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

"solar penguin" wrote ...
And now that the *******s at TfL have abolished Saver tickets, a lot of us
are being forced to buy Oyster just for bus journeys.

Don't blame TfL for that; blame the *total* *******s who defrauded TfL via
saver tickets so much that they became unworkable. Us fare payers got sick
of subsidizing all the cheats. Oyster is harder to cheat, though I'm not
suggesting it doesn't happen!

Also, you save cash using Oyster on the bus, anyway.

"Tom Anderson" wrote :
Online top up really is a pain, especially for small amounts.
But it's pretty well the only option if you live in the USA.
People who live in the USA aren't really part of the target demographic
for Oyster. Unless the Crossrail plans have changed radically since i last
looked.

No, you have to change at Galway (Dublin Heuston on Sundays and Public
Holidays).
--

Andrew

"Tom Anderson" wrote:
It does not seem unreasonable to want to go up to a Tube ticket office
and ask for auto top-up to be switched on. In a well designed system
that would be possible at *any* Tube ticket office - so I would be able
to just pick one that does not have a queue when I am passing through.
Agreed. But that doesn't stop the complaint you're making being a complete
non-issue.

Fazackerly. If it *really* matters that much, why leave the auto-topup until
you know you'll be using the tube? Make it a special occasion, why don't
you?
--
Andrew
seo2seo.com
sick-site-syndrome.com

"When 'Do no Evil' has been understood, then learn the harder, braver rule,
Do Good." ~ Arthur Guiterman

In message , at 23:45:28 on Mon, 24
Nov 2008, David of Broadway remarked:
People who live in the USA aren't really part of the target
demographic for Oyster.

So how are people who live in the USA expected to pay for their
Underground/bus/etc. rides when they visit London?

By getting a new Oyster card when they arrive.

This isn't a plot to disadvantage tourists - as far as I'm aware you
can't buy a local e-ticket for any USA or European metro systems by mail
order, ahead of arriving there from the UK.
--
Roland Perry

In article ,
(Neil Williams) wrote:

On Sun, 23 Nov 2008 18:06:10 -0600,
wrote:

Online top up really is a pain, especially for small amounts.

But it's pretty well the only option if you live in the USA.

Can't you just obtain a card and top it up at Heathrow station?

Once you've got the hang of Oyster, probably. But explaining it to my
brother wasn't trivial and I've not started on my sister-in-law. They
don't really do public transport in Columbus.

Then there are the (rare) trips not entering the UK through Heathrow.

--
Colin Rosenstiel

In article , (Roland
Perry) wrote:

In message , at
18:06:10 on Sun, 23 Nov 2008, remarked:
But it's pretty well the only option if you live in the USA. Most such
people just get ripped off with cash pares or Heathrow Excess instead,

Heathrow Express is cheaper than a taxi.

That surely depends on where the destination is in relation to Paddington?

That's all it's supposed to achieve. There should be more effort made
to sell people pre-topped-up Oyster cards at the airport, however.

Agree.

If you are regular visitor, then an unused Oyster balance is down
in the noise level (a typical cheap transatlantic fare is £500).
I've got a few Euros balance on my Brussels "cardboard carnet",
it's just part of the cost of doing business.

It depends who's paying th air fares. Not my brother very often for sure.
However, I agree a £20 Oyster top-up would suit him fine.

--
Colin Rosenstiel

In article ,
(Tom Anderson) wrote:

People who live in the USA aren't really part of the target
demographic for Oyster. Unless the Crossrail plans have changed
radically since i last looked.

If your London destination is Putney, Crossrail is about as useful as the
Central line.

--
Colin Rosenstiel

In article ,
(David Cantrell) wrote:

Second, to fix the problem you either need to phone an expensive 08
number or visit a tube station. The first is Wrong because I don't see
why I should pay to fix TfL's screw-ups*; the second is Wrong because
it's damnably inconvenient. They *must* introduce an 020 number for
the Oyster helpline, or they *must* make it possible to fix Oyster
problems at every railway station in London.

AIUI there is an 020 number. I have 020 7227 7886 here.

--
Colin Rosenstiel

In article ,
(Tom Anderson) wrote:

On Sun, 23 Nov 2008, wrote:

In article , (Andrew
Heenan) wrote:

And how you think an 'auto' system could conceivably function
*without* registration beats me!

Why does the system need to know more than which /card/ is being
topped up?

Because you have to give them your credit/debit card details, so
they can charge you money for the credit which is being topped up.
If they took paypal or something, then maybe they wouldn't have to
take your details, but they don't, so they do.

I can top up a mobile phone at a cash machine. They need to know who I am
to charge me but the phone I'm topping up may not be registered at all and
has no problem being topped up. Same with Oyster cards, surely?

--
Colin Rosenstiel