Buying Advance rail tickets with Railcard discount before old enough to purchase Railcard

SunnyDay31

I want to travel by train in several weeks' time. I am not yet old enough to be eligible for a Railcard but I will be by the time I travel. I want to book Advance rail tickets online. Has anyone tried booking Advance rail tickets with a Railcard discount then buying the Railcard when they become old enough, as long as they have a valid Railcard when they travel? I've looked in the National Rail Conditions of Travel which says "The Railcard must be within its period of validity when you travel" but doesn't say anything about having a Railcard when booking tickets. I have looked at the Ts & Cs for the relevant Railcard but I can't find the answer to this there either. I also emailed from the official Railcard website; they merely replied that they 'recommend' buying the Railcard first.

Has anyone done this and has it worked, please?

JGB1955

I've bought tickets in advance of actually buying my Senior Railcard. Absolutely NO problem - the two aren't linked electronically/digitally.

mebu60

I've done the same and applied for renewal (not a first time application) in good time then crossed my fingers!

Nasqueron

Just make sure you have the railcard before you travel, whether digital or otherwise, I don't know what they need in terms of ID but allow enough time!

flaneurs_lobster

Assuming you will be applying for a Senior Railcard? You can apply up to 14 days in advance of your 60th (online only, not at a rail station).

Obviously if you buy discounted tickets (which will not be a problem online, stations would require to see the card) then obtaining the card before you travel will be at your own risk.

See recent thread about using Trainpal (or not) to obtain your card.

katejo

I did hear very recently that there are plans to require proof of the Railcard when purchasing a ticket from a machine or online..

flaneurs_lobster

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81945967#Comment_81945967

Yes I heard that too. Certainly not yet implemented on the 2 train companies' ticketing sites that I use.

Don't know about the machines.

EDIT : re machines, might be a while off - the cards would need to be machine-readable (chip, barcode) which currently they're not.

daveyjp

At the moment the Railcard and ticket sales sites are in no way linked or cross referenced. No Railcard detail, number etc needs to be provided when a ticket is purchased.

The only requirement is that at the time of travel the Railcard is held, valid and produced if requested. Buying tickets with a Railcard discount where no Railcard is held at the time of purchase isn't a problem.

I will be buying some tickets for travel in November as soon as they are released, my Railcard expires in July, but, unless the regs change, will likely be renewed just before November.