton Keynes in good time to collect my tickets from the TVM before a journey to Manchester but the queue was out of the door and not moving at all (never seen anything like it before or since). I asked advice from staff in the booking hall about what to do (I was travelling on an Advance ticket) and was told to get on the train and explain to the guard - a classic 'man on the platform' scenario!
I had a word with the guard upon boarding. She said she wasn't supposed to let me travel but would 'let me off'. A few minutes later she told me she'd had a message on her blackberry about the problems at Milton Keynes and to allow passengers to travel.
A couple of years ago I arrived at Milton Keynes in good time to collect my tickets from the TVM before a journey to Manchester but the queue was out of the door and not moving at all (never seen anything like it before or since). I asked advice from staff in the booking hall about what to do (I was travelling on an Advance ticket) and was told to get on the train and explain to the guard - a classic 'man on the platform' scenario!
I had a word with the guard upon boarding. She said she wasn't supposed to let me travel but would 'let me off'. A few minutes later she told me she'd had a message on her blackberry about the problems at Milton Keynes and to allow passengers to travel.
bb21
Emeritus Moderator
- Joined
- 4 Feb 2010
- Messages
- 24,465
I should have added that the details should then be left to the train companies to sort out.
I know the iKB says otherwise, and that contract law may say differently, but speaking from experience, I find that the TOC operating the machines are generally more proactive if the matter requires forwarding, with mixed outcomes in terms of who pays out in the cases where this happened to me.
Furthermore to a passenger, who is supposed to see the railway industry still working as one, the issue at hand is that the machines are not printing the tickets already paid for, so it is not unreasonable to complain to the TOC operating the ticket machines imo.
I think the bottom line is to complain to someone, then the nitty-gritty is left to the industry.
dysonsphere
Member
- Joined
- 22 Jan 2013
- Messages
- 518
I've done it with valid reason as in going from local station (Longton) to Stoke on Trent as that has the nearst pick up for tickets and no problem at all.
Do you mean Longton has no TOD facilities? If that's so then you should have picked up your tickets before starting travel.
- Status