Great Western Coffee Shop

On Monday I prebooked (and prepaid) Bradford-on-Avon to Bath, in my case only £3.90, and specified collection at Melksham, in case I was tight for time at BOA. When I tried to collect ticket at MKM, the TVM wouldn't allow use of my card as identification. OK, so I thought I'd get a ticket at BOA before travelling, same again. Here other users were having the same problem of nonacceptance of cards (I have had this at BOA before).
The train and Bath Spa team were very helpful and I got my tickets eventually. well done.

In this case the sum involved was small, and I could claim reimbursement by phone when I got back, but what if the ticket had been one to London at full fare (over £100) and the traveller was less familiar with railway operations.

It is essential that the TVM  failures are reported internally to the support team and the situation remedied quickly.

Usually if a TVM fails to accept a card it's because there are insufficient funds on the account, or it may be an Electron card (which as far as I know aren't accepted at all), or the card may have a problem with the chip that's embedded into the card. Or of course it's always possible there's a fault with the machine. But I can definitely confirm from considerable personal experience that you do NOT have to use the same card to collect pre-paid tickets as you paid for them with.

were you using an Amex card by any chance?  It appears that the machines no longer recognise such cards.  I've had to do a couple of "manual" collections from the ticket office window at Bath recently.

The Amex issue will apparently be fixed on 2nd February.

Card reader software fault on S&B machines.

It has even been hit and miss to pay with Amex cards at TVMs recently. One wouldn't take mine at all - another seemed not to yet after a few seconds spat the tickets out anyway, without me having entered a PIN (it was charged).

The OP does point out that they were not alone in experiencing problems using a card at a TVM this morning. They were trying to collect pre-booked tickets so insufficient funds aren't a possible issue either. There is no call to the card holders bank account when collecting pre-booked tickets.

From https://www.journeycheck.southwesttrains.co.uk/

Of course, ticket offices often refuse to do this, or rven say it's not possible from their machines!

Without wanting to conflate the issue raised, something else I noticed again on the card reader on S&B machines - occasionally the card will not go all the way home. It's almost as if it is spring loaded on the last bit. Looked for signs of tampering, but found none.

Holding the card in and tapping my PIN in with my left hand allowed me to complete the transaction(s).

I experienced the same issue recently with the TVM at West Drayton when topping up my Oyster card there (3 hands would've been ideal to hold debit card, type PIN and shield the keypad!), so I guess it is perhaps a wear and tear issue with some of the machines?

Thanks to all responses, it was an Amex card so that clearly was the problem but had nothing to do with funds as the ticket was  prebooked. In my case I can only say the train staff & gate/ticket office staff at Bath were happy to assist.

One response indicated that you can collect prebooked tickets using a different card to that used when booking. How?

Use the actual card that you made the purchase with and TVMs often dispense pre-booked tickets with no further input. Use a different card and the TVM will ask for your 8 digit booking reference.

My experience with Staff at Bath was that they were very familiar with this issue and able and willing to issue pre-booked tickets at the ticket office window quickly and cheerfully.

As for your second question, it is my understanding that at most (if not all) TVMs any card will do for collecting the tickets.  The tickets are already paid for so there is an argument that the code alone without any card should be sufficient for collection (and that would make it easier to book tickets for someone else and simply text them the code), but apparently they choose to require a card so they have the identity of the person collecting, but they don't check it against the purchase.

Other interesting fact about collecting pre-booked tickets from a TVM is that although you are asked to select a station to collect from, you can usually collect from a machine elsewhere.  Maybe you shouldn't reply on this, but I have successfully collected tickets nominated for collection at Bath from Paddington and also Glossop (Northern)

I buy most of my non season tickets via the GWR website and collect from TVMs, my default station is Taplow but I've never had any problems collecting them from TVMs at other stations, however despite using the same card to pay for/collect them I'm always asked to input the code.

Similarly though if the machine isn't working, "Taplow Ted" is always willing to print them out in the ticket office!  :)

And IIRC in the distant past, CrossCountry once offered the option of collecting at a ticket office on their website. The capability obviously exists whether advertised or not.

I've never had any problems collecting from the booking office at Trowbridge.  Indeed the email confirmation on my recent purchase gave me the opening hours of the booking office and stated that TVMs were also available at the station.  Mind you, I had used an AMEX card   ;)

STAR machines in the ticket office do allow for 'Ticket on Departure' (ie pre-booked tickets) and most staff will happily deal with these if there isn't a queue.

I buy most of my tickets using the GWR website or app and usually collect at a Southern or SWT station. I always have to input the collection code. Using SWT website and collecting at SWT station is the same. However booking from Southern website and collecting from Southern station I did not have to input code. I've not done that for a while so don't know if that's still the case.

Help!! Although this issue did not occur at a GWR station GWR services pass through!! Guildford.
My wife had to go to London this evening and the best option was to go to Guildford and catch the train (she does not know the area). Because time was very tight and I have seen long queues at the booking office I went on line and bought her ticket, then gave her the booking reference. For the first time in more than 100 occasions I have bought on line (at varying locations) the machine refused to provide the ticket because the card was not the one used to buy.
My questions are
1) Is this a random issue
2) Why are the railways not prohibited from this condition as it contravenes the Conditions of Carriage (the ticket must be used by the person FOR whom it was bought not BY whom it was bought).
3) How can this rule be applied with purchases where no money and therefore no card is used.

Perhaps the most disappointing aspect of this happened when my wife queued up and spoke at the booking office. She showed her booking reference, the clerk saw the name similarity but refused to issue and would only give her a ticket if she paid again. This she did and missed the train. At the end of the conversation the clerk told her that I should go on line and cancel the ticket I had bought. I never knew this could be done and cannot find anywhere to do it. Any views and help from those up to date on these things would be much appreciated. As a final irony I was, for two years in the seventies,
ASM Guildford!!

1) No
2) This is covered elsewhere in the Conditions, and has been used by TOCs for some years.
3) What tickets can be obtained - for free? Not sure what you mean here.

Some TOCS allow any card to be used, some insist that the card used for purchase has to be used - this has been discussed here a few times. The T&Cs for each TOC do cover this, but need reading carefully if you can find them. That's the TOC who owns/runs the machine at which you want to collect, in this case, SWT.

edit: At least I think that's right - I can't see how a machine could require a particular card when bought from one supplier, but not from another

If you don't know for sure about who runs the TVM, always best to ask, and assume that you can't simply send someone to collect with a different card. Owing to fraud, TOCs are tightening up. It might be worth a thread listing each TOC and their policy.

If you go to your online account with whichever TOC you booked with, there is a list of purchases in there, and a link to request a refund, assuming it is a ticket that is refundable. If you haven't collected, it is very quick & easy to do online. If you have collected & then need a refund, it will guide you to printing off a form to post back with your tickets & a refund to the payment card usually follows in around 10 days from them receiving it. Many TOCs offer a Freepost address, but I guess, especially for high value tickets, is to pay for Recorded Delivery at least.

However, if you haven't set up an online account with that particular TOC, you've lost your ticket - although most, if not all TOCs now force you to do so as you pass through the purchasing process. You would have to collect the tickets with your card & apply offline via their refund form from a ticket office.

Bad luck, hope this helps

jdw.wor sorry to hear of those difficulties you and your wife had; you obviously were trying to increase her chances of catching the train, but unfortunately to no avail.

Which website did you use for booking tickets?

When you refer to free tickets perhaps you mean sites like Redspottedhanky where their eVouchers are used for payment?

Thanks for responses. Yes I was thinking of sites like Redspottedhanky, where no card to pay is used and I believe there are others.
I just think this is another example of our railways doing themselves no favours. If there is to be a rule it is either enforced or not throughout (and I realise there are different companies but they are all bound by a standard set of rules). What truly bugs me is a requirement which does not fully comply with the Conditions of Carriage - which all companies are signed up to and the lack of empathy shown at Guildford where it was plain that the ticket had been bought and the correct person was asking for it. I suspect I will not be able to easily get a refund as the ticket was bought via the guest portal

Never buy via the guest portal - you have discovered why.

They do meet the Conditions of Carriage & the T&Cs that go with them. Transport Focus has looked at this.

Assume that your purchasing card will always be needed to collect - there is a way to enable any card, but only available via telesales. Explain that it's a business purchase to be collected by an employee, and it can be set up for any card collection