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Annual Gold Card discounts

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IanKR

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I have an Annual Gold Card as a result of my Adult Annual Travelcard (Zones 1-4 Oyster). Travelling from Gatwick Airport to London Victoria on Wednesday evening of last week with my wife, I bought two Adult single tickets (on Southern, NOT Gatwick Express). The seller would give me the 1/3 discount only on my own ticket, and not also on my wife's. He was adamant about this. Is this correct? I understood that the discount could be applied to up to three other adult tickets, travelling with.
 
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Tetchytyke

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The ticket seller was wrong, you are entitled to take three other adults with you, all sharing the Gold Card discount.
 

LexyBoy

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I agree that the discount should have been applied. Exactly what tickets did you buy, and were they the same for you and your wife?
 

IanKR

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They were Standard single tickets, bought there and then, the same for both of us. There was only one ticket office window open and there was quite a queue, and the guy who sold me the tickets was standing outside the windows (customer side) and issued the tickets on one of those mobile machines, like they have on the trains. Perhaps I'd have got the right result from the ticket window?!
 

LexyBoy

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I would have hoped so!

If you still have the tickets, I’d complain to Southern with a scan (include your Gold Card for good measure) – they will be able to tell from the serial numbers that the tickets were issued sequentially.

For future reference, you didn’t need a ticket all the way to London yourself as you’ve already paid for travel in Zones 1-4. An Anytime Day Single to Boundary Zone 4 would have cost £5.55 rather than whatever you paid (the cheapest ticket from Gatwick to Victoria being £10.10).
 

IanKR

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I would have hoped so!

If you still have the tickets, I’d complain to Southern with a scan (include your Gold Card for good measure) – they will be able to tell from the serial numbers that the tickets were issued sequentially.

For future reference, you didn’t need a ticket all the way to London yourself as you’ve already paid for travel in Zones 1-4. An Anytime Day Single to Boundary Zone 4 would have cost £5.55 rather than whatever you paid (the cheapest ticket from Gatwick to Victoria being £10.10).

Thanks. I didn't realise that I could have used my TC for Zones 1-4 as part of the ticket from that far out - will remember that for next time.

I haven't kept the tickets - in fact, I *think* they were swallowed up at the automatic barrier at Victoria? Either way, I haven't got them any more. I lost out by £5.08. My ticket was £10.16 and my wife's full-price ticket was £15.24.
 

LexyBoy

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Boundary zone tickets are in general available to/from anywhere in the Network area.

The tickets would most likely have been eaten. Still worth a complaint IMO, but you'd be lucky to get any money back. It's a pretty basic thing to get wrong, especially from within the Network Area.

Where are you getting those ticket prices from BTW? If that's right there's something very strange going on as fares are always rounded to the nearest 5p - and should have been £10.15 and £15.40 in this case (for Route:Not Gatwick Exp) or £10.10 and £15.30 (for Southern Only).
 

IanKR

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Boundary zone tickets are in general available to/from anywhere in the Network area.
Learn something new every day!

Where are you getting those ticket prices from BTW? If that's right there's something very strange going on as fares are always rounded to the nearest 5p - and should have been £10.15 and £15.40 in this case (for Route:Not Gatwick Exp) or £10.10 and £15.30 (for Southern Only).
Sussed! The only record I have is the total amount I paid - £25.40 - and I worked back from that, assuming that it's 5/6 of the total cost of 2 full-price tickets. Allowing for rounding, your prices of £10.10 and £15.30 make more sense

Thanks again. I can't be bothered to complain now, not having the tickets or even the payment slip any more. At the time, we were too tired to push it, it being quite late and we'd just got off a flight, and Passport Contol being delayed because of a break-down in their system... But next time I'll push it.
 

talldave

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I was just about to point out that with the Gatwick to BZ4 ticket you could have travelled on the Gatwick Express but I think that may only be true if the season is on paper, maybe someone else can confirm? Your wife's Gatwick Express ticket would have cost £11.70 booked online if that were possible (although Southern's usual incompetence means the railcard names are wrong on the GatEx website).

So, ironically, if you'd been able to book online you'd have been able to travel on the Gatwick Express whilst spending less and avoiding Southern's poorly trained staff member!
 
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bb21

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A season ticket on Oyster is still a season ticket.
 

IanKR

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I was just about to point out that with the Gatwick to BZ4 ticket you could have travelled on the Gatwick Express but I think that may only be true if the season is on paper, maybe someone else can confirm? Your wife's Gatwick Express ticket would have cost £11.70 booked online if that were possible (although Southern's usual incompetence means the railcard names are wrong on the GatEx website).

So, ironically, if you'd been able to book online you'd have been able to travel on the Gatwick Express whilst spending less and avoiding Southern's poorly trained staff member!
Having arrived at the station straight off a flight, I'm not sure if there were facilities available for online booking, apart from my smartphone.

EDIT 2 Jun 15: It just occurred to me that I showed the ticket seller my (paper) Gold Card that stated I have a Z1-4 TC, and he didn't offer me the cheaper option of buying a ticket just to Boundary Zone 4, so poor service all round, really!
 
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