Season Ticket Refund Calculations

[Mcr Warrior]

Mods' note: if you are finding this thread by a Google seach, you may want to read the latest information in our Fares & Ticketing Guide: 5.12 Season Ticket Refunds / Changeovers

Annual season ticket costing say £4000 (£100 per week x 40).

After three months' use, what refund would be due?

And if instead, one opted for a 'changeover' season ticket (i.e. on a different, shorter route), but where the new weekly price was now say just £20 per week, what then would be the refund/adjustment due?

Also how would the above calculations differ after say six months' use and/or nine months' use of the original ticket? (Noted that in the final few months validity of an annual season ticket, without going down the 'changeover' route, it would normally have little or no refund value).

Can anyone advise?

 

[LondonLarry]

Annual season ticket costing say £4000 (£100 per week x 40).

After three months' use, what refund would be due?

Usage = 11.52 weeks = £1152. Refund = £4000 - £1152 - £10 (admin) = £2838

And if instead, one opted for a 'changeover' season ticket (i.e. on a different, shorter route), but where the new weekly price was now say just £20 per week, what then would be the refund/adjustment due?

Changeover season tickets would be based on the original rate when your current season ticket started.

Also how would the above calculations differ after say six months' use and/or nine months' use of the original ticket? (Noted that in the final few months validity of an annual season ticket, without going down the 'changeover' route, it would normally have little or no refund value).

6 months Usage = 23.04 weeks = £2304. Refund = £4000 - £2304 - £10 (admin) = £1686

9 months Usage = 34.56 weeks = £3456. Refund = £4000 - £3456 - £10 (admin) = £534

After 10 months and 11 days, there's no refund due as the useage value (plu admin fee) would be greater than the original cost of the season ticket.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

LondonLarry - Thank you for the helpful reply.

But does your response cover my supplementary question as regards getting a 'changeover' season ticket? :-?

 

[Matt Taylor]

A season refund is worked out by calculating what you would have paid had you asked the ticket office for a ticket valid up to the point of the refund and then taking that off the fare already paid.

A changeover is more economical as you don't lose the admin fee and you also don't lose the 12 'free' weeks that you get on an annual.

 

[Surreytraveller]

So in theory, if you can find a nice short distance season after 40 weeks use, you could still get a refund?!

 

[yorkie]

So in theory, if you can find a nice short distance season after 40 weeks use, you could still get a refund?!

I can't figure out what you mean.

As stated earlier, there is no refund after 40 weeks, as the refund is the cost of the ticket minus the cost that the usage would have cost. So, after 40 weeks, the refund is 0.

 

[Surreytraveller]

I can't figure out what you mean.

As stated earlier, there is no refund after 40 weeks, as the refund is the cost of the ticket minus the cost that the usage would have cost. So, after 40 weeks, the refund is 0.

If you are claiming a refund. If you are doing a changeover, and the new ticket is of a lesser amount than your existing ticket, then you do get a refund. So if you want to surrender a ticket after you've used it for 40 weeks, then consider getting a changeover between two close stations instead.

 

[Lee_Again]

Surreytraveller, be careful. This is a nice little 'feature' that very few consider. I did it once (about 5 years ago) with a Season from Stevenage. I had a Gold Card from Stevenage to All Zones and 'swapped' it for a Stevenage to Welwyn for the remaining time. It was in fact just over 2 months but I got a few quid back; a couple of hundred from what I recall.

 

[John @ home]

if you want to surrender a ticket after you've used it for 40 weeks, then consider getting a changeover between two close stations instead.

Can you show us a worked example, please?

John

 

[Lee_Again]

If an annual season cost £4000...

this equates to 40*£100(weekly ticket).

If after say 10 months, you cash in, the refund value would be the cost of the ticket (£4000) less the cost of 10 monthly tickets (also £4000), i.e what it would have cost had you not brought the annual. This is how the refund = 0.00.

However,

If you swap to a season that costs only £2000, then after 10 months your original ticket will have a pro rata vaue of £666.66 (4000/12*2). The pro rata cost of a £2000 season with the same remaining life, i.e 2 months, is £333.33 (2000/12*2).

The difference is refunded to you, including no admin fee.

You may need to prove why you need to change; I wasn't

 

[Surreytraveller]

Can you show us a worked example, please?

John

OK

Say you've got an annual Bedwyn - All Zones £4652 (Weekly £116.30)

You wish to surrender it after 40 weeks (for ease of calculation we will assume it is exactly 40 weeks!).

So, the price of a 40 week season is calculated (£4652), and deducted from the price paid (£4652-£4652=£0), no refund due.

Instead of asking for a refund, ask to change it over to a new season. In my example I will use Ryde Pier Head - Esplanade (you may want to research to see if there is a cheaper season somewhere). Annual is £208; weekly £5.20.

A changeover is calculated on the number of days remaining. So, 40 weeks = 40x7=280 days elapsed, therefore 365-280=85 days remaining.

So, for changeover calculations, original ticket = £4652/365 days = £12.745205 per day x 85 days = £1083.34.

New ticket = £208/365days = £0.569863 per day x 85 days = £48.44.

So, £1083.34 - £48.44 = £1034.90 due as a refund to the customer.