On 7 Mar, 12:09, Roland Perry wrote:
In message
p.homeip.net, at
11:44:00 on Sun, 7 Mar 2010, Paul Cummins
remarked:

No. They are needed when travelling on National Rail and using PAYG
to go beyond the validity of an Oyster travelcard.

That's curious - I use PAYG all the time when I'm Oystering, and have never once
been informed that my Oyster is invalid because I don't have an OEP on the way back
to St Margarets from Waterloo.

And I've been gripped a few times - they just ask me where I'm going.

Do you have a Travelcard on your Oyster that's valid to not further than
Zone 3 (St Margarets is in Zone 4).

The OEP is only required as a form of "permit to travel" (ahead of
paying when you exit) for your trip from the relevant Travelcard limit
(eg Putney, the furthest Z2 station) to St Margarets.
--
Roland Perry

The total lack of logic with OEPs is demonstrated by the fact that if
you are gripped within the zones of your travelcard, there is no more
proof that you don't intend to go beyond your zones without touching
out than there would be if you were beyond your zones already. Nor
outside of the zones altogether.

No one with a valid ticket anywhere can prove that they don't intend
to travel to Thurso.