Condition 3 and £2 child fares

[drbdrb]

Some companies, e.g. FCC and Southern, allow up to four children aged 5 to 15 years to travel Off-Peak for only £2 each when accompanied by an Adult with a valid ticket.

You can only buy these tickets from a ticket machine if you are also buying the adult ticket. Otherwise you have to buy them from the ticket office.

http://www.southernrailway.com/tickets-and-fares/ticket-types/112/

What do you do if the ticket office is closed?

Condition 3 says " you must buy a ticket or Permit to Travel before you travel that entitles you to make at least part of the journey", but there is no ticket costing less than £2. So do you buy a full price ticket and then get someone to refund the difference? And if so who?

 

[Abpj17]

I've had a similar debate with FCC - I can only find the twitter conversation for a season ticket extension rather than the child tickets. But the gist of both conversations was - use the ticket office or the gateline staff (who of course aren't there either when the ticket office is closed -_- in my experience at several FCC stations)

Edit (After bb21's post) - at least at my local station, the gate officers don't glance at the £2 tickets the kids show and the ticket inspectors on trains are pretty lenient too. At the gate it's usually obvious there is a season-ticket holding adult with them; on the train they don't seem to ask the kids to show my gold card when they aren't sitting next to me.

 

[bb21]

I suspect that you may have to overpay and claim it back, in theory. Is there no child fare under £2 even?

In reality I reckon discretion will be exercised.