Signing twice for tickets

[railboy]

Last weekend I renewed a Zonecard at Motherwell station, paying by card. My card is a signature card and I was told that I had to sign two seperatem receipts rather than just one. When I explained that this shouldn't happen I was assured I wouldn't be double charged and this was just the procedure. Concerned, I spoke to the bank who told me I shouldn't sign twice unless the retailer produces a void slip showing the first transaction is cancelled. I'm told the receipts with a signature is sent to them for payment so if I sign twice I risk being double charged.

Is this a common practice within the railway? What should I do if the above situation arises again?

 

[bunnahabhain]

I know some guards who get you to sign the retailer and customer copies of the same receipts.

 

[railboy]

I know some guards who get you to sign the retailer and customer copies of the same receipts.

I don't mind if I keep one of the signed copies, the sales receipt I was given has no signature and no space for one. The ticket office printed two copies of the same receipt to sign, took them both and put them in the till. Wouldn't a customer copy be retained by the customer? I'm not sure why they need two copies at the risk of me being double charged (which would have happened had i not notified the bank).

 

[swj99]

If you signed the second one on the basis that you would not be charged, then if it turns out you do get charged twice, you can dispute the second payment with your card issuer on the grounds that you did not authorise it.

 

[GadgetMan]

I'm told the receipts with a signature is sent to them for payment so if I sign twice I risk being double charged.

Perhaps one copy is for sending to the bank and the other is retained for railway records.

 

[Hadders]

Perhaps one copy is for sending to the bank and the other is retained for railway records.

Nothing is sent to the bank (unless the transaction is done on one of the old fashioned 'ip-zap' machines, but if this was the case the voucher would be in triplicate so multiple signatures wouldn't be needed)

 

[hairyhandedfool]

STAR prints three sales vouchers per transaction where a signature is required, two have a space for a signature, the third is the customer copy. I only ever ask for one signature and I have never been asked to send anything to a bank, or even the accounts department. I think they would only be requested where a passenger has claimed not to have made the transaction.

As card transactions are not really controlled by office staff, I think it is very unlikely you will be charged twice. STAR will not allow tickets to be printed until the clerk states that a signature is obtained and correct, where two transactions do occur, the card would have to be swiped twice, once before each set of tickets is printed.

In other words, for the clerk to charge your card twice they would have to get the card swiped, check your signature, print the tickets, set up another ticket, swipe your card again, get another signature and then they'd be left with another set of tickets. The only way I can see a clerk benefiting from this should be spotted by accounts pretty quickly and that would lead to the clerk being dismissed and facing the justice system.

Other ticket machines may vary, but are unlikely to be very different.

I have known of people to be charged twice in error, but, in each case I know of, the number of signatures was not a factor.

 

[westv]

I didn't even realise signature only cards still existed!

 

[hairyhandedfool]

I didn't even realise signature only cards still existed!

Usually it's chip and sign, but some nations don't have chip and pin.

 

[railboy]

STAR prints three sales vouchers per transaction where a signature is required, two have a space for a signature, the third is the customer copy. I only ever ask for one signature and I have never been asked to send anything to a bank, or even the accounts department. I think they would only be requested where a passenger has claimed not to have made the transaction.

As card transactions are not really controlled by office staff, I think it is very unlikely you will be charged twice. STAR will not allow tickets to be printed until the clerk states that a signature is obtained and correct, where two transactions do occur, the card would have to be swiped twice, once before each set of tickets is printed.

In other words, for the clerk to charge your card twice they would have to get the card swiped, check your signature, print the tickets, set up another ticket, swipe your card again, get another signature and then they'd be left with another set of tickets. The only way I can see a clerk benefiting from this should be spotted by accounts pretty quickly and that would lead to the clerk being dismissed and facing the justice system.

Other ticket machines may vary, but are unlikely to be very different.

I have known of people to be charged twice in error, but, in each case I know of, the number of signatures was not a factor.

My card was not swiped. It was inserted into the chip and pin keypad and I was told to do this twice. After the second time that's when I was told to sign two receipts. My card has never been swiped. Would it have been different if he had swiped the card?

 

[hairyhandedfool]

My card was not swiped. It was inserted into the chip and pin keypad and I was told to do this twice. After the second time that's when I was told to sign two receipts. My card has never been swiped. Would it have been different if he had swiped the card?

No, chip and sign works the same way. Did the machine issue two sets of tickets?