Rail Travel Vouchers - Why Keep Them?

[Esker-pades]

The title says it all really.

They appear to be large administrative headaches. They are all too frequently issued with errors in them, meaning staff either have to manually input data or they have to be re-issued. I avoid them when applying for compensation, although I have been issued with a couple in my time.

Background information (such as the number of times they're actually issued, used etc.) may also be pertinent. I suspect that they're not issued comparatively often. If that's correct, is the low quantity the reason that they haven't been abolished (IE: the inconvenience is outweighed by the cost it would take to withdraw them), or is it a sign that they should be? I would argue the latter.

What I'm really interested in is the reasons to keep them. I'm assuming that there must be some.

 

[Bletchleyite]

I see no sense in them at all and hold the view that they are rather a nuisance and should be abolished. If compensation needs to be paid, just pay it in actual money via BACS or PayPal (or a cheque if you absolutely must), or if a TOC wanted to give a free ticket a voucher code for their online sales site could be offered instead (LM did that for me once in the early days of their Twitter), or something that *actually is* a ticket like Northern do.

 

[sheff1]

Potential benefits for the TOCs are
(i) RTVs can only be used to buy more railway 'products' - so TOCs 'get their money back'
(ii) some people may lose the RTVs or have no cause to use them - so TOCs have not 'lost' any money.

I see no obvious benefits for passengers now that various other options are available.

 

[Belperpete]

Potential benefits for the TOCs are
(i) RTVs can only be used to buy more railway 'products' - so TOCs 'get their money back'

When an RTV is used with a different TOC, it must presumably cost the issuing TOC. Is there some kind of clearing house arrangement? But I agree, most RTVs are probably used with the issuing TOC, so are more or less free. And I suspect this is the main reason they are still available: the TOCs like them because they cost them less than real money.

I get the impression that discretionary payments are more likely by RTVs, probably for this reason. In most cases where I have raised a customer complaint, as opposed to a delay repay claim, any compensation has usually been by RTVs. Rarely have I been asked how I want the compensation paid.

I would not be happy if ending RTVs meant TOCs were less inclined to make discretionary payments.

 

[Belperpete]

if a TOC wanted to give a free ticket a voucher code for their online sales site could be offered instead (LM did that for me once in the early days of their Twitter), or something that *actually is* a ticket like Northern do.

I would NOT be happy if an RTV that can be used with any TOC were to be replaced with a ticket or voucher that can only be used with one TOC. If I lived south of the Thames, how much use would a free Northern ticket be to me?

 

[Clip]

I see no obvious benefits for passengers now that various other options are available.

I like them because when they give me a derisory amount of delay repay i know it costs them far more than that to process it.

 

[Bletchleyite]

I would NOT be happy if an RTV that can be used with any TOC were to be replaced with a ticket or voucher that can only be used with one TOC. If I lived south of the Thames, how much use would a free Northern ticket be to me?

Have your compensation in money, then. You can spend it with any TOC then, and as an added bonus in every shop in the country too.

 

[Belperpete]

I like them because when they give me a derisory amount of delay repay i know it costs them far more than that to process it.

Does it? As the RTV probably costs them less than face value. Wouldn't asking for a cheque cost them more than an RTV?

 

[Belperpete]

Have your compensation in money, then. You can spend it with any TOC then, and as an added bonus in every shop in the country too.

Agreed: where I am entitled to compensation, I now usually ask for it through Paypal, following a TOC issuing me a single RTV for the best-part of £100, which I found almost impossible to spend. But where there is any element of discretion involved, I always ask for RTVs, for the reasons discussed above. Better to have an RTV than little or no money.

 

[Clip]

Does it? As the RTV probably costs them less than face value. Wouldn't asking for a cheque cost them more than an RTV?

they still need a person to sort it and then the postage of it too - far more than the £1.10 they seem keen on giving me at times