Travelling without railcard

[Skipness]

Yesterday, after the ticket office had closed, I was approached by a passenger enquiring what they should do. They had been issued with senior railcard tickets, but were not railcard holders.
Apparently their outward journey had been uneventful, with tickets checked but no request to show railcard. Prior to making their return journey on Saturday they had noticed that they had been issued (from a booking office) railcard discounted tickets. What advice would you give?
1. Do nothing and plead ignorance if queried. A very risky route to take.
2.Buy new tickets at full fare for their return journey. The simplest method, but expensive.
3. Buy full fare return tickets. Morally the correct thing to do, as they have already benefitted from a discounted outwards journey.
4. Anything else possible?

 

[voyagerdude220]

Personally I'd try to get them excessed at the first available opportunity. (pay the difference between what the did pay and what they should have paid without any sort of penalty being imposed)

I wouldn't look to buy completely new tickets if the customer hadn't specifically requested railcard tickets without holding a railcard.

 

[greyman42]

Yesterday, after the ticket office had closed, I was approached by a passenger enquiring what they should do. They had been issued with senior railcard tickets, but were not railcard holders.

How do you get issued with senior railcard tickets if you have not got a railcard?

 

[yorkie]

How do you get issued with senior railcard tickets if you have not got a railcard?

By purchasing online, or from a TVM, or (potentially) by informing the booking clerk that you are going to obtain one before travel and/or buying for others.

 

[telstarbox]

Or (perhaps unlikely) a clerk assuming the passengers were Railcard holders when they weren't.

 

[Haywain]

Or (perhaps unlikely) a clerk assuming the passengers were Railcard holders when they weren't.

Like when the customers ask for senior tickets, for instance.

 

[yorkie]

Y
1. Do nothing and plead ignorance if queried. A very risky route to take.
2.Buy new tickets at full fare for their return journey. The simplest method, but expensive.
3. Buy full fare return tickets. Morally the correct thing to do, as they have already benefitted from a discounted outwards journey.
4. Anything else possible?

5. Excess the tickets; if the origin station does not have an open booking office, they should inform any on board staff who are checking tickets (ie. the Conductor/TM/TTI/OBM/OBS) of this, and request to pay the excess.

 

[Belperpete]

I would say the critical thing is to tell the on-board staff BEFORE they notice it for themselves. If you say nothing until challenged, the wrong assumption may be drawn.

 

[Surreytraveller]

Or (perhaps unlikely) a clerk assuming the passengers were Railcard holders when they weren't.

Perhaps the passengers asking for senior tickets, not realising that you need to hold a railcard for them to be valid. Lots of places give senior discounts without needing to hold a document to give eligibility, so for infrequent travellers probably an easy mistake to make