Tim Woodall wrote:

You _can_ get a refund. But you have to wait so many weeks from the last
topup by the credit card before TfL will refund it (by cheque to your
address).

The woman I spoke to did not mention this option. She suggested adding
40p and using it for a ride in zone 1. (I replied that I already had a
Z1-3 Travelcard until the end of my stay, so that wasn't a very useful
suggestion.)

I can see why this is difficult for TfL - if I find a card that's got a
lot of money on it then I could put on 5GBP from my credit card and then
go and ask for a refund back to my card for the full amount.

And why exactly is that a problem (from TfL's perspective)? If you find
a card with a lot of money, nobody will object if you use the card for a
lot of rides. So what's the objection to reclaiming the cash and using
it for other purposes?

(What
happens if you lose an unregistered card but you know the card number -
can you get the balance back?)

I believe not.
--
David of Broadway