What do you do if a passenger doesn't pay on the bus?

[sherz]

What do you do if someone doesn't pay and just walks on? Are you expected to stop them and make them pay? Some of them create a scene and get aggressive and I'm not being paid enough to put up with that... It's not a security job.
What if I don't say anything and let them on?

 

[Lewisham2221]

Just let them on and carry on. You're not going to be looked at any more favourably by your employer if you get yourself hurt or cause service disruption for a couple of quid. If and when your employer becomes that bothered about the loss of revenue, they can employ and deploy revenue inspectors.

 

[Flying Snail]

It depends entirely on your company and their policies.

Turn engine off and take out newspaper to read can be an effective way to passively deal with recalcitrant passengers you want off.

 

[RJ]

Surely the correct answer is to follow whatever the company policy is?

If this is a genuine source of stress then there are lines of work that don’t involve collecting fares - rail replacement or school runs for instance.

 

[G42]

You don't want to endanger yourself but equally, you don't want your bus to become a free-for-all.
Those same passengers are more likely to vandalise the vehicle, cause a nuisance to you/other passengers or otherwise disrupt your running board.

Take bus passes for juveniles as an example - some drivers adopt the approach that they get free travel so what does it matter if they don't have a card? That card transaction data comes in handy when one of them assaults another passenger or sets the bus on fire. As a driver, I don't want to be winding my way through a housing estate late at night with the upstairs full of unidentifiable youths who haven't paid, have nothing to lose and will sit there from terminus to terminus.

If you're working in London, you have an air-sealed cab - so turning the engine off and taking the newspaper out is worth a try, I'd say.

 

[GusB]

The original poster is a relatively new driver and is asking for specific advice. Please ensure that any replies are relevant to the questions posed in the opening post.

Thanks

 

[mb88]

Surely the correct answer is to follow whatever the company policy is?

If only companies had defined polices on dealing with such situations. I’ve never known any that have. As with everything else, it tends to be left up to the driver to make the correct call, and whatever you decide, it’ll be wrong.

 

[Statto]

You don't want to endanger yourself but equally, you don't want your bus to become a free-for-all.
Those same passengers are more likely to vandalise the vehicle, cause a nuisance to you/other passengers or otherwise disrupt your running board.

Take bus passes for juveniles as an example - some drivers adopt the approach that they get free travel so what does it matter if they don't have a card? That card transaction data comes in handy when one of them assaults another passenger or sets the bus on fire. As a driver, I don't want to be winding my way through a housing estate late at night with the upstairs full of unidentifiable youths who haven't paid, have nothing to lose and will sit there from terminus to terminus.

If you're working in London, you have an air-sealed cab - so turning the engine off and taking the newspaper out is worth a try, I'd say.

I've been on a bus in London, were a couple of passengers walked on without paying the driver then switched off the engine & refused to drive the bus unless the passengers paid the fare or got off, the passengers got off

Sometimes plod has to be called out if passenger refuses to leave the bus & driver refuses to continue the journey because of it, for example.

One incident last summer on a bus i was on, passenger tried to board the bus, claimed his mobile data wasn't working & wanted a free ride (apparently claiming mobile data isn't working is one of the new scams), driver wasn't having any of it & refused to allow the passenger to board the bus, cue Mexican standoff between passenger & driver, the driver had to call the police out to remove the passenger from the bus, passenger walked off in a huff with no free ride.

 

[RJ]

If only companies had defined polices on dealing with such situations. I’ve never known any that have. As with everything else, it tends to be left up to the driver to make the correct call, and whatever you decide, it’ll be wrong.

Some things can't really be written as it would allow people to take liberties. I should think no company really wants the wrath of the public brought on them for refusing travel to a vulnerable person who doesn't have the means to get a valid ticket. But they can't exactly say let anyone on for free who doesn't want to pay. They can't say use your judgement either, as some drivers wouldn't bother charging anyone.

In London, paying is effectively optional as most drivers won't challenge non-payers, for good reason. The days of drivers switching off the engine and holding up the service are all but gone, as the operator will lose money if the service is disrupted. However on routes with a lot of excess running time, challenges are more likely as a way to even out the service.

I went for a job interview with Kinchbus some years ago and was asked about various situations to do with letting on people for free, even if they had no money on a daily basis or at places other than designated stops. I was a student at the time without much work experience and gave the wrong answers, that I thought it was a commercial company that wouldn't want people travelling for free. They said based on this answer, I couldn't have the job, as the publicity on them would be bad if someone was refused then something happened to them. So in future if ever asked any questions that involve use of judgement, I'd give a stock answer that I would act in accordance with the company policies on fare collection and discretion.

 

[Geordie driver]

Some things can't really be written as it would allow people to take liberties.

Policies and procedures need to be written in ink in order for staff to follow them, the bus industry isn't immune to proper standards.

To the OP, ask ,once you have started, what their policy is on dealing with non fare paying passengers, in writing.

Then follow it.

If they don't have one, ask for that in writing too.

 

[RT4038]

If only companies had defined polices on dealing with such situations. I’ve never known any that have. As with everything else, it tends to be left up to the driver to make the correct call, and whatever you decide, it’ll be wrong.

It has always been a judgement call, going back to the very start of mainstream buses over 100 years ago. As is many other things. You'll make mistakes and end up in hot water, or not, as the case may be. You're working with the public; you're working on your own. There cannot be rules and procedures for every scenario. Treat the bus and the fare collection as if they were your own, where you would also have to make judgement calls. If you act sensibly and with that in mind, you'll be unlucky to go far wrong. If you don't get that (either as a staff member or supervisor/manager) then you'll end up as a miserable grumpy ex-employee eventually.

 

[Flying Snail]

Sorry, I don't agree with this idea that there cannot be clear set instructions from management. If a company want their staff to behave in a particular way and expect any sort of consistency then they need to set the rules, not leave it as a "judgement call" and subsequently second guess any decision made.

OP, best advice for the job in general is to always look out for yourself first in every situation. Don't put your licence at risk by breaking traffic laws, don't put your safety at risk by having conflicts with passengers or other road users, don't put your job or personal reputation at risk by having arguments with them either.

That scumbag that struts down the bus without paying is an anonymous nobody, you are always identifiable. Your manager, control, TfL and the police will likely do nothing at all if he doesn't pay the fare or smashes up the bus or assaults you but any and all of them will have their boot on your neck over the slightest transgression because you are an easy target.

If your company will not give you clear guidance on dealing with non-fare payers then anytime it happens use the radio to contact control and let them make the decision, your options being carry on regardless or turn engine off and wait for suitable authorities to attend.

 

[mb88]

Totally agree with the above. Contact control and you can pretty much guarantee they will advise you to allow the passenger to travel as it’s causes too much grief for them to have a bus sat there whilst waiting for the police or whatever. I’ve been in the job 17 years and honestly I see my job as driving the bus in a safe and comfortable manner, answering customer queries and issuing tickets. Revenue protection is another matter entirely. Yes, if someone presents you with an out of date ticket or refuses to pay, then challenge them. If they still refuse than what are you going to do? Get out the can potentially putting yourself at risk of assault? Physically remove them from the bus and risk an assault charge being brought against yourself? If it is a persistent offender then make your garage management aware. It’s up to them to then deploy someone to try and catch the person.

 

[anthony263]

It depends entirely on your company and their policies.

Turn engine off and take out newspaper to read can be an effective way to passively deal with recalcitrant passengers you want off.

Always do this . I'm lucky my employers will back me up

 

[Hophead]

Also: ask your colleagues - what's their approach? Is this a persistent problem in certain places? If so, ask your colleagues if they've encountered this and what they've done.

 

[GusB]

There's not much more that can really be said, so we'll lock the thread now. Thanks to those who have responded.