What is the correct fare to charge for tickets bought now for travel on/after 1 April 2024?

[kkong]

Tickets priced by ScotRail are increasing by 8.7% as of 1 April 2024.

Can someone clarify the correct pricing which should be offered if buying tickets today for travel on/after 1 April?

Some retailers are selling at the current price and other retailers are selling at the price it will be from 1 April.

Example:
Journey: Aberdeen to Glasgow Central/Queen Street
Ticket Type: Anytime Return
Outbound Date: 15 April

ScotRail: £74.20
LNER: £74.20
TrainSplit: £68.30
Uber: £68.30

 

[Adam Williams]

I don't recall a bulletin being issued about this, and as far as I can see the spec only discusses the possibility of a January, May and September FCD (Fares Change Date). Special bulletins were issued for the March changes.

As such it's unclear to me as to on what basis a TIS would be applying the four week rule here.

 

[Watershed]

Tickets priced by ScotRail are increasing by 8.7% as of 1 April 2024.

Can someone clarify the correct pricing which should be offered if buying tickets today for travel on/after 1 April?

Some retailers are selling at the current price and other retailers are selling at the price it will be from 1 April.

Example:
Journey: Aberdeen to Glasgow Central/Queen Street
Ticket Type: Anytime Return
Outbound Date: 15 April

ScotRail: £74.20
LNER: £74.20
TrainSplit: £68.30
Uber: £68.30

Whether or not there's an "advance sales date" depends on the fares increase, or fares setting round, in question.

In this case, fares should be sold at the current price until 23:59 on 31 March, even if the travel date is 1 April or later. Therefore TrainSplit and Uber are correct, and ScotRail and LNER are overcharging passengers.

ScotRail use a whitelabel Trainline site; as the biggest third party retailer and supplier to lots of TOCs, it's somewhat embarrassing for Trainline to be getting this wrong...

 

[Haywain]

Can someone clarify the correct pricing which should be offered if buying tickets today for travel on/after 1 April?

As you form a contract when you buy a ticket, you should buy from whoever is offering the cheapest fare. Whether they have it right or wrong is not anything for you to be concerned about.

 

[CyrusWuff]

Doing some digging, it seems that ScotRail have set an advance sale date of 1st February for the new fares, with a further change from 1st July which has an advance sale date of 3rd February.

Both sets of fares are allegedly valid for sale until 31st December 9999, rather than the usual 2999.

Given that, it's not surprising retailers are getting confused!

 

[wibble]

Whether or not there's an "advance sales date" depends on the fares increase, or fares setting round, in question.

In this case, fares should be sold at the current price until 23:59 on 31 March, even if the travel date is 1 April or later. Therefore TrainSplit and Uber are correct, and ScotRail and LNER are overcharging passengers.

ScotRail use a whitelabel Trainline site; as the biggest third party retailer and supplier to lots of TOCs, it's somewhat embarrassing for Trainline to be getting this wrong...

I disagree. Whether there is an "advance sale" date would depend on what the regulator decides, which would be the Scottish government. The DfT has decided that for this year's fares change (for they TOCs they control) there is no "advance sale". As @Adam Williams says, if no bulletin has been issued, the new fares will be available for purchase as soon as the revised fare data is processed by TIS.

 

[kkong]

Doing some digging, it seems that ScotRail have set an advance sale date of 1st February for the new fares, with a further change from 1st July which has an advance sale date of 3rd February.

Both sets of fares are allegedly valid for sale until 31st December 9999, rather than the usual 2999.

Given that, it's not surprising retailers are getting confused!

Thanks for the info.

1 July will be the first date after the Off-Peak fares trial is (currently) due to end.

However, as no retailers seem to be offering the higher (presumably previous price + 8.7%) Anytime fares at the moment, I'm not sure what the advance sale date of 3 February could relate to.

As you form a contract when you buy a ticket, you should buy from whoever is offering the cheapest fare. Whether they have it right or wrong is not anything for you to be concerned about.

Thanks - I'm aware of that and have bought the required tickets accordingly.

I was more interested to find out what was going wrong, because customers shouldn't see these inconsistencies.

 

[David M]

Thanks for this - had checked Scotrail for tickets on 16th April and assumed prices had been increased on every booking site.