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Forbidden from using power socket in station waiting room

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mark-h

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I was looking for a SIA badge on the guy's arm, but I couldn't see one on him or his slightly less burly colleague.

If there are people going around harassing customers in a station without visible ID (TOC/BTP/SIA/NR) then report it to 61016 as "something that doesn't look right".
 
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AnkleBoots

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If there are people going around harassing customers in a station without visible ID (TOC/BTP/SIA/NR) then report it to 61016 as "something that doesn't look right".
This is definite worth considering if there is a next time. Can I point to a written source that requires all staff on stations to have visible ID?
 

sprunt

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IIRC there was an incident on a circle/district line train nr Cannon St where someone had used a 'not for public use' socket to charge their phone and the charger caught fire.

Not long after that there was a prosecution for abstraction of electricity from an overground train on N London line which was dropped before it went to trial.

IIRC the RAIB took the view that any socket visible on a train was likely to be used by the public for phone charging and so the electrics would have ti be sorted to prevent surges on the move, or the socket locked/plated over for cleaners use only.

On moby so difficult to research links for this.

This may be the case on the North London line - it mentions the Overground. Unsurprising that the whole silly thing was started by a PCSO. A waiting room is one thing, but given that trains frequently have power sockets intended for passenger use it's far from unreasonable to assume that a power socket on a train is for the use of passengers, and if a particular one isn't there are far better ways to let the passenger know than starting off with "Do you know you're stealing electricity?"
 

philthetube

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I think a good question here would be, why was there a trailing cable? It sounds as though the passenger chose, presumably for security reasons, to keep his/her phone close to their person, but the socket was some distance away. Clearly, if there is a trailing cable, there is a safety hazard, irrespective of whether or not a socket is intended for public use or not.
Who was ultimately blamed for the toddler sustaining injury?

Does it matter who got blamed, what matters is that a toddler was injured and action was taken to ensure it can't happen again.
 

NickBucks

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I think the OP was lucky to have a security guard around. No suggestion that the language used was anything but polite and firm. His / Her presence may well have saved the OP being assaulted by a low life trying to steal the phone. Hats Off to National Rail and / or the TOC for ensuring that the security guard was doing their job.
 

bastien

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How many people carry a fan heater round in their bag?
You can get small 500w heaters not much bigger than a timer plug these days. Google 'JML Handy Heater'.

Pretty scary if you ask me, but they're available in real shops like Wilko so they must be somewhat safe.
 

Karl

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Here you go... and another for good measure! :)

JML Heater.jpg Fan on train.jpg

(Two images. One of the JML Handy Heater. The other of a man sat with a full size cooling fan plugged into the train's seat socket!)
 

221129

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This is definite worth considering if there is a next time. Can I point to a written source that requires all staff on stations to have visible ID?
No because there is no such rule. Security staff should have their SIA badge on display though.
 

johnnychips

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I frequently put a small fan heater in my case if I am staying away somewhere in the winter - sometimes hotel room heating can be woefully inadequate.
I am so impressed by this, even though we’re getting OT. Is it like the one in #69? Didn’t know such stuff existed.
 
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Just because there is an electrical socket on the wall it doesnt mean you can use it.
Why would you think you can anyway?
 

infobleep

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Do all the plug sockets provided for the public to use at stations state they are?

Why don't all train companies put notices on the plug sockets on their trains saying you can use them? South Western Railway do. Of course their notices only mention laptops and not mobiles.
 

R G NOW.

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There is a socket in the waiting room on platform 1 at Cheltenham that everyone seems to use, and nobody seemed to worry about. But really one should only use the U.S.B sockets on trains as the power is generated from the trains batteries or generators. And the person will be able to charge it properly instead of standing by one in a waiting room.
 

dosxuk

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I was charging my phone in a waiting room and was told by a burly security guy that I was not allowed to do that.

The socket was next to an out-of-use vending machine. The waiting room was probably designed before mobile phones and definitely before people had train tickets on their phones.

So you're sat there, security guard comes in, sees you've plugged your phone in to charge and that the vending machine has been unplugged?

Not sure whether the security guy was just wanting to be difficult or whether he had instructions from the station manager. He was from a private firm (not in railway uniform) - would he have the right to demand my name and address if I failed to comply?

He would have the same rights as any other security person. He can ask you to leave the premises (if badged, that can include use of reasonable force to encourage you to leave), and he can summon assistance.

Other posters have mentioned that network rail is a public body, therefore they think stations are a public place, well, the houses of parliament, police stations, schools, hospitals, morgues, and sports facilities are often publicly owned, but there is no right for a member of the public to wander about at will and you can be arrested if you refuse to leave when asked, even if asked by non-badged / warrant holding employees.
 

philthetube

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And yet the 14/15 satellite lounge at Manchester Piccadilly not only has sockets clearly marked for public use, but also USB sockets and a shelf on which to place the device being charged ... #betterupnorth

This sounds like a strange argument, they are not everywhere so should not be anywhere?
 

AnkleBoots

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So you're sat there, security guard comes in, sees you've plugged your phone in to charge and that the vending machine has been unplugged?
It was a completely empty vending machine, he knew I hadn't just unplugged it :)
 

Belperpete

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Using force to remove a ticket-holding passenger would be very disappointing.
Removing someone behaving obnoxiously would not be disappointing. Just because someone holds a ticket does not entitle them to behave as they wish.
 

156420

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I don’t see how we’ve managed to generate 3 pages of waffle from 1 very small incident!

Security Guard “Can you not use the plugs to charge your phone?”

Person: “Ok no problem”

Done.
 

yorkie

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I don’t see how we’ve managed to generate 3 pages of waffle from 1 very small incident!
We've had fewer than 90 replies, yet we have over 3,000 members active on any one given day, so you've already contributed more than the average member ;) as for waffle, well I'm not sure I'd describe your post as that, but I will disagree with it.
Security Guard “Can you not use the plugs to charge your phone?”

Person: “Ok no problem”

Done.
It's not unreasonable to:
a) ask if there is a reason why (e.g. what I'd recommend I'd saying "Sure I will do, just wondering if there is a particular reason?"; The answer given may influence what you say in a letter to the company.
b) establish if the individual was acting within their remit and if the company was happy for the interaction to take place.

I don't agree that an unreasonable request should not be brought to a company's attention and I also don't think it's unreasonable to establish if the request was reasonable.

I am not suggesting refusing to comply or acting confrontationally.
 

unlevel42

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Connecting unprotected delicate equipment to unknown power sources is not a good idea.
I am no electrical engineer but I do know that the "cleaners" power supply on trains was not suitable for electronics.
In industrial plants where there heavy duty electric motors, cranes, arc melting etc are in use, delicate electronics must have special protection.
I would be very wary of connecting anything up to a socket unless it is marked as suitable for public use, particularly on the electric railway and its buildings.
 

Bantamzen

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Depends on the airline. Before power banks were a thing (now they are if I have a bag there is odds on one inside - I only ever use train sockets if wanting to use a laptop, and even that, despite being a very cheap one, has about 6 hours of life) I ran out of phone battery while waiting for a BA flight at Heathrow. A quick question at the desk with my passport and a printed boarding pass was produced free of charge.

I doubt Eireflop are as accommodating, though.

I can answer that last bit, they most certainly would charge you. But to be fair they make this perfectly clear when booking. Which is why I always suggest to people reliant on their mobile phones for this sort of thing to carry a power bank with them, or at the very least keep an eye on their battery power and if it gets below a certain percentage stop using it for non-essential purposes.
 

Roy Badami

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Connecting unprotected delicate equipment to unknown power sources is not a good idea.
I am no electrical engineer but I do know that the "cleaners" power supply on trains was not suitable for electronics.
In industrial plants where there heavy duty electric motors, cranes, arc melting etc are in use, delicate electronics must have special protection.
I would be very wary of connecting anything up to a socket unless it is marked as suitable for public use, particularly on the electric railway and its buildings.
I'm pretty sure that's not a major concern - any surface buildings will be wired no differently to a home or office. The station power supply will just be a normal power supply provided by the local electricity company, and will be completely separate from the railway electrification system.
 
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