May I ask if you have anything in writing from TFL confirming that your card was not blocked as i think that this would help enormously in enabling the appeals chaps to understand.
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Why is it a niche case? I have a number of cards in my Samsung Pay, and my default express travel card is indeed different to my normal day to day one. An inspection device should read the correct option
Hi, thanks for replying. I presented my phone for inspection, not the physical linked card, as I had used the phone to tap in at Victoria. I know it's not interchangeable and they have different journey histories - I've only used the physical card once this year for a bus journey in January and prior to that not since October 2025 as it's easier to use the phone rather than get my wallet out. I've gone back as far as I can with the journey history of the physical card and can't see any unpaid fares or unfinished journeys.
I find it remarkable that we are having to defend this point - which should be bloody obvious - to be honest.
Thanks for replying - my default card on my phone for non-travel payments is my personal account. The default card for travel is my joint account card
Thanks for replying. I can't see any reference on the PFN to the card number. When I first presented my phone to the device there was a negative-sounding beep (can't think of another way to describe it!) so I'm pretty sure I then went into my Apple Wallet and selected the right card, as I thought at first I'd presented the old personal account card that I used to travel with which would obviously throw up an alert.
The joint account card. The personal account card was never registered with them so there is no journey history I can look up, although I assume if I did register it now I could see anything outstanding which might have caused the alert? TfL confirmed that there was no block on either the physical joint account card, or the digital version on my phone. Both cards have always said "ready to travel" when I've logged into my contactless account.
Thanks for replying. Neither of the two inspections (14th April and 28th April) are showing on my contactless journey history. What is showing is the revenue inspection I had on 30th April which I think was TfL not Southeastern, although the inspector didn't formally identify herself. That just says "Your card was checked by a revenue inspector", and gives the time and date. The inspection itself was all fine and she had no problems.
Thanks for replying. I don't have anything in writing from TfL, but I did get the name of the operator and a call reference number, which I sent off with my first round appeal for the 14th April check. This doesn't seem to have been looked at as Penalty Services have rejected the first round appeal, but I will send it in again with the second round.
You could register the card to see (I believe) the usage for the previous 12 months.
What happens when you try, out of interest?
It says "Problem adding card", then underneath this message:
No, this isn’t the case, but regardless would not make a difference as the revenue devices do not check a card is tapped in.
Reading this, my instinct says that you made journeys using the phone as normal and were revenue inspected on the wrong card. As that only had two revenue inspection charges and no touch ins or outs it is entirely possible that TfL blocked it. A revenue inspection on a not blocked card or device will succeed whether there is an issue or not. The imposition of the charge is made by the back office if it decides you weren't touched in at the time.
I think you've slightly misunderstood. Two incomplete journeys would not normally lead to a block. But two revenue inspections without any other touches would. I think you've travelled normally using the desired card but the revenue checks have gone on the other card, hence it got blocked. After that, the revenue checks said that the card was blocked, because it was, but they shouldn't have been checking the card that they were.
I don’t think this is strange. The LU inspections will have been the two maximum fares, and it was because of these the card was then blocked. Once it was blocked the SE inspections happened and they failed.
The LU inspection comes after the Southeastern ones.
No. The LU inspection (singular) was more recent.
Thanks @MikeWh , this is correct. The SE inspections took place on 14 and 28 April, and both came up saying the card was blocked. The third inspection was on 30 April, on a SE train travelling between Shortlands and Victoria, and that was fine. If the devices do behave differently then the TfL one is picking up the card set to Express Travel, the card I have been using, and the SE ones are picking up the default non-travel card and assuming that is the one used to travel.
Thanks for replying. I have a card on my phone set to Express Travel and have been using this to pay for the majority of my travel since October 2025 and for all of my travel since January 2026. I don't unlock the phone, just touch it to the gate reader when entering and exiting a station. I also have a second card on my phone, which was my Express Travel card until October 2025 when I switched them. It's this card which I think is blocked and causing the problem. I have tried to register it with TfL but it's not currently letting me do so.
Just to help you register it: the verification system TfL uses means it will charge you £0.01 during the registration process. if that card is blocked to all transactions, (perhaps you've blocked it on your bank's app?) then it won't allow you to register with TfL. So you may need to undo that block to register it, and apply it back after if you so wish. Speaking from firsthand experience.
The error message TfL provide is characteristically useless and does not really communicate what is going on properly at all, but reading between the lines it looks like they may also be wanting a positive AVS response - so probably worth double-checking the billing address provided (and on-file with the card issuer) as well.
This changes things. That was almost certainly a Southeastern check. They may therefore have resolved the issue with their RIDs.
Thanks @Mattplans , I've now registered the blocked card and the two failed revenue inspections from November 25 and January 26 are on there (actually when I cross-checked them with the unblocked card, the same thing had happened - travelling with the Express Travel-enabled card, but revenue checked on the other default payment card, which meant no record of a journey hence the maximum charge). I've taken a screenshot from my TfL account showing no journey history on that card for April 2026 which will hopefully assist in the 2nd round appealJust to help you register it: the verification system TfL uses means it will charge you £0.01 during the registration process. if that card is blocked to all transactions, (perhaps you've blocked it on your bank's app?) then it won't allow you to register with TfL. So you may need to undo that block to register it, and apply it back after if you so wish. Speaking from firsthand experience.
If those are the only two cards you have on your phone, try the above to get it unblocked, and then let us know if the failed inspections are there. If not, you may have to contact TfL to help you register it.
if you can't manage to unblock the card, the next time you travel try to pay with that card you suspect is the blocked one - if you cannot validate it on the card readers at Shortlands I think it's highly likely this is the case and it's that card that's been causing you some issues, and you erroneously presented that card to the Southeastern RPIs. (Obviously if it fails, pay with your other card or your new oyster)
Regardless, I do think that an appeal should be successful 3rd round due to the fact your other registered card clearly shows you made the journeys in question and paid for it.
I'm thinking - although some other members may be better placed to comment on this - that your appeal shouldn't try to explain that you had a blocked card, and all the digressions on Express Travel etc etc, just explain that the penalty was issued incorrectly because you did pay for your journey, and that you can prove it. The general consensus here is that the individuals that review these appeals have difficulty following a long sequence of events, and it's better to serve it to them straight and leave no room for misinterpretation.
Upload your original appeal as well and we can make some recommendations on how to improve that for your 2nd round.
Thanks @MikeWh , it was my error as my laptop was auto-filling an incorrect expiry date for the card which I hadn't spotted. Once I cleared it and inputted the numbers manually it worked fine.
Good news. That's exactly what I thought had happened. Can you contact the helpdesk again with evidence of both cards and ask if they'll (a) refund the two erroneous charges, and (b) unblock the card so you can use it again if you so decide. Please let us know how you get on.
