Great Western Coffee Shop

I'm wondering what would have happened had either of these two TM's not applied common sense....

1. Late afternoon Sunday ..... been out with friends and had been deposited at station to make my journey back to bristol parkway.  Got to station, went to get rail card holder - not in bag.  Realised it must have fallen out in friends car.  Now, the issue is not so much the lack of rail card - that could have been the least of my worries - but the holder also had my bank card in it - i.e. my only means of payment.  I did have the printout of the tickets I had intended to pick up from the machine.  So my dilemma, - middle of nowhere, late sunday afternoon, no funds, no banks open to cash a cheque, friends now miles up the road.  Train manager was nice enough to let me travel on the printout but I guess there is a good chance I could have been sleeping rough last night if he hadnt been.

So my dilemma continued.  Back at home sunday night, still no card - but its being posted down to me to arrive tomorrow - I trust friend who has it.  HAD to get to work this morning.  Total of ^4.50 in my pocket.  Had an advance ticket booked already but again, no means of collection (and technically no rail card).  Bit of a greyer area as I was not stranded in middle of nowhere.    Phoned ticket thingy line to get authorisation to pick it up on production of passport but could not do this before PAddington (nailsea unmanned).  So explained to the TM again, and he was a bit more stickler for the rules but said I should be ok.  Issued me an unpaid fares notice and said when I get the tickets, send them in with the notice, explain what had happened along with a copy of my rail card and it should be waved.

Hope it is otherwise its 144.50!!!!!!!!!

But the point is I got to work......

Lesson 1 - Don't keep your bank card with your ticket wallet / railcard!!!

Lesson 2 - Have more than one bank account!

I'm very surprised that TM 2 actually issued an Unpaid Fares Notice.  My experience (on the West fleet) of conductors with people who can't/won't pay is to order them off at the next station and make them face the barrier staff.

Well in respect to the bank account/card issue - I'm forever losing things so when I know I'm going for a *night out* where losing my possesions is likely - I leave anything extra at home

I think the unpaid fair notice was because I did have *evidence* of having paid but could not prove it 100% as no ticket.

Think he phoned swindon to find out what to do because he took my booking reference and everything then came back about an hour later with the unpaid fare book.  I guess someone at FGW central confirmed it was a genuine printout/reservation but they gave me the note in case someone else was using the ticket then its covered either way

Should a TOC be beholden to treat you sympathetically after that admission?....:-)

Well my bank jokingly threatens to charge me for replacement cards!!!!!!!!!

Sadly common sense not applied.....

Got a letter today saying that I was not in possession of a ticket and therefore had to pay the full fare.

However the reference on the letter said I was going from black water to paddington not nailsea and backwell to paddington.

Not sure if this is going to shoot them in the foot or me and not sure whether to appeal about the clerical error in the letter or just appeal on the matter of first instance which is that I did what I could in the circs.

Hmm.

If their letter is so factually incorrect, I'd encourage you to appeal against it anyway: what do you have to lose, and why can't they get their corporate act together??

Chris.  ::)

I don't hear any mention of the tickets being sent in with the UFN ??

Was travelling XC once sat with a delightful old couple returning from a Cornish holiday, hubby produced ticket but wife had left hers in hotel - she still (somehow) had the out ticket - the TM charged her full fare.

This happened before I joined up here  :'(

I sent in the tickets and copy of my rail card - I obviously could not send in rail card as I needed it

I'd pay whatever the fare was from Blackwater which I asssume is what is now being demanded? -a lot less than ^144.50.

If you appeal, they'll find out that they made a typo and as you were strictly wrong being without ticket - dont the regs say you should buy again, and claim a refund on the orginals? - and charge you the ^144.50

Something similar happened to me a few years ago where I had the internet printout and the seat reservation but no ticket as I had left that on my girlfrined's bedside cabinet (t'was an early morning train journey from Slough)

Despite all my circumstantial evidence indicating that I had purchased the ticket the TM refused to allow me to continue with my journey and at Swindon I was told to get off the train.

I was (and still am ;D) livid at the degree of inflexibility and the considerable extra expense that this pr*ck put me through prior to the start of a working week. If i had a choice of other rail companies I would have used them but as FGW run a monopoly on the London to Swansea mainline I am still forced to endure their service.

Rules are rules. You might have given it to someone else....

Unfortunately, those that do defraud the railways make it very difficult for TOCs to do anything but enforce the rules.

Actually no I could nit have given it to some one else - the ticket had not been printed which they could check - at the time I was travelling. I could not buy a new ticket as no card.

I'll offer to pay backwater to pad and if not accepted I'll stick it out and fight it - I had passport, proof of address, printout - I was hardly dodging

I was referring to the post above mine, I didn't quote yours, mookiemoo....

Fair enough re: rules are rules and I've always been overly careful since to travel with the ticket and seat reservation.

However if RPAs are mean't to apply the rules so rigidly to combat those who are defrauding the railways why is the checking of tickets still extremely irregular?

All TOCs have to balance staffing issues - they can't be everywhere - the RPAs I mean.

Guards usually rely on gates at Reading and check tickets afterwards

But the problem with barrier checks is they don't police standard tickets travelling in first or advance tickets on the wrong train.

oh, agreed....the check in 1st class is usually done in my experience....and you can't get advances to Reading from Pad, so the check after Reading ought to pick those up.