I regularly travel between Exeter and London by train and use Trainline to book tickets. The site is easy to use and usually there are no problems. Recently though a simple change of ticket has led me to believe there’s a conspiracy against me…
It all started when I had my wallet stolen back in March. It had quite a few train tickets in it so I needed to buy them again. I made a list of all the tickets that needed replacing and started to buy. All seemed fine until I collected the tickets and noticed that I’d accidentally bought a ticket for the 17 June when I meant the 17 May. This is usually no problem, you go to the site and request a change, post the tickets off and other than being charged £10 it’s no big deal. This time it was different.
When I went to the site the Change Date button had disappeared so I had to ring up instead. I always dread this because the call centre is so noisy that you always need to shout and repeat everything at least twice. So I get through to an operator, at least you don’t usually have to wait long for one, and explain how I want to change a ticket. She cheerfully informs me that it might be easier to do online. I point out that the functionality no longer exists. Needless to say, being the customer, I’m obviously wrong. No, no it’s easy, she says, you just log in and go to the account settings page and then.. Oh, I see, it’s gone. Having sorted that out we go through the process. I tell her that I want the exact same ticket, same time, same journey but a different date, and first class too, as it’s only £10 more, well worth it for the extra room and complimentary drinks and snacks. She tells me that the price is £32. I dispute this saying the online price is £42. Again, being the customer, I must be wrong, no it’s £32, she says.
She explains how I must post my tickets back, preferably by recorded delivery, and I’ll get a refund when I arrive. So I go the station to make my normal journey, 17 May still being a few weeks away, and on the way post my old ticket with recorded delivery. When I collect my replacement ticket it’s all correct, except it’s second class, not first. As this means squashed in with no chance of doing any work I decide to ring up again. I explain the circumstances to a different operator and he says I must buy a new ticket, post the other tickets and get a refund. I point out that this is their error so I won’t be paying the £10 fine again. He says they will need to check their records to see if I did state first class. I play my trump card. I record most conversations on my mobile and have the joy of telling him this. He listens and agrees that I am right. So I tell him that I want the exact same ticket except first class. He tells me I can pick it up at Exeter where my current journey ends. I reach Exeter and try to collect my ticket and this is where I start to lose my temper. It’s first class all right, but the wrong date. I now have a ticket for the 19 May! My third phone call. So sorry, you’ll need to return the ticket by post and buy a new one. At this stage i feel that my card will be maxed out on train tickets but I don’t have much choice. Again he agrees to waive the £10 fee after the recording of the earlier conversation proves it was their error.
The next day I post off the unwanted tickets and duly receive a refund but the next time I collect tickets from the station I get two sets of tickets for 17 May. I check my bank statement and find that I’ve been charged for two lots as well. So I ring up again…
After explaining all of the above I am told to, you’ve guessed it, return them by recorded delivery and I’ll get a refund. So I make yet another trip to the post office. A few weeks later I’ve heard nothing so I check online to see if my tickets were delivered, no they are in transit. I don’t believe this and, after jumping through a dozen hoops, I finally get to speak to someone at Royal Mail. They inform me that the tickets were lost. I need to claim a refund. can I do this online? Of course not. It’s a form that needs to be posted (recorded delivery…).
Eventually I receive a reply by post, despite the fact that they wanted my email, to say they will contact Trainline to see if my story is true, if it is I may get a refund.
After relating this to Trainline they say they will refund me anyway and I can pay it back if Royal Mail assume responsibility so that cheered me up somewhat. I now reckon that the simple mistake of buying the wrong ticket has cost me six hours in telephone calls, trips to the post office, and form filling as ell as the initial £10 fee and three lost of recorded delivery payments ( at about £1.50 each).
On a plus note the facility to change a ticket online is now back so next time I need to change one it will hopefully go more smoothly.
