London Banter - View Single Post - NetWork RailCard - Must an accompanying Passenger "accompany" the CardHolder for the Entire Journey.

Colin Rosenstiel · October 15th 06, 04:01 PM posted to uk.transport.london

In article ,
(PHH699) wrote:

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.

It sound to me that the first occasion was right. What if you got off at
Tottenham Hale and bought the ticket to Stansted presenting the Network
Card?

One point that might have affected it is that there is now a minimum £10
far for Network Card fares but the Tottenham Hale to Stansted single
fare is £14.50.

One point where people don't travel together was on one day travelcards
to London. I was told my daughter could travel on the tube while I was
not with her as long as we travelled out and back on the train together.

--
Colin Rosenstiel