Great Western Coffee Shop

I'm hoping one of the knowledgeable members on this forum can shed some insight an issue.

For about the last 2 months every attempt I have made - at my local station, or RDG or PAD, to  purchase a ticket from a self-service ticket machine using an American Express (company card) has resulted in the card being rejected.

I have contacted American Express and they don't even see the transaction attempt - its like the machines are automatically blocking American Express cards.
Ticket offices are OK - its just the self service machines.

Does anyone know why ?

TVM error....software fix required.

It's been discussed on another thread, I think. TOCs are aware.

It also affected SWT, but if you believe their twitter feed they fixed their machines on 5 Feb. I've not tried one of theirs since then to confirm though.

GWRs were still broken on 17 Feb when I tried. The card reader says NOT ACCEPTED then eventually goes back to the payment screen.

A cynic of course might allege it was a punishment relating to this:
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/jan/17/southern-rail-credit-card-refund-season-ticket-amex

today at Bath Spa I went to collect some prebooked tickets paid for online with my Amex.  Inserted payment card when asked and it was not being read.  So I used another card (an unconnected MasterCard) , put in the number and the tickets printed OK

Possible IMHO

This has been going on for a while.  The fact that the TOCs are aware is pretty useless to the customers who aren't, or can't use their cards - indeed the fact that the TOCs know about it makes the delay in fixing it all the more reprehensible.

I understand that Amex needs to correct something on their side.

But I can see that this may be a cover for something like the Guardian article suggests above

Yep, S&B SWT machine working today with Amex. I don't think their newer kiosk/video ones were affected.

Another thing I intend to check on a GWR machine (as well as this issue) is whether Super Off Peak fares are displayed. I know they were overcharging for a while, so I'd be interested to know if that was sorted.

I've had this issue. Assumed a dodgy ticket machine and just went to the ticket office. If there was no ticket office presumably I am fine to board the train ticketless, since I have a valid payment method but the retailer is not accepting this through no fault of my own...?

Unless they postca notification that nachines do not accept AMEX cards at all, rather than having a fault. Companies are legallybentitled to choose which cards are accepted.

Many used not to accept Amex only a few years ago...

Take more water with it Chris!  ;D

Phone or tablet keypad I suspect, I am very familiar with that involuntary style of typing and it annoys the hell of out me!! And I don't have fat stubby fingers so can't even blame that  ;D

I do......blame the iphone keyboard!

Easy to check and correct before posting.  I use an iPhone for most of my posts.

GWR TVM still not accepting Amex today (24 Feb) and still overcharging by not showing relevant Super Off-Peak fares.

I bought some tickets on the Scotrail site (5% through Quidco; strangely seems to track at £1.33 and for others according to the comments anyway...).

Unexpectedly for a Trainline powered site it seemed to take at or near the full 2 hours for the tickets to be available (I tried after an hour and a half, fairly sure EMT quotes 15 minutes now in their correspondence for example).

Something else which I assume must be Scotrail-specific, the actual payment card needed to be used. As I purchased using Amex, when I tried the GWR TVM obviously it was "NOT ACCEPTED" due to this ongoing issue, so I inserted another card. Once I had entered the booking reference, the screen on the TVM said something like "actual payment card must be used", rendering the whole experience impossible at the moment.

Fortunately I was able to visit a SWT TVM and pick up the tickets before travel.

Chiltern state they need actual payment card too

...interesting as Chiltern is a WebTIS one. Apparently Virgin West Coast do the same as well.

Going to have to watch who I book with whilst GWR sort out Amex at the TVMs.

GWR TVMs now accepting American Express. About time too!

Ticket offices were always accepting Amex during these difficulties, although this sketch on Not The Nine O'Clock News suggested otherwise:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZF-U9nL9Ios&t=42s

Yes I meant to post I'd successfully used an Amex card at a Didcot TVM on Thursday but forgot about it when I got back home.