MILLIONS of commuters and tourists are being stung by penalties for errors when using their contactless cards on trains, The Sun can reveal.
A staggering 22.2million travellers in and out of London were slapped with “maximum fare” charges of up to £27.60 last year because they failed to tap in or out of a station correctly.
A freedom of information (FOI) request submitted to Transport for London (TFL) by The Sun revealed rail passengers paid a combined £164.7million in maximum fares last year for “incomplete journeys” in or out of the capital.
This is an enormous increase on the roughly £60million charged for the same errors in 2018.
Passengers are hit with “maximum fares” for incomplete journeys if they fail to tap in or out of a station within the TFL travel zone correctly.
The TFL travel zone covers most of Greater London and some stations in counties surrounding the Capital.
This could mean a charge of more than £27 for a journey that should have cost as little as £2.80.
Travellers may accidentally tap in or out of the TFL system incorrectly for a number of reasons.
For example, using different contactless cards to tap in and out, exiting a station with open barriers without tapping their card, or by changing onto a mainline train without tapping out of TFL first.
Many train stations on the TFL network do not have any barriers between London Underground platforms and mainline train platforms.
This means travellers could accidentally change onto a train without tapping out of TFL’s system, leaving them with no means to do so later if they are travelling outside the TFL zone.
For example, Richmond station in west London has no barriers between its mainline Southwestern Railway platforms, which go out as far as Reading in Berkshire, and its London underground lines.
If you swapped onto this platform without exiting and re-entering the station and then got off at Reading, you would be hit with a maximum TFL fee and would have to buy a new train ticket to exit the barriers.
Freelance writer Eugene Costello was charged £60 for a journey that should have cost less than £20 after he travelled from Ealing Broadway in west London to Gravesend in Kent.
The 56-year-old took the Elizabeth Line, a train line on the TFL network, from Ealing Broadway to St Pancras International train station, where he changed onto a mainline train to Gravesend operated by Southeastern Rail.
There were no barriers during his change between platforms, but he believed he would be able to tap out using his contactless card at Gravesend.
But when he arrived at Gravesend, which falls just outside of TFL’s network, he was charged a full £44 ticket from St Pancras to Gravesend by Southeastern and £18 by TFL.
His TFL trip should only have cost £3, while you can buy a last-minute off-peak ticket to Gravesend from St Pancras online for £14.50.
“The con is that Southeastern lets you on the platform for its trains once you’re already in TFL’s system, but then charges you a hefty amount when you get to your station,” he said.
“I’ve been charged less than this for trips from London to York, so it seems really harsh.
“I grew up in Ealing in London and thought that Gravesend is practically part of the Capital. It feels like a scam.”
You can apply for a refund through TFL’s website if you made a mistake tapping in and out – but you can only do this three times in a whole year.
TFL may also ask for evidence and can refuse a refund without it.
Eugene applied for a refund but never received any money back.
“TFL demanded copies of bank statements – I have a banking app and sent a screenshot, but it said I needed to send a hard copy and so I never received any refund.”
Passengers can also be charged the maximum fare for tapping in and out at the same station, for example because they enter and then decide against travelling.
According to TFL, if you exit the station within two minutes of entering you will be charged the maximum fare.
Meanwhile, if you tap out of the same station after 30 minutes you will be charged two maximum fares because TFL will assume you made two incomplete journeys.
Experts have slammed the draconian way in which TFL imposes maximum fares on customers who usually make “honest” mistakes.
Consumer and travel disputes expert Scott Dixon said: “Tap in/out errors are common.
“Most people are honest and do not intentionally make mistakes or evade fares, so inspectors and TFL need to give people the benefit of the doubt and not assume they are guilty and impose a penalty fare.”
In its FOI response to The Sun, TFL said: “All customers using pay as you go are required to touch in and out using the same card or mobile device to ensure that they pay the correct fare and avoid incomplete journeys.
“Any maximum fares charged for incomplete journeys are designed to reflect TFL’s inability to accurately charge the customer for their journey where they haven’t touched in and out (correctly).”
If you’re overcharged because you didn’t tap in or out of a TFL station correctly, you can apply for a refund online through TFL’s website up to three times.
Visit tfl.gov.uk/fares/refunds-and-replacements/didnt-touch-in-or-out and create or sign into an account to make a claim.
If you believe you have been treated unfairly by a ticket inspector or have been overcharged, lodge a complaint with TFL in writing using its online contact form with the time, date and details.
Complaints in writing can be used as evidence if you need to escalate it further, according to Mr Dixon, so you should avoid complaining over the phone.
“If you have been overcharged and your complaint is rejected, you can raise a chargeback with your bank to dispute the transaction,” he said.
“Your bank should reverse the payment and give TFL an opportunity to prove its case.
“You need to push hard on this and cite a ‘breach of contract’ under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, as chargebacks are often rejected on the first attempt.”
You have up to 120 days to raise a chargeback about goods and services.
You can also share feedback with TFL by emailing haveyoursay@tfl.gov.uk or writing a letter to: Freepost TFL HAVE YOUR SAY, Transport For London, 5 Endeavour Square, London, E20 1JN.
There are a number of ways to bring down the cost of train tickets.
Regular commuters can save a lot by purchasing a season ticket instead of buying a new ticket each day they travel.
A seven-day season ticket will likely be cheaper than individual fares if you do the same journey three or more days a week.
Check the season ticket calculator on the National Rail website to see if it’s worth it for you.
Regular commuters could also save by using a railcard.
Those with a 16-25, 26-30, senior (for over 60s) and “two together” (you and a friend or family member) railcards get a third off their train fare.
Travellers should book directly through train company websites to cut rail costs even more.
Sites like Trainline are popular among commuters but charge fees of up to £1.75 per journey.
If you know when you’re travelling in the future, it’s also cheaper to book an advance ticket.
Operators usually make their advance rail fares available up to 12 weeks in advance, when Network Rail releases its timetable.
Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing squeezeteam@thesun.co.uk.
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