BR Fares now selling itinerary-free tickets

[8ace]

A ticket from St Pancras to London Bridge would be £4.10 for a single so that's cheaper than the refund admin fee.

Thanks but I actually bought four tickets so I think the refund option will still work out cheapest providing it's per booking and not per ticket.

 

[walkingsophie]

Thanks but I actually bought four tickets so I think the refund option will still work out cheapest providing it's per booking and not per ticket.

If you have an easily accessible ticket office, trying for an excess could also be sensible.

 

[Paul Kelly]

I think in this case the admin fee for the refund can be waived considering the lack of clarity (albeit technically accreditation-compliant, I feel I must point out!) - for which I am currently working on a small improvement.

 

[Adam Williams]

I think in this case the admin fee for the refund can be waived considering the lack of clarity (albeit technically accreditation-compliant, I feel I must point out!) - for which I am currently working on a small improvement.

@8ace can you please ask support to process the refund (or if you've already done it self-service, to refund the admin fee).

 

[8ace]

@8ace can you please ask support to process the refund (or if you've already done it self-service, to refund the admin fee).

Thanks Adam, would that be via info@brfares.com?

 

[Adam Williams]

support@brfares.com for ticketing/after-sales queries

 

[8ace]

support@brfares.com for ticketing/after-sales queries

Thanks mate, refund sorted

 

[Tester]

Thanks mate, refund sorted

Now if only 'the railway' could operate to such customer service principles

 

[Belperpete]

If you have an easily accessible ticket office, trying for an excess could also be sensible.

In my experience, ticket offices are rarely willing to issue zero value excesses.

 

[Paul Kelly]

I've updated the display to make this a lot clearer and hopefully present similar mistakes in the future. Thanks to Raileasy for the quick re-accreditation of this small change.

 

[Belperpete]

They absolutely can. BRFares is a service for expert users giving access to and selling directly from the fares data including some fares that have no validity whatsoever, and it makes this clear.

Laypeople should use a journey planner based site to be sold a ticket valid for what they want to do (though some of those also get this wrong).

This is the point I was making previously. It needs to be made absolutely clear that it is up to the purchaser to ensure that the ticket they buy is valid for the journey they intend making.

Some buyers may know the difference in validity between tickets to St Pancras, London Terminals and London Thameslink, but many won't. And likewise many may not appreciate that a fare that was valid on a particular train or via a particular route one day may not be valid the next day.

The site is a joy to use for those who know what they want, but my concern is that it makes it too easy for those who don't know what they are doing to buy the wrong ticket.

My suggestion would be a bold panel at the top of the list of fares warning that not all the fares shown may be valid for the journey you want to make, and that it is up to you to check that you select the correct one.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 21 Sep 2026 ==

I've updated the display to make this a lot clearer and hopefully present similar mistakes in the future. Thanks to Raileasy for the quick re-accreditation of this small change.

View attachment 211932

If someone attempts to buy a ticket from Farringdon, do they get a similar warning?

As an aside, I do like this way BRfares displays all the relevant ticketing information in this one easy to read place before you buy your ticket.

 

[8ace]

A bit off-topic but I've been mis-sold this ticket before from other retailers (was either Thameslink or Uber). The reason I bought this was so that after my hospital appoint at London Bridge I wanted to travel up to STP so I could get a seat back to Brighton in the evening peak. I'd already set off before I noticed it was issued to/from London Terminals so had to let one train go at LBG before getting a seat on the next one.

 

[Wallsendmag]

A bit off-topic but I've been mis-sold this ticket before from other retailers (was either Thameslink or Uber). The reason I bought this was so that after my hospital appoint at London Bridge I wanted to travel up to STP so I could get a seat back to Brighton in the evening peak. I'd already set off before I noticed it was issued to/from London Terminals so had to let one train go at LBG before getting a seat on the next one.

There are various anomalies like this in the industry data, Veterans Railcards are another one. They need to be fixed

 

[Haywain]

after my hospital appoint at London Bridge I wanted to travel up to STP so I could get a seat back to Brighton in the evening peak.

You could still have dropped back as far as City Thameslink.

 

[Paul Kelly]

My suggestion would be a bold panel at the top of the list of fares warning that not all the fares shown may be valid for the journey you want to make, and that it is up to you to check that you select the correct one.

For on-the-day purchases that can't be refunded, i.e. the point of no return, there is an additional warning right on the payment page:

Same-day Fare: Limited Refunds
It is your responsibility to ensure your fare is valid for the service(s) you intend to use.

The "Pay" button is also right next to a prominent link to the Terms & Conditions which has a whole section on "Your Responsibility to Check", explaining: Because BR Fares does not have a journey-planner interface that picks specific trains for you, you are responsible for satisfying yourself that the fare you are buying suits your intended journey.

If someone attempts to buy a ticket from Farringdon, do they get a similar warning?

Farringdon is not in the London Terminals group so the issue does not exist there - were you thinking of something else?

 

[redreni]

Laypeople don't always want journey planners.

Maybe not, but then you've got to work out if you're taking a valid route.

Journey planners are very much the easiest way to do that, especially for a layperson.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 21 Sep 2026 ==

A bit off-topic but I've been mis-sold this ticket before from other retailers (was either Thameslink or Uber).

If you're mis-sold a ticket by a journey planner based retailer and they give you an itinerary, you can follow the route shown on your itinerary whether it's supposed to be valid or not. It's the retailer's responsibility to check.

BRFares is offering you a service where it's your responsibility to check. Appreciate it's difficult with journeys between St Pancras and points South, or City Thameslink, Blackfriars, London Bridge or Elephant & Castle and points north. Or between Liverpool Street and points west or between Paddington and points east.

 

[talldave]

Just a short post to say thank you for the Quickfare feature.

I've bookmarked the Quickfare URL for my regular ticket which means I can then purchase in TWO clicks! This is fantastic, since the Forum's site needs 7 or 8 clicks .

It makes a big difference when you're trying to buy the ticket whilst running to the station to catch the train!!

 

[Belperpete]

For on-the-day purchases that can't be refunded, i.e. the point of no return, there is an additional warning right on the payment page:

The "Pay" button is also right next to a prominent link to the Terms & Conditions which has a whole section on "Your Responsibility to Check", explaining: Because BR Fares does not have a journey-planner interface that picks specific trains for you, you are responsible for satisfying yourself that the fare you are buying suits your intended journey.

I agree that the information is there, but hidden in a box headed refunds, or in a t&c link that very few people will click on, does not make it obvious in my opinion.

I think buyers should be warned about the importance of selecting the correct fare BEFORE they select a fare. And it is important that they do so, not only because they may not be able to get it refunded, but far more importantly because they may get penalised if they travel with an incorrect ticket.

 

[Haywain]

I think buyers should be warned about the importance of selecting the correct fare BEFORE they select a fare. And it is important that they do so, not only because they may not be able to get it refunded, but far more importantly because they may get penalised if they travel with an incorrect ticket.

I use BRFares a lot, but not often for buying tickets. Why do I need such a warning? Selling tickets is not, as far as I know, the main purpose of the site.

 

[Paul Kelly]

I think buyers should be warned about the importance of selecting the correct fare BEFORE they select a fare. And it is important that they do so, not only because they may not be able to get it refunded, but far more importantly because they may get penalised if they travel with an incorrect ticket.

I think we might have to agree to disagree. I feel strongly that that would be one warning too many, and would risk "warning fatigue". The whole premise of the site has always been to provide as much information as possible on when fares are valid to use. A warning saying it's important to check all the information shown when selecting your fare (in case it might not be valid for your intended journey) is a bit like a warning on a timetable saying it's important to check the departure time of your train (in case you might miss it).

Just a short post to say thank you for the Quickfare feature.

I've bookmarked the Quickfare URL for my regular ticket which means I can then purchase in TWO clicks! This is fantastic, since the Forum's site needs 7 or 8 clicks .

It makes a big difference when you're trying to buy the ticket whilst running to the station to catch the train!!

Right, that's the exact scenario it was intended for! Glad to hear it's useful

 

[Adam Williams]

I agree that the information is there, but hidden in a box headed refunds, or in a t&c link that very few people will click on, does not make it obvious in my opinion.

I think buyers should be warned about the importance of selecting the correct fare BEFORE they select a fare. And it is important that they do so, not only because they may not be able to get it refunded, but far more importantly because they may get penalised if they travel with an incorrect ticket.

Should my oven provide me with a prominent warning before I turn it on that I can burn myself if the temperature I set exceeds about 40 degrees Celsius?
Perhaps there should be a very large sticker on the front of every oven and kettle, given how severe the consequences of burns can be?

In fact, perhaps it's worth me complaining to Nissan that my car didn't warn me anywhere of the risks of driving into a wall at 30mph!

 

[Tester]

I think we might have to agree to disagree. I feel strongly that that would be one warning too many, and would risk "warning fatigue". The whole premise of the site has always been to provide as much information as possible on when fares are valid to use. A warning saying it's important to check all the information shown when selecting your fare (in case it might not be valid for your intended journey) is a bit like a warning on a timetable saying it's important to check the departure time of your train (in case you might miss it).

I fully support your reasoning.

A simple general reminder to the effect that users who do not know what they are doing should use a journey planner site seems entirely sufficient.

 

[Baxenden Bank]

Should my oven provide me with a prominent warning before I turn it on that I can burn myself if the temperature I set exceeds about 40 degrees Celsius?
Perhaps there should be a very large sticker on the front of every oven and kettle, given how severe the consequences of burns can be?

In fact, perhaps it's worth me complaining to Nissan that my car didn't warn me anywhere of the risks of driving into a wall at 30mph!

Well, there's a sticker in many a hotel I've stayed in warning me that the hot water may be hot!
Unfortunately that's the way the world is going.

However I feel there are enough warnings and the site is for, at least reasonably, knowledgeable users. My only gripe thus far has been the need to hover over a link to determine the difference between London Stations/Terminals, Thameslink and 'not underground' fares. Oh, and I can never seem to find the actual 'pay' button at the end of the process.