Great Western Coffee Shop

My disabled daughter recently bought some Advance tickets (Aylesford to Chippenham) from TPE - it says quite clearly on their website that there is no charge to change time/date of these tickets if needed - all you have to do is "simply log in to My Account to amend". My daughter is now unable to travel, so............... I won't go into all the details - but she couldn't log in to her account. She then discovered that the letter which accompanied the tickets gave entirely different instructions - it had to be done over the 'phone. She phoned and was told it couldn't be done over the phone as it was within 5 days of travel - neither the website nor the letter stated this. She was told to go to a manned station and do it there !!

She went to West Malling (SET) where she was dealt with by the most appalling display of "customer service" imaginable. When she explained the problem to the ticket clerk, he informed her that she would have to pay the £10 and buy new tickets then claim it all back (total of £34 according to him). When my daughter asked for an explanation of this odd statement the ticket clerk just kept repeating "you're not listening to me". My daughter then asked for his name (no name badge was worn), he flatly refused, after several more futile requests from my daughter he got up and walked to one side out of her immediate view, but she could still see him if she leant up against the window of the office !!  My daughter then got her 'phone out and took a photograph of this individual "hiding" from her. She waited for a couple of minutes - with the clerk still refusing to come back to the ticket window - then she left.
On arriving at home she did manage to get into the TPE website - "My Account". This informed her that she had to pay £10 (per ticket) - but she couldn't/didn't as the website kept freezing. She later bought some replacement advance tickets for the new dates from the GWR website for £22.40   !!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Letters of complaint are being prepared as I type this - the reason I post this......has anyone on the forum dealt with TPE to change an Advance ticket, did any problems arise ?

TPE ?
Do you mean Trans Pennine Express?
Assume the ticket fits the criteria as below?

Change your train ticket for free
Even the best laid plans change sometimes, so we’ve made it simple for you to change your train ticket if you need to.

The way you change your ticket depends on 2 things: the type of ticket and how you bought it. Do bear in mind that if you want to change your train ticket, you need to do it before travelling.

What type of train ticket is it?
Super Off-peak, Off-peak and Anytime train tickets can be changed to a different time, date or route. Advance train tickets can be changed to a different time and date only.

We've removed the £10 charge to change the date or time of train tickets bought via our website or App. Simply log in to My Account to amend (there may be an additional cost if your new ticket is more expensive than the original).

How did you buy your ticket?
Online
Go to your account, select your booking, view details and amend your journey. Alternatively, call our web sales support team on 0344 556 5637 for help.

At a station
Go to a staffed train station and speak to a member of ticket staff who will be happy to help.

On the TPExpress app
Call our Web Support team on 0344 556 5637 (06:00 to 23:00).

From another company
You’ll have to contact them directly.

Yes, Trans Pennine is correct.

What you have quoted is exactly what it says on the TPE website on the "Change My Ticket" page. My daughter bought her tickets on the strength of these words. They were "normal" Advance tickets as described on the TPE website you quote.
She bought the tickets online - the website tells her she can change the tickets, with no charge, on line.  She could not - when she rang she was told she could not do it that way either - she went to a station as directed, to come across the rudest man it is possible to imagine.

My daughter is disabled, she was feeling unwell, which was why she decided not to travel - she really could do without all this aggravation from 2 different Train Operating Companies who seem determined to show how incompetent they can be.