Oyster card top up issue

2

Comments

  • rach_k
    rach_k Posts: 2,234
    First Anniversary Name Dropper First Post
    Forumite
    Go contactless. So much easier. It's really easy to link your card to your online account and then check your journey history. If anything is incorrect, it's really easy and quick to get a refund. I've done it a few times, with a 50/50 chance that it was my fault (and I'm being kind to myself probably), and it's always come through.
  • Mr_Singleton
    Mr_Singleton Posts: 1,891 Forumite
    macman wrote: »
    Capping has applied to contactless cards for at least a year now.

    Worth bearing in mind that incomplete journeys don’t count towards the cap.
  • Mr_Singleton
    Mr_Singleton Posts: 1,891 Forumite
    rach_k wrote: »
    Go contactless. So much easier. It's really easy to link your card to your online account and then check your journey history. If anything is incorrect, it's really easy and quick to get a refund. I've done it a few times, with a 50/50 chance that it was my fault (and I'm being kind to myself probably), and it's always come through.

    If anyone feels the urge to use contactless I strongly suggest that they link it to say AndroidPay. It’s absolutely vital that you get gate receipts to prove that you did tap in/out. A number of times being able to prove this was the only thing that (grudgingly) got me a refund.

    Getting refunds out of TFL is not “easy” as TFL’s own refund % figures show. Also remember according to TFL’s own rules you can only get 3? Incomplete Journey refunds a month which for a daily London commuter is a joke.

    Rach_K So your happy to pay £10.50 on the 50% of times it wasn’t your fault?
  • martindow
    martindow Posts: 10,198
    Name Dropper First Post First Anniversary
    Forumite
    macman wrote: »
    Capping has applied to contactless cards for at least a year now.
    Yes but not railcard discounted fares and the consequent lower daily cap.
  • Also remember according to TFL’s own rules you can only get 3? Incomplete Journey refunds a month which for a daily London commuter is a joke.


    Why should a daily commuter need so many incomplete journey refunds?
  • jbuchanangb
    jbuchanangb Posts: 1,325
    First Anniversary First Post Name Dropper
    Forumite
    To respond to the OP. Other people have recommended using a contactless debit or credit card which does have advantages.

    If you have a national railcard discount applied to your Oyster card, as I have, that is a good reason to use the Oyster card, because such discounts do not apply to contactless transactions.

    TfL used to allow about 10 days for collection of top-ups ordered online, but reduced it to 5 days a year or so ago. At the same time they removed the restriction that you could only collect the top-up at a nominated station, now you can collect it at any station.

    I have twice ordered on-line top-ups and failed to collect them, when plans changed. I find that facility quite useful.
  • lr1277
    lr1277 Posts: 1,652
    Name Dropper First Post First Anniversary Combo Breaker
    Forumite
    TfL used to allow about 10 days for collection of top-ups ordered online, but reduced it to 5 days a year or so ago. At the same time they removed the restriction that you could only collect the top-up at a nominated station, now you can collect it at any station.

    I have twice ordered on-line top-ups and failed to collect them, when plans changed. I find that facility quite useful.


    Thanks for that, didn't know the restriction had been lifted.


    I find the oyster card preferable to a contactless card, because the oyster card is in its own wallet and I can get it out and scan it at the gate. If I had to get my wallet out, its more precarious and there is a chance stuff from my wallet will fall on the floor. Works for me.


    I am not sure if jbuchanangb was referring to this, but a couple of years ago, when I didn't collect a top up, the money was refunded onto my card.
  • rach_k
    rach_k Posts: 2,234
    First Anniversary Name Dropper First Post
    Forumite
    Rach_K So your happy to pay £10.50 on the 50% of times it wasn’t your fault?

    No idea what you mean here. 100% of times I've asked for a refund (their fault or my fault), I've been given a refund, no quibble. Do you perhaps have a higher than average rate of failing to tap in/out? Perhaps they have reason to suspect you're trying to fiddle the system so that's why you seem to have so much trouble getting refunds.
  • Jumblebumble
    Jumblebumble Posts: 1,802
    First Anniversary First Post Name Dropper
    Forumite
    edited 16 October 2019 at 2:20PM
    If anyone feels the urge to use contactless I strongly suggest that they link it to say AndroidPay. It’s absolutely vital that you get gate receipts to prove that you did tap in/out. A number of times being able to prove this was the only thing that (grudgingly) got me a refund.

    Getting refunds out of TFL is not “easy” as TFL’s own refund % figures show. Also remember according to TFL’s own rules you can only get 3? Incomplete Journey refunds a month which for a daily London commuter is a joke.

    Rach_K So your happy to pay £10.50 on the 50% of times it wasn’t your fault?

    I disagree and my experience is completely the opposite It is trivial to get a refund and I have never been unsuccessful ( although have had to escalate about three times in the last 5 years)
    However I can see no reason what ever that someone would need incur 3 incomplete journey refunds in a month unless they are accidentally or purposefully double dipping on the gateline or are very forgetful.
    Can you explain how you are incurring these multiple incomplete journeys that the vast majority of us do not suffer from.?
  • Mr_Singleton
    Mr_Singleton Posts: 1,891 Forumite
    edited 16 October 2019 at 6:07PM
    Can you explain how you are incurring these multiple incomplete journeys that the vast majority of us do not suffer from.?

    I went from my home underground station in zone 1 to Tottenham Hale. I touched out and the gates opened. I then touched in and the gates opened 30 seconds later onto the overground. I then touched out at Enfield Lock where I met a friend for a fast cycle to Cambridge.

    Image my surprise when next morning I find that I’ve been charged for 2 incomplete journeys. Called TFL who claimed that there was no touch out or in at Tottenham Hale. Of all the combinations of missed touch out/in’s the one I allegedly did just happened to be the one that maximised TFL revenue...... fancy that!

    Anyway bloke on the phone says he couldn’t give me refund of the £17ish max cash fare. I told him I’d used AndroidPay. He didn't quite get it at first so I told him I had gate receipts to PROVE I had touched out/in. Again he didn’t get it and actually told me that Google were trying to defraud TFL. Told him I would be taking it further and that as my receipts proved I did touch out/in and the only defrauding was being done by TFL. He put me on hold to speak to his manager. Came back and he’d been authorised to issue a refund this time as a gesture of good will. Yes, right!!!

    I still have the photo of the gate receipts and the TWO incomplete journeys charge.

    I currently make around 150 journeys a month..... 3 incomplete journeys is nothing as the £100,000,000’s of money TFL has charged for them proves.
This discussion has been closed.
Meet your Ambassadors

Categories

  • All Categories
  • 342.5K Banking & Borrowing
  • 249.9K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
  • 449.4K Spending & Discounts
  • 234.6K Work, Benefits & Business
  • 607.1K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
  • 172.8K Life & Family
  • 247.4K Travel & Transport
  • 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
  • 15.8K Discuss & Feedback
  • 15.1K Coronavirus Support Boards