Possible to excess Super Off-Peak Return to Off-Peak Return in advance?

[MKB]

I bought two Super Off-Peak Return tickets (routed Wmr & Lnr Only) from Euston to Nuneaton using a Two-Together Railcard for £23.30 each.

We have not yet used the return portion from Nuneaton to Euston, which is valid until 14 Jan 2025.

We want to use these to travel at Off-Peak times on LM rather than at Super Off-Peak times. I thought this should be possible to excess. Is that correct?

I went into the ticket office at Manchester Piccadilly last weekend. They were willing to process the excess, but both the clerk and her supervisor said that the computer would only let them do this on the intended day of travel, not in advance. They said the system was forcing in that days' date, and it could not be changed. Were they correct that excesses cannot be done in advance? I would have expected the excess to be possible but with the original validity date of 14 Jan.

If I cannot get to an open ticket office in advance of travel, can I simply do this excess on the train or will we be liable for a penalty fare?

Also, is the excess fare the full difference between the two return fares, or half the difference?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Starmill]

Usually it's the full difference. You should pay the excess before boarding if you can, but if you can't, because the ticket office isn't open, for example, you can pay onboard.

 

[transportphoto]

This is one of the few scenarios whereby the date of travel should be set up in the ticket issuing system as a date in the past (rather than today, or a date in the future).

The excess should have been issued with the date specified as the first day of validity (probably 15th December).

 

[Kath123]

Hi

I’m not an expert - just someone who uses the trains but I had a vaguely similar situation last year where I had a super off peak return ticket from Yeovil Junction to Northampton that I needed excessing for the return part of my journey.

I spoke to staff at Northampton a few days prior to the return part of my journey as I was worried and they did it for me.

The excess I was charged was the full difference between the two return fares but in my case that luckily wasn’t a great amount.

Hope you manage to get it sorted.

 

[Idiotic]

Yeah as said before the date needed to be changed to a day in the past and then the excess done on the system.

If you pop to Nuneaton ticket office before you travel they should be able to excess it for you.

If that’s closed / not possible you can talk to the Senior Conductor onboard who will help you.