# Overcharged on my Oyster Card



## Maggot (Feb 17, 2010)

This has happened twice recently. Both times have been whilst using National Rail service.  The first time was in january. I was using the oyster on all different transports throughout the day, and it should have been capped at the price of an all zones travelcard which is £7.50, but I was charged over £10. I used the complaints form on the TfL website a few weeks ago, but have still not recieved a reply.

Yesterday it happened again, I should have been capped at the price of a travelcard, and it was for most journeys, then I got charged and extra £4.30 when swiping out of a train station. 

Are there other means of complaining and trying to get a refund?  Can I do it at a train station for example?


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## Paulie Tandoori (Feb 17, 2010)

You sure you didn't do a journey outside of the time when capped fares apply to? I've done this before and felt very silly when the man in the little box window pointed out that I had got on a bus too early.


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## mango5 (Feb 17, 2010)

Maggot said:


> then I got charged and extra £4.30 when swiping out of a train station.


This happened to me recently, only noticed a few days later.  The very nice woman in the ticket office at that station was unhelpful though. Nothing doing.


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## Maggot (Feb 17, 2010)

Paulie Tandoori said:


> You sure you didn't do a journey outside of the time when capped fares apply to? I've done this before and felt very silly when the man in the little box window pointed out that I had got on a bus too early.


I'm sure all the journey's were after 10am.  

Yesterday I started my journey at midday.  The cap worked until about 11.20 last night when I was leaving a train station.


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## rutabowa (Feb 17, 2010)

ring the number on the card, they always do refunds straight away.


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## temper_tantrum (Feb 17, 2010)

This is interesting, I was wondering about this recently. How do you check what you've been charged for each journey? I can't do it online, it says you can only see what you've been charged online if you top up your card online, which I think is really poor, to be honest.


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## nicksonic (Feb 17, 2010)

rutabowa said:


> ring the number on the card, they always do refunds straight away.



yep, did this yesterday and was refunded £16 odd... no questions asked, happens all the time according to the woman at the help centre.


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## rutabowa (Feb 17, 2010)

temper_tantrum said:


> This is interesting, I was wondering about this recently. How do you check what you've been charged for each journey? I can't do it online, it says you can only see what you've been charged online if you top up your card online, which I think is really poor, to be honest.



it flashes up on the reader everytime you swipe in and out... easy to miss though. or you can get a printout at a ticket counter


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## Crispy (Feb 17, 2010)

the top-up machines will list your last 8-or-so transactions


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## temper_tantrum (Feb 17, 2010)

rutabowa said:


> it flashes up on the reader everytime you swipe in and out... easy to miss though. or you can get a printout at a ticket counter



Oh ok, cool, thanks. Will do that then. It's a bit shit that we can't access our own accounts online in full!


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## tommers (Feb 17, 2010)

you only have to top it up once online and you can see the journeys after that.


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## smokedout (Feb 17, 2010)

the whole south eastern expansion is fucked, the pricings inconsistant, the top up machines dont work (major flaw affecting almost all of them) and half the station staff dont have a clue whats going on

at least this is what the bloke who works in my local station said when i was whinging about not being able to top up there cos the machine was fucked as usual


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## Maggot (Feb 17, 2010)

rutabowa said:


> ring the number on the card, they always do refunds straight away.


 Thanks, I'll try that.



temper_tantrum said:


> This is interesting, I was wondering about this recently. How do you check what you've been charged for each journey? I can't do it online, it says you can only see what you've been charged online if you top up your card online, which I think is really poor, to be honest.


I top mine up at shops but I can see what I've been charged on-line.


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## ericjarvis (Feb 17, 2010)

I put a fiver on mine a few weeks ago having checked that there was two quid already on it. Since then I've taken two bus journeys. When I tried to use it today it was down to zero. Time to find out what the fsck is going on.


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## pogofish (Feb 17, 2010)

There was something on the TV news last week about the many millions that TFL are sitting on because of overcharging on Oyster.  Seems to be a serious problem?

Think it was C4 news.


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## Philaero (Feb 17, 2010)

temper_tantrum said:


> This is interesting, I was wondering about this recently. How do you check what you've been charged for each journey? I can't do it online, it says you can only see what you've been charged online if you top up your card online, which I think is really poor, to be honest.



You can only view your journey history online if your oyster card is registered


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## LDR (Feb 17, 2010)

ericjarvis said:


> I put a fiver on mine a few weeks ago having checked that there was two quid already on it. Since then I've taken two bus journeys. When I tried to use it today it was down to zero. Time to find out what the fsck is going on.


Similar thing happened to me too.  I put a tenner on it and had one journey from Leytonstone to Brixton and then a few days later I tried jumped on a bus with no joy. 

This has happened a few times in the past and I'm too lazy/busy to sort it out.  However, I have had emails saying I'll have an automatic refund applied next time I got to certain station.  They asked me once to collect at Oval.  I live on the other side of London.  Arghh!!


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## Maggot (Feb 17, 2010)

LDR said:


> This has happened a few times in the past and I'm too lazy/busy to sort it out.  However, I have had emails saying I'll have an automatic refund applied next time I got to certain station.  They asked me once to collect at Oval.  I live on the other side of London.  Arghh!!


That's ridiculous! It would cost most of the refund to get there and back.


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## LDR (Feb 17, 2010)

Yep.  But that's where the overcharging took place.  To be fair you can nominate a station closer but it's still a hassle.


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## Maggot (Feb 18, 2010)

I've just phoned the number on the card and got my money back.  Was kept on hold for a while but it was worth it. You are supposed to claim within a month and my first overcharging was just over a month ago, but the woman on the phone still refunded it. 




LDR said:


> Yep.  But that's where the overcharging took place.  To be fair you can nominate a station closer but it's still a hassle.


Why didn't you nominate a station near your house?


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## rutabowa (Feb 18, 2010)

yeh if you ring up they ask you to pick a station rather than just giving you one... it is definitely a thing to ring up for rather than sending them emails.


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## nicksonic (Feb 18, 2010)

speaking to someone is always the best bet (even though you sometimes have to hold for 5-10 mins), they've always been nice about it to me since it's obviously their issue.


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## LDR (Feb 18, 2010)

Maggot said:


> Why didn't you nominate a station near your house?


I did in the end.


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## cybertect (Feb 18, 2010)

I don't know if this is relevant to your case, but it's worth knowing about anyhow

http://londonreconnections.blogspot.com/2009/11/oyster-payg-on-national-rail-from-jan.html



> *Oyster Extension Permits*
> 
> Before looking at fares, it's worth drawing attention to a new element of Oyster ticketing that this change will usher in for Season Ticket holders – Oyster Extension Permits.
> 
> ...


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## Maggot (Feb 19, 2010)

cybertect said:


> I don't know if this is relevant to your case, but it's worth knowing about anyhow
> 
> http://londonreconnections.blogspot.com/2009/11/oyster-payg-on-national-rail-from-jan.html


I don't have a season ticket, but I'm sure that will be useful to others.


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## Crispy (Feb 19, 2010)

> if you happen to have the misfortune to bump into a National Rail ticket inspector outside of your zones



just to reinforce, this is the only situation that can result in a penalty fare. you can touch out without an OEP just fine and no fine is collected. anecdotal evidence suggests that the ticket inspectors aren't even enforcing the rule - it's just silly bureaucracy required to get the train companies on board oyster.


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## temper_tantrum (Feb 19, 2010)

Maggot said:


> I top mine up at shops but I can see what I've been charged on-line.



Really? Hmmm ... . I top up at stations, and can't get my journey history online. Just the account balance. Given what everyone else is saying about overcharging, I'd really like to check my recent journeys. Might pop by a station and get a printout later.




Philaero said:


> You can only view your journey history online if your oyster card is registered



It is registered, because otherwise I wouldn't be able to log into my account online. Right? Or is 'registering' some additional bit of bureaucratic wank which I haven't done?!


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## echoecho (Feb 22, 2010)

cybertect said:


> I don't know if this is relevant to your case, but it's worth knowing about anyhow
> 
> http://londonreconnections.blogspot.com/2009/11/oyster-payg-on-national-rail-from-jan.html




That is ridiculously complicated. 

What's wrong with the old system of just charging the relevant extra fare out of your prepay credit if you travel into a zone not covered by your season ticket?


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## A Dashing Blade (Feb 22, 2010)

temper_tantrum said:


> It is registered, because otherwise I wouldn't be able to log into my account online. Right? Or is 'registering' some additional bit of bureaucratic wank which I haven't done?!



Journey history displays records for journeys taken using pay as you go credit.

Please note, customers will only be able to view this information if they have purchased pay as you go credit (including Auto top-up) from Oyster online.


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## London_Calling (Feb 22, 2010)

I had something weird occur the other day. I thought I had enough for a travelcard, the last leg of the journey was on a bus which beeped and the driver said there was insufficient credit so I paid a £2.00 cash fare. In fact that's happened twice since the start of the year, both times after travelling on yer suburban network.

Went into a newsagent a couple of days later and I was already £5.00 in credit. The credit balance makes it about right for both journeys as far as I can tell, I'm just out of pocket £4.00 for the two cash fares.

Does anyone else think their Oyster may have been credited after first being erroneously charged?


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## ATOMIC SUPLEX (Feb 22, 2010)

I am angry as hell at oyster. Now that they have brought them in on all the rail lines all the fares have gone up. If I want a return to London on the train it costs 40p more than just buying a travel card. Use the oyster and it's £3.90 each way. So far it hasn't ever managed to round that up to a travel card when I do another bus or tram journey. It used to be a fiver and 1/3rd less with my weekend rail card (which I can't use with oyster). 

If I call for a refund how do they give you the money back? Do you have to register your card? For some reason that pisses me off too, not that I am doing anything nefarious.


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## Maggot (Feb 22, 2010)

ATOMIC SUPLEX said:


> If I call for a refund how do they give you the money back? Do you have to register your card? For some reason that pisses me off too, not that I am doing anything nefarious.


They credit your card, and yes, it does have to be registered.  Why haven't you registered?


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## ATOMIC SUPLEX (Feb 22, 2010)

Maggot said:


> They credit your card, and yes, it does have to be registered.  Why haven't you registered?



I just didn't like the fact that they could check to see wherever I had been whenever they wanted. I remember that they were going to sell this info to advertisers. They know what volume of what age / gender people are traveling throughout the network. Maybe I have my tin foil hat on but something about the whole thing doesn't sit right with me.


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## Maggot (Feb 22, 2010)

ATOMIC SUPLEX said:


> I just didn't like the fact that they could check to see wherever I had been whenever they wanted. I remember that they were going to sell this info to advertisers. They know what volume of what age / gender people are traveling throughout the network. Maybe I have my tin foil hat on but something about the whole thing doesn't sit right with me.


It doesn't bother me, and I don't think you have to tell them your age when you register.

I think that if I'm wrongly accused of a crime, my oyster might be able to prove me innocent.


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## ATOMIC SUPLEX (Feb 22, 2010)

Maggot said:


> It doesn't bother me, and I don't think you have to tell them your age when you register.
> 
> I think that if I'm wrongly accused of a crime, my oyster might be able to prove me innocent.



That's what they say about id cards. Besides the system seems so fucked up I doubt they could prove anything about anything. 

I have just remembered another thing. When I was looking into this for a TV show (when oyster first came out) I was told there was a way to copy a card with a machine from a foot or so way. The machine was so huge that it wasn't going to be a big deal but I guess technology eventually shrinks.  What about all those fun credit card touch cards eh?


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## smokedout (Feb 22, 2010)

Maggot said:


> It doesn't bother me, and I don't think you have to tell them your age when you register.
> 
> I think that if I'm wrongly accused of a crime, my oyster might be able to prove me innocent.



or your guilt


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## SwanLake (Mar 1, 2010)

I was wrongly charged a penalty fare on my Oyster card.  

A couple of weeks ago I travelled from zone 5 to zone 1 by National Rail and used some buses.  My card should have been capped at £7.50.  However, although I touched in at Charing Cross on my way home (I must have done...the barrier opened!), it didn't register on my card so when I touched out I was charged a penalty fare.  

It took several irritating phone calls to the Oyster helpline to finally get a refund.  I was so cross - I insisted they sent me a cheque, which they did!  It was only a few pounds but that's not the point, Oyster must be raking it in with the mistakes that are being made.  Grrr!!!


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## ATOMIC SUPLEX (Mar 1, 2010)

SwanLake said:


> Oyster must be raking it in with the mistakes that are being made.  Grrr!!!



What annoys me is they have something that is so shoddy and there is no alternative. Or rather they have made the alternative more unattractive than the top fine your oyster will get. If I know I am going to be racking up a travel card I'll get one before I leave.


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## Agent Sparrow (Mar 1, 2010)

Given how quickly the £50 I recently put on my oyster went, I'm pretty convinced I'm being overcharged too.


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## tbaldwin (Mar 1, 2010)

What do you get when you cross a fake leftie mayor with an alcoholic ex cia boss.....The oyster card. What a load of shit.


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## London_Calling (Mar 1, 2010)

Convincing.


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## Maggot (Mar 1, 2010)

Agent Sparrow said:


> Given how quickly the £50 I recently put on my oyster went, I'm pretty convinced I'm being overcharged too.


Check your journey history.


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## jakejb79 (Mar 2, 2010)

Oyster is a rip off for the unemployed especially. Travelling in 2009 it cost £2 on Oyster thats now gone up too £3.80.

Not much if your working, but when your broke...


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## tbaldwin (Mar 2, 2010)

London_Calling said:


> Convincing.



It was good that Ken Livingstone increased the number of buses when he got in. But before he got in did he say anything about getting rid of routemasters and increasing fares. A one day bus pass used to be £2 now how much is it? Oyster cards are a pain in the arse and punish less regular bus and tube users.
Who thought up the Oyster card idea was it his alcoholic ex cia transport chief?


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## rutabowa (Mar 2, 2010)

Maggot said:


> They credit your card, and yes, it does have to be registered.  Why haven't you registered?



no it doesn't have to be registered, there is a number on it.


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## vauxhallmum (Mar 2, 2010)

ATOMIC SUPLEX said:


> I just didn't like the fact that they could check to see wherever I had been whenever they wanted. I remember that they were going to sell this info to advertisers. They know what volume of what age / gender people are traveling throughout the network. Maybe I have my tin foil hat on but something about the whole thing doesn't sit right with me.



Same here. I also refused to get my oyster registered. It seems to be far more advantageous to TFL to register than it is to me. They say that the main reason I should do it is if my card gets lost or stolen.
I've known at least 3  people who have lost their registered oyster cards and cannot get a refund because of the mad bureaucracy and jumping through hoops they make you do before they will shell out.


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## Maggot (Mar 2, 2010)

rutabowa said:


> no it doesn't have to be registered, there is a number on it.


Really?  I didn't know that. 


vauxhallmum said:


> I've known at least 3  people who have lost their registered oyster cards and cannot get a refund because of the mad bureaucracy and jumping through hoops they make you do before they will shell out.


I lost my card and got a new one with all the credit on with no problems.


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## jakejb79 (Nov 15, 2010)

I got an email saying that i have a refund due to me of £7, however the refund has been sent to the wrong numbered card, would you advise phoning the Oyster helpline. If so is it possible to get a refund the next day


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## Maggot (Nov 15, 2010)

Yes, I would definitely phone the helpline. If you do get a refund it will go on your card next time you swipe in at a designated train or tube station.


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## Orang Utan (Nov 15, 2010)

are you sure you're swiping your card everywhere you should? it's easy to forget to do it when you're travelling on overground trains as you even need to swipe if you change platforms and the swipe points aren't always in obvious places. i've been caught out like that.


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## Maggot (Nov 15, 2010)

I've not swiped when changing platforms, and not been overcharged.  You only need to swipe at the beginning and end of the train journey IMHO. 

BTW This is an old thread and I haven't been overcharged recently.


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## Orang Utan (Nov 15, 2010)

Maggot said:


> I've not swiped when changing platforms, and not been overcharged.  You only need to swipe at the beginning and end of the train journey IMHO.


not if you are switching from a tube station to an overground station or vice versa


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## Maggot (Nov 15, 2010)

Ah, the times I've done that there's been barriers so I had to swipe.  Must be a problem at places like Farringdon where they aren't separated.


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## Divisive Cotton (Nov 15, 2010)

Orang Utan said:


> not if you are switching from a tube station to an overground station or vice versa



I do this all the time and have never noticed any problems


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## jakejb79 (Nov 15, 2010)

I always touch in and out, i only hope when i phone the Oyster helpline tomorrow that they can cancel the refund that was meant for my old card and put into my new card.

My old oyster card stopped working and then i get an email saying my refund is available to be picked up, so im praying they can just do it.


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