Peak rate Travelcard on a Saturday

[tom1649]

I'm not quite sure how I managed this but when I ordered my tickets to London from East Midlands Trains for travel on Saturday 4th February and I chose a Travelcard to go with my tickets, I somehow managed to select an all day Travelcard instead of an off peak one.

Obviously it's all off peak on a Saturday. It is clearly my fault that I chose the £15.80 Zones 1-6. My question is, is it even possible to issue a peak rate travelcard for travel on a Saturday? If so, will it work through the barriers? If it isn't possible, will East Midlands Trains send me an off peak Travelcard and refund me the difference?

Thanks.

 

[LexyBoy]

My question is, is it even possible to issue a peak rate travelcard for travel on a Saturday?

It's possible to issue pretty much anything! And it will certainly be valid on a Saturday - it is after all an Anytime ticket.

It might be worth calling/emailing EMT customer services to see if they would refund the ticket (as bought in error) and then buy an Off Peak ticket instead. However, it may not be possible without a £10 admin fee which would make it pointless.

I would also say that it wouldn't have happened if buying at a ticket office instead of online! This sort of error is part of the reason why TOCs love TVMs and online sales; they won't warn you if the ticket you're buying is inappropriate for the journey (unless a more expensive ticket is required of course).

 

[34D]

I would also say that it wouldn't have happened if buying at a ticket office instead of online! This sort of error is part of the reason why TOCs love TVMs and online sales; they won't warn you if the ticket you're buying is inappropriate for the journey (unless a more expensive ticket is required of course).

Indeed. May I go further, and suggest that it is a failing of the relevant website that an anytime ticket was even displayed as an option.

I would like to think that EMT will refund the difference in full....

 

[hairyhandedfool]

Indeed. May I go further, and suggest that it is a failing of the relevant website that an anytime ticket was even displayed as an option.

I would like to think that EMT will refund the difference in full....

The websites are not bound by impartial retailling as far as I am aware, but even if they were, it could not stop a member of the public specifying a more expensive fare.

If you go on the national rail website and plan a journey when an 'Off-Peak' fare is valid, NRES will show both 'Off-Peak' and 'Anytime' fares as an option. The user of the website can choose the more expensive fare before being transfered to another site to buy them if they should so wish.

It may surprise you to know that some people deliberately buy the more expensive fares. I have to sell tickets to a number of people who buy 'Anytime' fares when the Off-Peak is valid because their company/agency will not pay travel expenses if the fare is below a set amount.

If the Op specifically chose the 'Anytime' fare, EMT don't have to do anything, but they will probably do so as 'a gesture of goodwill'.

 

[jon0844]

I would also say that it wouldn't have happened if buying at a ticket office instead of online! This sort of error is part of the reason why TOCs love TVMs and online sales

Yes, a TVM will offer a ticket with Network Railcard discount that is more expensive with the railcard (minimum fare) than without.

All it takes is a simple comparison in the software, and then to say that the ticket is cheaper without the railcard and why, but why do that?

(Note; given some machines are now offering extensions, perhaps SOME machines do actually do this - so apologies if at least one TOC has updated the code).

 

[tom1649]

Thanks everyone for the advice. I really should have been paying more attention to what I was doing when buying the tickets. It's not like me to make a mistake like that.

My primary concern was that the Anytime Travelcard will work on a Saturday. Now I know that I know it will, I'll just have to make sure I get my £15.80 worth out of TfL that day. (I'm going A Stock hunting on the Met, it may be my last chance to travel on them).

Needless to say I won't be making that mistake again.

 

[jon0844]

A Stock hunting isn't very hard. It's a case of struggling to find the S Stock, especially now the roll out has/was delayed.

 

[tom1649]

It's good to hear there are still plenty of A Stock about. I am lucky to be able to visit London at a weekend when there aren't any engineering works on the Metropolitan Line.

I'm also looking forward to travelling home in first class on a HST. It only cost me £1.30 more to go first class, which sort of makes up for buying the wrong Travelcard I guess.

 

[asylumxl]

Just go to Baker Street and wait basically.