Question: I have a Network Railcard, if I am buying a ticket for myself and
also for an "accompanying passenger", must the accompanying passenger be on
the same exact journey as me (the network card holder)? (N.B. I will be with
the "accompanying passenger" for the entirety of their journey, but the
"accompanying passenger" will not be with me for the entirety of my
journey).

For clarification I am journeying from SW London via Tottenham Hale to
Stansted Airport - I will buy my ticket using network railcard (SW Trains to
Vauxhall and then the Victoria Line to Tottenham Hale for Stansted Express
to Stansted Airport) - a friend then joins me at Tottenham Hale to Stansted.

I ask the question as a year or so ago on making similar journey I asked to
buy two tickets from Tottenham Hale and said I would then make my own way to
Tottenham Hale by LU. The helpful staff at the "travel centre" in the local
SW Trains station initiated and suggested (i.e at that time I did not
consider it would be possible) to me that I should buy my own ticket
starting in SW London and that I could buy the accompanying passenger ticket
starting from Tottenham Hale. I responded that I was surprised I could do
that and they stated that as the "accompanying passenger" was always with me
for the entirety of the "accompanying passenger's journey" this met the
terms and conditions of the Network Railcard.

This was not a one-off as I purchased similar ticket's using my Network
Railcard on going to Brighton and similar, e.g. I would buy a ticket from SW
London via Clapham Junction to Brighton and I would buy an "accompanying
passenger" ticket from Clapham Junction (the accompanying passenger making
his own way to Clapham Junction) to Brighton.

On today trying to make a similar purchase (to Stansted) I have now been
told that the "accompanying passenger" ticket has to be for the exact same
journey. I asked had the terms and conditions of the Network Railcard
changed, I was told they had not and that the previous tickets must have
been sold to me in error.