Great Western Coffee Shop

I think this is a simple question, hopefully there's a simple answer...

WebTIS sites will let me register with my overseas address and book rail tickets, which is great. Logically enough, too, the only delivery option available to me is Ticket-on-departure. However, banking in the USA hasn't made a lot of progress post-1776, and my credit card has neither chip nor pin, just the magnetic stripe.

Can FastTicket machines read a non-chip credit card? If not then will I be able to collect booked tickets from a ticket office window by providing the card and booking confirmation?

Thanks!

no they can't and not all ticket offices will issue the ticket

Any more detail on which ticket offices will or won't...? FWIW likely to be trying to collect at Reading.

When you get to the window start with i need to collect this ticket from here because my card does not have a chip and that should prevent any problems (you will still need the booking ref) all main stations can issue the tickets but this is one of the few circumstances where it is freely issued (the guards can not issue the ticket as the machines they carry does not have a connection to the database) one of the reasons for only being able to collect from the self serve is to keep queues down in busy stations, so please make it clear what type of card you have

Speaking for FGW, just the card is fine in ticket office (star machines) whether chip and pin or not. Collection ref isn't always required, but will help if several bookings exist on the card.

Thanks Ollie. I was able to use the card to purchase tickets from an FGW station a few weeks ago with no trouble, although the machine didn't seem to like the mag stripe so the clerk had to key in the details, just like Ye Olden Dayes.

Hypothetically speaking, looking at the worst-case scenario, if the mag stripe on the card fails to read for some reason, will the staff still be able to release the tickets by keying in the card details manually if the booking reference is also to hand?

Just a thought.. would it be worth having a UK issued credit/debit card (with chip and pin obviously) for occasions such as this? You can still register it to your US address?

Yep - certainly the case on Star, can't speak for any of the other issuing machines though.

I wonder if it would be worth phoning FGW and explaining the situation Inspector?

Only reason I suggest this is when I was 16 I booked a ticket over the phone for travel on FGW on my Mothers Credit Card, to travel to Castle Cary to meet my Dad, who was working away from home at the time. As it was an advanced ticket booked the day before travel, I needed to collect it at the station - Exeter St Davids as it happens. Now obviously my Mother wasn't going to give me the Credit Card to collect the tickets at Exeter, when she was living in Liskeard at the time! So we explained this to the chap on the phone, who basically said don't worry, just bring the booking reference number and some form of identification and you'll be fine. So this is what I did! When I actually got to the station, the tickets were already printed for me in an envolope which the cherry chap at EXD checked and confirmed I was who I said I was and gave me the tickets. I was then on my way.

Just as an aside, before anyone says it, Visa Electron Cards didn't work for tickets online when I was 16. That's a fairly new thing and even now, some TOC's websites still reject them :-(

Ironically though, on a Virgin Train, you can use an Visa Electron in the Buffet Car as their card machines are GPRS connected. But try and buy a ticket on the train and they don't accept it!

Ok I will explain the reason for having to explain in detail to the clerk why they need to issue ticket.... Most see online booking as a threat to their jobs, I personally will issue them as its good customer service but issuing without the code just bypasses the fraud prevention failsafe which is in place and I we should only issue from the counter if there is a problem with the self serve or that type of card or if they can confirm address and what the tickets are.... I don't have a problem with people buying online it just bugs me when I ask if a booking fee has been paid and it's a ticket they can buy more easily on the day... These sites really need to make it clearer to what ticket is being sold to them some don't even explain the rules on advance fairs

Which site is this?

The same one that lets you get network card discount before 10am during the week when no easements are in place

The most frequent one is trying to go to London one day coming back another and being offered a one day travel card for that journey ......

Yes but which company, as personally I haven't seen this.

Thanks - will almost certainly be at an FGW station using STAR so that's just what I needed to know!

Chip and signature certainly works at stations, indeed its a bit quicker as the ticket on departure machines haven't been equipped with a signature pad so there is no delay waiting for the pin pad to activate and confirm the pin number matches.

I wonder if without a chip it will fall back to a magnetic strip check and issue the tickets.

No the self serve machines have chip readers only

Do the machines not read the mag stripe when the card is pulled out?  This is how it works on other devices with similar types of reader.

There's been a (not very...) exciting development in this saga. My American card issuer has actually started offering Chip-and-Signature cards (it's a BA-branded credit card so apparently there's been lots of demand from customers for chip cards to make their lives easier in Europe). So, is my understanding correct that, assuming I get my grubby paws on a chip-and-signature card before Christmas I can use this as normal in a Ticket on Departure machine? Don't see any reason why that shouldn't be the case but then logic doesn't always seem to apply in these situations.

Next time I need to collect some tickets, I might put a strip of insulating tape over the chip to see what happens.  I know for certain my card doesn't have a chip required marker on the mag stripe (as some now do).

worth pointing out that if the strip of tape comes off and gets jammed in the machine, thats classed as criminal damage

I can just see CfN posting a link to the BTP's press release with CCTV footage trying to trace the perpetrator in 4 - 6 weeks' time... ::)

I'll have to dig out my hoodie...

In all seriousness, I've emailed FGW to see what they say about the matter.  I remember when chip and PIN readers were first introduced in TVMs, cards without chips were still accepted.  So I can only assume they still are now.

it is possible that although all the self serve machines look the same, different toc's may have different machines internally

Response from FGW

Well they must have different machines, if I was you I would collect your tickets in good time just incase

It's not criminal damage if it is a genuine accident, but I still don't think you should risk it.

No, I won't risk it as FGW confirmed exactly what I thought would be the case.

Did that put you off the idea?  ;D

How is altering a card to bypass the machines anti fraud measures an accident