Hi all,
thought I'd use the UK forum because people here speak English and have common sense
So I bought a ticket online in advance to travel from Munich to Vienna using Austrian company "obb" a couple of weeks ago. The booking confirmation says:
I came to the station about 25 mins before departure, well in time to collect the ticket from a machine. I tried a machine which has a few companies' logos including DB, obb, etc. This didn't work so I went to the Deutsche Bahn (DB) station office to ask for help. They confirmed that there is no way to print an obb ticket from a Munich ticket machine and it has to be done in Austria. The train was about to depart in the meantime.
I call the obb customer service who confirm that now that the train is gone/about to go, I have no option but buying a ticket from DB (almost EUR 200 for two people) and then "trying" to get a refund for that expense.
Had I had a few more minutes I would have been able to find an internet cafe and print the thing out. Not possible in 5 minutes in a foreign city etc.
I buy the ticket and go to Vienna, then contact obb the same day which starts an email conversation, the essence of their position being: it is logical that an obb machine can only be found in Austria! And if you are traveling from outside the country, just home print.
Obviously I am requesting them to refund the large sum I paid to DB (not the EUR 58 I paid to obb initially).
All they are willing to do "as goodwill" is refund the original price - in the form of vouchers valid for one year!
The fact that they sell a ticket from Germany to Austria and still suggest collecting it from the machine in the booking confirmation is perfectly fine by them apparently. No warning that home printing is the only realistic option is also not a problem.
"In addition", I had the option of printing in an internet cafe (according to obb). Yes I would have had, had I come to the station an hour early..
Would you say I should to press the issue/complain/take them to a higher organisation? Or is it indeed perfectly logical to read between the lines the restriction on where the ticket can be printed, and I should have been smarter?
If it's the former, what can I do if I formally complain and they don't budge?
Many thanks!
thought I'd use the UK forum because people here speak English and have common sense
So I bought a ticket online in advance to travel from Munich to Vienna using Austrian company "obb" a couple of weeks ago. The booking confirmation says:
I came to the station about 25 mins before departure, well in time to collect the ticket from a machine. I tried a machine which has a few companies' logos including DB, obb, etc. This didn't work so I went to the Deutsche Bahn (DB) station office to ask for help. They confirmed that there is no way to print an obb ticket from a Munich ticket machine and it has to be done in Austria. The train was about to depart in the meantime.
I call the obb customer service who confirm that now that the train is gone/about to go, I have no option but buying a ticket from DB (almost EUR 200 for two people) and then "trying" to get a refund for that expense.
Had I had a few more minutes I would have been able to find an internet cafe and print the thing out. Not possible in 5 minutes in a foreign city etc.
I buy the ticket and go to Vienna, then contact obb the same day which starts an email conversation, the essence of their position being: it is logical that an obb machine can only be found in Austria! And if you are traveling from outside the country, just home print.
Obviously I am requesting them to refund the large sum I paid to DB (not the EUR 58 I paid to obb initially).
All they are willing to do "as goodwill" is refund the original price - in the form of vouchers valid for one year!
The fact that they sell a ticket from Germany to Austria and still suggest collecting it from the machine in the booking confirmation is perfectly fine by them apparently. No warning that home printing is the only realistic option is also not a problem.
"In addition", I had the option of printing in an internet cafe (according to obb). Yes I would have had, had I come to the station an hour early..
Would you say I should to press the issue/complain/take them to a higher organisation? Or is it indeed perfectly logical to read between the lines the restriction on where the ticket can be printed, and I should have been smarter?
If it's the former, what can I do if I formally complain and they don't budge?
Many thanks!