Best way to pay for a season ticket

kimmarie

Hi,
I would really appreciate some ideas on paying for my season ticket. I commute from Leighton Buzzard to London and my season ticket will cost around £4,800 (sigh) next year. Now for my current one I've got an interest free season ticket loan through work which I pay back over 10 months.
What I'd like to know is if there is a better way of paying for it. I keep hearing about these cash back cards and such like and wonder if any of these would be good for a season ticket? Ideally I'd like to spread the cost of the ticket over 12 months as well.
Am I better off sticking with the interest free loan at work?

Any thoughts much appreciated.
Kim

cosmojohnson

kimmarie wrote: »

Hi,
I would really appreciate some ideas on paying for my season ticket. I commute from Leighton Buzzard to London and my season ticket will cost around £4,800 (sigh) next year.

You've probably considered this, but that looks like a season to London zones 1-6. Do you need the additional validity? Or could you just get a season to Euston only for almost £1k less and walk/bike the rest to work...?

Now for my current one I've got an interest free season ticket loan through work which I pay back over 10 months.
What I'd like to know is if there is a better way of paying for it. I keep hearing about these cash back cards and such like and wonder if any of these would be good for a season ticket? Ideally I'd like to spread the cost of the ticket over 12 months as well.
Am I better off sticking with the interest free loan at work?

Any thoughts much appreciated.
Kim

A quick look at the other cashback cards available, looks like the cashback is limited to ~£100-£125. So if it's possible (and permissible) for you to (apply for and) buy the ticket on one of those cards, then reclaim the cash via your employer's loan scheme, then it might be worthwhile.

The Santander 123 credit card gives 3% cashback on National Rail spend, but it's limited to a spend of £300/month so you'd need to get monthly tickets. That would give cashback of £108/year.

However, as with an annual season ticket you effectively pay for 40-ish weeks but get 52 weeks travel (which is why employer season ticket loans are often repayable from your salary over 10 months), it probably wouldn't be worth it (unless you were planning on taking a lot of time off in the year!).

thelawnet

The best way is to buy five week season tickets (these are charged at 1 month + 1/30 month for each extra day), starting on a Monday and finishing on a Friday (or at your convenience if your work pattern isn't Monday-Friday). That way you miss out weekends and holidays, and it should work out the same or cheaper than yearly tickets, but with less cash up-front.

There is cashback through quidco/topcashback too.

chubbs1981

I am moving employers in the coming month. For my new role i'm going to 'let the train take the strain' (allegedly!) How is it that my vehicle insurance can be taken out in monthly installments but a train ticket of over 5x the value cannot! Is there such a thing anywhere as a DD monthly season ticket? Ticket would be Cov to Northampton. Cost just over £1700.

yorkie2

Some employers do offer that facility - it is worth asking them.

thelawnet

chubbs1981 wrote: »

I am moving employers in the coming month. For my new role i'm going to 'let the train take the strain' (allegedly!) How is it that my vehicle insurance can be taken out in monthly installments but a train ticket of over 5x the value cannot! Is there such a thing anywhere as a DD monthly season ticket? Ticket would be Cov to Northampton. Cost just over £1700.

Monthly vehicle insurance costs more than annual.

You can buy monthly train tickets.

Mids_Costcutter

chubbs1981 wrote: »

Is there such a thing anywhere as a DD monthly season ticket? Ticket would be Cov to Northampton. Cost just over £1700.

There is! The 'Monthly Direct Debit ntrain Out of County Northampton', which costs £173.70 / month and covers travel between and within the West Midlands (7 metropolitan authorities) and Northampton. However at £2079.60 over a year it would be more expensive than the £1724 for a Cov Northampton season ticket and presumably you didn't need to travel anywhere else within the West Midlands?

The ntrain ticket is issued by Centro, the integrated transport authority or ITA for the West Midlands, though also covering some areas just outside.

johnmc

If your "loan" from work is a salary sacrifice then, as a lower rate tax payer, you are getting 32% off.

I'd stick with that!