Take it to a booking office before you start travel and ask for an excess fare.
If you are travelling already, go to the ticket office at King's Cross immediately on arrival and there's a fair chance they will excess it there and then. If you are not travelling yet get it done before you get on a train.
If you are already travelling you're probably out of luck, but if not or you've only just boarded, you could try breaking your journey at Ely or Cambridge and asking the ticket office for an excess there. I think that would be your best bet. Cambridge are particularly knowledgable. Obviously Littleport is unstaffed.
I’m writing from the perspective of having worked there and issued such excesses many times in the past. The scenario you describe is highly unlikely.
I’d have tried someone else. I find that really disappointing.Tried at the LNER office. The lady didn’t know what it meant to excess a ticket
Indeed, but is it not true that regardless of that, at least under current guidance, once fully used a ticket should not technically be excessed?
I'm afraid that you won't have any luck at that stage. When I worked there we only ever did the single to return excess when it was immediately after arrival from the station where the ticket had been bought. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.
Yes, although whether a ticket that has been used as far as King's Cross is fully used is debatable as it has onward validity to Moorgate. Not that we ever bothered with considering that.
Very true in this case. And for what it's worth, glad to hear that you did it for people!
I’m happy to say you were incorrect
When do you travel, if you haven't already?
If you'd already travelled at that point, then that's correct to say they can't do anything.
If this was before travel, this is poor. Not at all unexpected from an average ticket office, though LNER tend to be well above the average.Tried at the LNER office. The lady didn’t know what it meant to excess a ticket
It was immediately after arrival on the out leg. I appreciate she could refuse, but she literally didn’t understand
I'm happy that I was, but still surprised.
Incorrectly? As you selected a single, it was the only possible option.
It’s eligible for an Off Peak Day Return, so I’m unclear why it wouldn’t be eligible for an Off Peak Single?
I don't use Uber, as I've heard the customer support can be very poor, but would you like to go through the booking process again, and show screenshots?
The existence of an Off Peak Day Return doesn't mean that an Off Peak (Day) Single will also exist. Littleport to London Terminals is a good example of this, where there is only the Anytime Single, so you haven't been 'done'.
That’s really strange, I had no idea
If she didn't understand the phrase "excess a ticket", you could ask to hand in the single, exchange it for a return and pay the fare difference.Tried at the LNER office. The lady didn’t know what it meant to excess a ticket
That would be even more confusing because that can't be done.
How soon did you realise? With some retailers (including Trainsplit, which the forum's site uses), if you accidentally book a Single and realise promptly that you needed a return, you could have cancelled online and re-booked. Does Uber allow that functionality?
Before I entered the barrier at Ely
Oh, so the excess was done after travel? In that case, LNER were correct to refuse it; the excess is only possible if the ticket hasn't expired.
True. But until a couple of weeks ago, I could have bought a return, used it, and then refunded the original single whilst on the train
