(Interesting that it no longer implies you can't use a different station).
It looks pretty clear to me, there is nothing in there that implies that you can collect from anywhere other than a station on the list, and plenty that makes it clear that you do need to.
Agreed that those screen-shots make it clear that you must obtain your ticket from one of the stations on that list. But NOTHING on those screen-shots states that you have to do so before boarding. Compared with the m-ticket option, that explicitly states that you must down-load the ticket before boarding. I have never ever been offered an e-ticket or print-at-home option (which would solve a lot of my issues), but I gather that too explicitly states that you have to print or down-load the ticket before boarding. The collect-from-station option does NOT have such wording.
For those that seem to think it important, I knew that the train I would be travelling on would be very busy, so I wanted a seat reservation, which I would not have been able to obtain from the guard on the day. However, it could also have applied if one leg of my journey had involved an advance-fare ticket that was not available from the guard on the day.
As I said, I purchased a ticket through the EMT web-site on Saturday: the ONLY option I was offered was to collect the ticket from station, and at NO time was it stated either during the booking process or on my confirmation email that I had to collect the ticket before boarding. I was asked to confirm that I realised the station I had selected wasn't my originating station, but that was all.
Agreed that we keep going around in circles, but that is because people keeping claiming that it is a requirement to collect the ticket before boarding, but so far without producing a scrap of evidence to substantiate that claim. As I keep saying, the TfW web-site clearly states that the requirement to obtain your ticket before boarding does NOT apply at stations that do not have ticket-issuing facilities.
It is noticeable that all the TfW stations I have been on lately have signs that state you MUST have a ticket before you travel, and there are announcements stating the same.
That cannot be true of stations that do not have ticket-issuing facilities, such as just about the whole of the Cambrian, as it is perfectly acceptable at such stations to board without a ticket, and to buy your ticket from the guard on the train. The TfW web-site makes it clear that you will be offered the full range of fares in such cases.
Whilst the booking site might not explicitly state that you must collect your tickets before travel, I think it ought to be pretty clear that this is the case - in other words, even if it is not explicitly stated, it may well be held to be an implied term (as paying for the ticket, and having it in your possession prior to travelling, has been the working pricinciple of railway ticketing for many decades, if not centuries).
Except on "pay-train" services, on lines where the stations don't have ticket-issuing facilities, which is what are talking about on this thread, where it has been the working principle for decades that you DO NOT have to be in possession of your ticket before travelling, as you obtain your ticket from the guard on the train.
“This is not your ticket. It is not valid for travel. You must collect your ticket before travel”
There is no such wording on the confirmation that I received. Here is a copy of an EMT booking confirmation:
Booking Confirmation
Your payment was successful. Your booking confirmation will be emailed to XXXXX
Journey: XXXXX to XXXXX £44.50
Getting your tickets: Ticket collection machine
Ref XXXXXXX
Tickets will be ready for collection 15 minute(s) after booking.
Collect your ticket(s) from the ticket machine at XXXXX.
You will need your collection reference number and any valid debit/credit card to collect your tickets. (for ID only, it will not be charged)
Outward - Thursday 1st November 2018
Depart Arrive Seating Travel by
Reservation not requested Transport For Wales
Reservation not requested Crosscountry
Reservation not possible East Midlands Trains
Return - Sunday 4th November 2018
Depart Arrive Seating Travel by
Reservation not possible East Midlands Trains
Reservation not requested Crosscountry
Reservation not requested Transport For Wales
Ticket details
OFF-PEAK RETURN £44.50
1 Adult(s) Senior Railcard Fare @ £44.50
Travel is allowed via any permitted route.
Flexible ticket only valid at specific off-peak times of the day.
SENIOR RAILCARD : You must carry your railcard with you when you travel. Failure to do so will result in the full undiscounted fare being payable.
Total payment
And as others have pointed out, a condition imposed AFTER you have completed the purchase is invalid.
To my mind it is very simple, either there is a clear, written requirement that you must collect your ticket before boarding, that is made reasonably obvious at the time you purchase your ticket, or there isn't. Full-stop. I can't find such a requirement, nobody else here has evidently been able to, and I have been carefully through the ticket-purchasing process without it ever being stated.
If there were such a requirement, it would effectively mean I was being required NOT to buy my ticket before boarding, which would be preposterous. Any TOC who took someone to court because they HAD bought a ticket would look ridiculous, and would run the real risk of being pilloried by the press and public.
But there is a more important point here. It has been a long-standing principle that people should not be put at a disadvantage because the train company has made the decision not to provide ticket-issuing facilities at their station. It is not the passenger's fault that a station does not have ticket-issuing facilities, so the passenger should not be disadvantaged. That is why there is a requirement that the full range of fares should be available when buying your ticket on-board, not just the ordinary full-fare that would apply if you board at station that does have ticket-issuing facilities. With the train companies' increasing emphasis on advance fares and on-line promotions, that inherently cannot be bought from the guard on the day, it is important that people who board at stations that do not have ticket-issuing facilities are not denied these low fares. That is why I believe the requirements are worded the way they are.