Oh yes it absolutely does. I've been on both sides of the equation.
Speaking as frontline (non revenue) staff, when someone comes up to me and says something along the lines of: "look mate, I've F***ed up, I need help." Then it's pretty certain I'm doing to do anything within my remit to sort out the problem. But when people come up with attitude or, worse, start lying and passing off the blame, then I'll be doing what is required, but no more. A good one for that is if someone gets on the wrong train and then comes back and hour later with "your staff put me on the wrong train"... When I've been the person on the ground redirecting passengers, seen the train in question leave full and standing and you're the only person left. Nope. Don't think so.
A good few years ago, certainly during the Serco/ Abellio Northern Rail days, I managed to balls up and lose my ticket wallet which had a Northern complimentary day pass in it, as well as a return from York-Thornaby as I was heading up to the North East. When did I realise I'd lost it? Yep... When an RPI said "tickets please" on a TPE 185. He gave me fair opportunity to look for it, which I pretty much emptied my bag and pockets across the table and didn't have it. I did still have my annual season ticket to Manchester, but that was obviously of little use on the ECML. I was under 16 at the time, so that more than likely made an impact on what happened next. He came back and I explained that I must have misplaced it between being gripped on the Grand Central HST and boarding this train. Told him what tickets I had, where I'd bought the YRK-TBY ticket, and that if I needed to buy a new ticket or give details, fair enough it was my mistake. He rang back to Thirsk to get one of the staff to check around the bench I'd been sat on in case I'd dropped it there, told me not to worry about it and to speak to staff at Thornaby who should be able to get hold of GC in case the TM could find it.
Never got it back, and ended up buying a new ticket back to Manchester, but that could have gone a lot worse.
Even in the modern world, I was on a train last week when RPIs boarded. The guy opposite me was having trouble getting his phone to charge-genuinely, he'd been trying since he'd got on at the origin station. He therefore couldn't show a ticket when the RPIs arrived. But rather than throwing the book at him they offered to lend him a charging cable and to come back in a few minutes, which they duly did. Unfortunately for him, it then transpired he'd only bought an advance single for his outward journey and not the return he claimed to have thought he had, so did receive a Penalty Fare.
