Advance Tickets from TPE..........

[whole diary]

[Clan Line]

A cautionary tale……………………….

My daughter bought a pair of Advance tickets from TPE^▸ (Trans Pennine Express) on the strength of their “no £10 charge to change the booking” claim.
As it turned out, she had to change the booking – or try to !!

She tried to change the booking on the TPE website, as it says she could – could not gain access to this – but did get onto other ToC’s sites to get new trains and fares details. She rang TPE to change her tickets by ‘phone – was told this could not be done within 5 days of travel. This 5 day limit is not mentioned on either their website or on the letter which accompanied the original tickets in the post ! She was told she had to go to a manned station.

She went to West Malling (Kent) station where she encountered the most incredibly rude and aggressive member of staff who refused to deal with her and actually got up and walked away from the ticket office window.
The tickets then “expired” – she complained to both TPE and SE Trains. SE trains did eventually send her £25 and an apology – but she is still waiting for the booking office CCTV^▸ (Closed Circuit Tele Vision) footage which she was promised.

TPE seem to be totally incapable of actually reading her emails, they have told her on several occasions that as she had Advance tickets she is not entitled to a refund – as per the Ts & Cs! The fact that she was actually complaining about the inadequacy of their website and their documentation has been totally ignored. Following their instructions led to the appalling treatment she received at West Malling. (Admittedly nothing to do with TPE)

She is now going to contact the CEO^▸ (Chief Executive Officer) of TPE – if that gets her nowhere, the Rail Ombudsman is next.
I have drawn to her attention that there is a thread on another rail forum on exactly the same subject – she is not alone with her struggles with TPE  !!

I will make no suggestions – I will leave it up to you as to who you go to - or don't go to - to buy your Advance tickets ……….

[chuffed]

I have had 4 emails all with different names and case number asking me for ticket details and seat reservations in the missing coach F of the TPE^▸ (Trans Pennine Express) 1719 Manchester Picc to cleethorpes on 20/11 which was reduced to 2 coaches.  I was one of 40 standees unable to move a millimetre until Sheffield. I have sent them the info 3 times....

[Phantom]

She certainly doesn't get any luck with TPE^▸ (Trans Pennine Express)

http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=20769.msg253071#msg253071

[Clan Line]

Yes, should have tacked it onto the earlier thread        (Perhaps a Mod could combine the two please)

But it shows the quality of the "service" she is getting from TPE^▸ (Trans Pennine Express), and to some extent from SE Trains. According to BTP^▸ (British Transport Police), CCTV^▸ (Closed Circuit Tele Vision) video is kept for 28 days - what chance of her getting that now?  Almost two months since my last post - zero, in the way of a meaningful response, from TPE. As I said, they are either not reading what she is saying, or as I tend to think, they are deliberately ignoring her questions and providing an answer to a question she hasn't asked because that answer makes them sound to be acting correctly  ..............ie: she is acting outside "the Ts & Cs".   

A good word for a TOC^▸ (Train Operating Company). She got caught up in the late opening fiasco at Waterloo last year. She had to travel back to London via Paddington instead and pay for a taxi to St Pancras - SWR^» (South Western Railway - about), very speedily, refunded the cost of the whole return journey - which covered her taxi fare.  If SWR can do it properly why not TPE ? they are both owned/largely owned by First Group.

[ChrisB]

CCTV^▸ (Closed Circuit Tele Vision) is generally only released for solving crime - and usually only to a request from the Police. So I don't think it would be released to the public, even if it was still available.

[Phantom]

Not sure if any info here can help Clan line?

https://www.gov.uk/request-cctv-footage-of-yourself

[Clan Line]

CCTV^▸ (Closed Circuit Tele Vision) is generally only released for solving crime - and usually only to a request from the Police. So I don't think it would be released to the public, even if it was still available.

Not sure if any info here can help Clan line?

https://www.gov.uk/request-cctv-footage-of-yourself

Thanks for those comments.

As soon as the incident happened she contacted BTP^▸ (British Transport Police) (assuming the CCTV came under them), they explained the "rules" for obtaining the CCTV footage; they then gave her a contact in SE Trains to ask for the video.
She contacted SE Trains and gave them the time of the incident to within a couple of minutes. SE Trains told her that she could have a copy of the booking hall video but not the office video. That was absolutely fine, as all she wanted was to show that she behaved reasonably towards the booking office clerk in the first place.  She was told that the video would be forthcoming. She was also told that they would investigate the "alleged" incident - but because of an agreement with the Trade Unions she would not be told the outcome............so the guy could have got the sack - or a pay rise !!! One assumes that someone did agree with her complaint, to some degree, as they did send her £25.

The whole incident, and its fall-out has been most unsatisfactory. M & S and the likes of John Lewis have a superb name for dealing with problems - why do the rail companies seem to be determined to make it so b****y difficult ?

She will keep pursuing TPE^▸ (Trans Pennine Express) as they are the most stubborn in acknowledging any fault - and they were responsible for the whole mess in the first place. I have just checked their website again - it still says there is no charge for changing you booking and: "Do bear in mind that if you want to change your train ticket, you need to do it before travelling". (No mention of the 5 day "rule")

Just what my daughter tried to do - and look where it got her !

[martyjon]

CCTV^▸ (Closed Circuit Tele Vision) is generally only released for solving crime - and usually only to a request from the Police. So I don't think it would be released to the public, even if it was still available.

It can be requested to prove a point.

People in Bristol have had penalty notices for driving in Bus Lanes when they have momentarily switched to a Bus Lane to allow a blue lighter to overtake them. Number Plate Recognition Technology to eager to swell the LA's coffers. A still from the footage was sent to motorists to prove from the councils viewpoint the offence was commited but the video shows the blue light vehicle seconds later, ahm.

[Celestial]

To be fair to the council, I doubt the process for issuing these notices involves looking at video before and after, as that would cost a lot more than what I suspect is a fairly automated process. If there's a reasonable process for disputing a notice, and video is checked and the fine withdrawn then I think that would be fair. The onus should be on someone "caught" to explain why they think the fine is not fair.

[Clan Line]

CCTV^▸ (Closed Circuit Tele Vision) is generally only released for solving crime - and usually only to a request from the Police. So I don't think it would be released to the public, even if it was still available.

It can be requested to prove a point.

People in Bristol have had penalty notices for driving in Bus Lanes when they have momentarily switched to a Bus Lane to allow a blue lighter to overtake them. Number Plate Recognition Technology to eager to swell the LA's coffers. A still from the footage was sent to motorists to prove from the councils viewpoint the offence was commited but the video shows the blue light vehicle seconds later, ahm.

There was a case very recently - in Swindon, of traffic being directed by the police around an accident into a bus lane .....and then getting tickets for so doing.  Ker-ching !!

https://www.swindonadvertiser.co.uk/news/17372386.penzance-drive-bus-lane-catches-drivers-out-in-swindon-after-lorry-crash/

[TonyK]

Not sure if any info here can help Clan line?

https://www.gov.uk/request-cctv-footage-of-yourself

A long time ago, I had a request from someone to provide a copy of CCTV^▸ (Closed Circuit Tele Vision) images of him in connection with a recording made of him and me. I had to refer it to the highest level, which was Secretary of State for Social Services, and was told to go ahead, even though it was not my CCTV. So I sent the man, and his legal representative, a copy on DVD of him presenting a stolen pension book at a Post Office, and me nicking him for doing so. I asked his legal rep if he also wanted a list of the stolen goods and illegal drugs found in the subsequent search of his home, but I'm still waiting for an answer. 

I also once dealt with an 18-year-old mugger who whacked an 80-year-old woman around the head, thankfully without much blood, and presented her stolen pension book at the Post Office, saying that it was his grandma. As the Post Office staff, and everybody else in the part of Bristol concerned, knew the lady, he didn't get away with it. She was the matriarch of the travelling fair conglomerate, their base being in Bristol. The court case was unusual in that it had a full public gallery, mostly composed of men shoe-horned into shiny suits, arms folded, and completely silent. Sadly for our man, after three adjournments, he was sentenced to community service. I saw him the following week, a mass of bruises, keen to leave town before he got any more, but unlikely to join the circus.