National Rail - Split Train Tickets guidance

[ainsworth74]

I was searching for something else this afternoon and stumbled across this page on NRE:

Using split tickets​

Split ticketing is when you buy more than 1 ticket to make a journey. The journey is broken into sections, with a separate ticket for each part. Using split tickets is allowed as explained in section 14 of the National Rail Conditions of Travel.

For example, if there is a train that travels from:

Station A > Station B > Station C

you could buy a ticket from
Station A to Station C

or you could buy a ticket from

Station A to Station B and another ticket from Station B to Station C.

Your start and end points are the same, but you might be able to get a cheaper fare by splitting your tickets. Remember, the train must stop to drop off and pick up passengers at the station where you split your tickets.

Generally, you don’t have to leave the train when using split tickets, unless the journey already includes a change. You can also make seat reservations (if available) for any of your tickets, but you may have to switch seats at the point that the tickets change.

If permitted, you can split your journey into any combination of tickets, but split ticketing won’t be available for all services and ticket types, and it won’t necessarily save you money. To check the terms and conditions of each of your tickets, you can use our Ticket Validity Finder tool.

We don’t offer a split ticketing service, but you can check the Journey Planner for train times and fares.

Things to remember​

• Your train must stop to drop off and pick up passengers at the station where you split your tickets
• You must have the correct tickets with you to show for the whole of your journey, as well as any Railcards that have been used
• Make sure you still travel at the correct time and on the correct train for the type of ticket you have bought
• You won’t always be able to split tickets for your trip, and if you can split tickets they are not guaranteed to be cheaper

Split Train Tickets | National Rail

If you split the train tickets for your journey, you might be able to save money for your journey.

www.nationalrail.co.uk

I'm not sure how long it's been there (the Wayback Machine suggests maybe mid-2023?) but I was quite impressed to see an article on the topic and one which does quite a good job of laying out the basic principles. There's also an FAQ as well which talks about a few bits and pieces including a nice little clarification that:

Can I get a refund for my whole journey if I’m using split tickets?​

Yes. The same rules on delays and compensation apply to journeys made using multiple tickets. See the Compensation and Refunds page for more information.

Considering some people have issues with TOCs getting difficult about compensation for split tickets might be useful to point them to alongside more general arguments from the NRCoT!

If I had to quibble I might pick up on the exception from the train calling for season or zonal tickets is a bit buried (though I appreciate they're trying to, not unreasonably, go for the idiots guide) being down in the FAQ and that this page still links to the old version of the NRCoT as well (the risk of linking directly to a document rather than the generic NRCoT page!).

But pleasing to see that the industry actually has bothered to come out with clear guidance on split ticketing and how it works for the lay person.

 

[Oscar M]

As you say, this page has been around for a little while now.

I think it could do with a slight bit of work, such as making it explicitly clear that using split tickets doesn't invalidate a TOCs obligation to get you to the destination station you're actually heading to, rather than the one stated on whatever ticket you're currently using from your split combination. The FAQ you quoted above does hint towards this, but it's primarily referring to refunds and compensation.

But otherwise I think it's a decent enough page and think it's good to have.

I do agree with you on the information provision of non stop splits - the rest of the page says multiple times that you must call at the split point, without actually pointing out that there are exceptions. But I appreciate I'm being nitpicky!

 

[Watershed]

As you say, this page has been around for a little while now.

I think it could do with a slight bit of work, such as making it explicitly clear that using split tickets doesn't invalidate a TOCs obligation to get you to the destination station you're actually heading to, rather than the one stated on whatever ticket you're currently using from your split combination. The FAQ you quoted above does hint towards this, but it's primarily referring to refunds and compensation.

But otherwise I think it's a decent enough page and think it's good to have.

I do agree with you on the information provision of non stop splits - the rest of the page says multiple times that you must call at the split point, without actually pointing out that there are exceptions. But I appreciate I'm being nitpicky!

One of the FAQs at the bottom does allude to that - but it would be better not to make a (potentially inaccurate) statement at the top.

 

[ainsworth74]

As you say, this page has been around for a little while now.

Shows how much attention I pay!

I do agree with you on the information provision of non stop splits - the rest of the page says multiple times that you must call at the split point, without actually pointing out that there are exceptions. But I appreciate I'm being nitpicky!

One of the FAQs at the bottom does allude to that - but it would be better not to make a (potentially inaccurate) statement at the top.

Yeah I reckon it just needs a mention somewhere in the main body (ideally early in the main body) along the lines of "The train must call at the place you change from one ticket to another (in some limited cases this may not be necessary, please see the FAQ below for more information)."

You don't want to overload a normal who will almost certainly be doing a simple split where the train does have to call for it to be valid. But also you don't want to mislead.

 

[styles]

Yes I stumbled upon this a while back. I actually was looking for an official source which explains what to do in case of delays. The page does mention something about sticking to your ticket types, but I was hoping for a specific example, which is when a ticket for a missed connection is a TOC restricted ticket. I know the answer is to still stick to the ticket conditions but was hoping it would be spelled out as an example somewhere.

In general it's a good page, and like you say it's nice to be able to point to National Rail in case of dispute.

 

[Tetchytyke]

It's been there a while now, but it is extremely well hidden.

I know they're trying to keep it simple, but it isn't quite accurate. As others have said, if one of the tickets is a zonal ticket or a season ticket then the train does not have to call at the station where you change tickets.

Although whether that counts as split ticketing or whether it is getting an extension ticket is probably all an issue of semantics.

 

[redreni]

Agree the failure to qualify the assertion that the train must call at the split point is a problem, not only because it may mislead passengers, but also because I suspect we all know at least one member of staff who would be exactly the type to bookmark this page and quote it at passengers trying to do a non-stop split involving a season, day Travelcard, Freedom Pass or Day Ranger.

To be honest, the railway tries to paraphrase the terms and conditions in informal "idiot's guides" on its website at its peril. If they write it in a way that expands passengers' rights, people can reasonably treat it as authoritative. If they write something that is more restrictive than the NRCoT, people can just disregard it and rely on the NRCoT.

Maybe they should just write the NRCoT in clearer English?

 

[Lewisham2221]

Sadly, I doubt that the majority of people using split tickets are likely to read either the "idiot's guide" or the NRCoT.

 

[blimmo]

Maybe they should just write the NRCoT in clearer English?

Tbh I think the NRCoT is often unclear due to exactly the opposite: it tries to simplify things too much and fails to define things properly. The terms themselves should be precise and unambiguous even if that requires them to be less clear to someone uninterested in reading them in detail.

 

[saismee]

I appreciate that it specifies "stop to drop off and pick up passengers" rather than just say "call" which could be ambiguous. I remember reading a discussion about the definition of "call" in relation to splits.

 

[agk2126]

I do agree with you on the information provision of non stop splits - the rest of the page says multiple times that you must call at the split point, without actually pointing out that there are exceptions. But I appreciate I'm being nitpicky!

Not so sure you're being nitpicky! To be clear, I don't have any hard data on this, but I wouldn't be surprised if a disproportionate share of especially "high stakes" disruptions (e.g. missing a connection to the the last train of the day and requesting overnight accommodation, or simply claiming refunds or Delay Repay for expensive peak trains) take place for ticket holders in these "exceptions" (e.g. splitting at rover or season ticket boundaries).

I suspect we all know at least one member of staff who would be exactly the type to bookmark this page and quote it at passengers trying to do a non-stop split involving a season, day Travelcard, Freedom Pass or Day Ranger

We certainly do! They're probably reading from the same materials.

I appreciate that it specifies "stop to drop off and pick up passengers" rather than just say "call" which could be ambiguous

Agreed. This is especially relevant because North American (and possibly other regional) English has subtly different language around transport, in particular around the nuances of boarding or exiting at a given station, so it's refreshing to read descriptive rather than technical/legal language. Of course, it's entirely valid to write railway policy in a local language.

 

[styles]

Sadly, I doubt that the majority of people using split tickets are likely to read either the "idiot's guide" or the NRCoT.

They're more likely to read whatever guidance Trainline has on the matter.

 

[Oscar M]

They're more likely to read whatever guidance Trainline has on the matter.

I occasionally see people saying "I have a SplitSave ticket".

Trainline's guidance on split tickets focuses on the implementation of it into their booking engine and fails to mention things like non stop splits and delay compensation*. So I do think the guidance from National Rail is better.

*Except for a section in the FAQs called "Multiple tickets", but I don't think that's supposed to be there, as it's hard to find, is under a category called "non_searchable" and is fairly similar to the "SplitSave" section.

 

[OscarH]

I occasionally see people saying "I have a SplitSave ticket".

Trainline's guidance on split tickets focuses on the implementation of it into their booking engine and fails to mention things like non stop splits and delay compensation*. So I do think the guidance from National Rail is better.

*Except for a section in the FAQs called "Multiple tickets", but I don't think that's supposed to be there, as it's hard to find, is under a category called "non_searchable" and is fairly similar to the "SplitSave" section.

How is delay compensation not related to their implementation

 

[Kite159]

Sadly some passengers will search a journey from A to B on Trainline and select the cheapest option which involves a split ticket and will board a faster service which doesn't stop at the stations they have split at. Euther Trainline doesn't make it clear they have* to be on a train which calls at C & D or they chance it.

Using London to Basingstoke for an example where there are a couple of common splitting points which are served mostly by the stopping service (or the hourly semi fast)

(* Using single fares or day return fares)

 

[CyrusWuff]

Sadly some passengers will search a journey from A to B on Trainline and select the cheapest option which involves a split ticket and will board a faster service which doesn't stop at the stations they have split at. Euther Trainline doesn't make it clear they have* to be on a train which calls at C & D or they chance it.

(* Using single fares or day return fares)

Trainline makes it clear that trains need to call at the split point, per the snip below. Whether customers read and understand it (or choose to ignore it) is a different matter entirely, however.


Image shows a partial screenshot from the Trainline app for a SplitSave journey between London Waterloo and Basingstoke, indicating a requirement to catch a train that calls at Walton-on-Thames.

 

[Oscar M]

How is delay compensation not related to their implementation

My mention of delay compensation was just a side comment about the quality of their guidance in general, I probably should have worded it better.

In regards to me saying their guidance focuses on their implementation, I was particularly referring to extracts such as these:

Splitsave is not available on every journey. When it is available it will show as an option on our app when it is.

We’ll show you if SplitSave tickets are available and, if so, how much you can save. Just look out for the SplitSave icon in your search results.

As shown on their FAQ and split tickets page.

If you're a Trainline customer, that's not necessarily a bad thing, of course.