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Refunding a train fare after you got on the wrong rail network

NAS38324

I thought asking here might be worth a try in case anyone here has had similar experiences and/or knowledge of the system. 

So I had a virtual ticket (which i am not very used to) from Beverley all the way down to London.  It said it was only applicable to Hull Trains and Northern.  It was activated, but using google maps I followed the only route that was apparent to me and ended up on a London North Eastern Rail train to London, where the ticket inspector told me I had to spend another £92 to be on that train... BUT... that I should be able to get a refund from thetrainline.com  

I asked him if he was sure they would be understanding if I called.  He said that it is illegal for me to be charged twice for the same journey, so they ought to be able to refund me.

So naturally when I did call them, they said no, I should have made sure to only stay on the Hull Trains network. 

I can accept this if it's definitely fair, but is it?  Does the ticket price not just go to National Rail?  Do they not make a lot of extra money from dummies like me failing to acknowledge the difference between rail networks? 

Could I not have opted to reroute my journey after the ticket inspector told me of my mistake, given that I only agreed to pay after he had informed me that I would be able to get a refund?  If you innocently get on the wrong train and can't pay, can you not just leave the train or get sent back? 

I feel a bit odd bringing this up here on a forum I've never posted on, but I have been getting the NAS publications since I was diagnosed with Aspergers as a child, and I just wanted to run this situation by someone with insight as to whether this situation is a bureaucracy trap or if I'm fairly paying for my mistake.  I'll be amazed if anyone reads this, so thank if you did :)

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  • NAS38324 said:
    He said that it is illegal for me to be charged twice for the same journey

    I got a laugh out of that one. They would like nothing better than to charge people twice for the same journey.

    Anyway, in answer to the question, if an employee states that you can get a refund, that constitutes a verbal contract with the company. Legally, you are entitled to a refund, if only because of what you were told, even if what you were told was actually erroneous according to their policies. As you say, you wouldn't have paid if he had not told you that your money would be refunded. I wish you good luck in getting a refund, given the typical class of customer service in this country.

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  • NAS38324 said:
    He said that it is illegal for me to be charged twice for the same journey

    I got a laugh out of that one. They would like nothing better than to charge people twice for the same journey.

    Anyway, in answer to the question, if an employee states that you can get a refund, that constitutes a verbal contract with the company. Legally, you are entitled to a refund, if only because of what you were told, even if what you were told was actually erroneous according to their policies. As you say, you wouldn't have paid if he had not told you that your money would be refunded. I wish you good luck in getting a refund, given the typical class of customer service in this country.

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