This information is to help you get the most from your Season Ticket.
It does not affect your statutory rights, or replace, form part of, or modify in any way, the National Rail Conditions of Travel relating to Season Tickets. You can get a copy of the National Rail Conditions of Travel at any ticket office.
Using your Season Ticket
You can use your Season Ticket up to and including its expiry date for any number of journeys between the stations and/or within the zone(s) shown on it at any time of day. It may be used at intermediate stations, and on any permitted route, unless a route or any other restrictions are specified on the ticket. Details are available where these tickets are issued.
With First Class Season Tickets you may travel in the First Class or Standard Class areas of the train. Standard Class Season Ticket holders may upgrade their Season Ticket to First Class at the ticket office before they board the train (or on the train if there is no open ticket office where you board the train).
Travelcard Season Tickets allow unlimited travel at any time of day on London Underground, London Overground, Docklands Light Railway, Croydon Tramlink and almost all National Rail services within the London Fare Zones Area. Travelcard Season Tickets are also valid on most London Bus services throughout the London Bus network. For journeys starting outside the London Fare Zones Area, the Travelcard Season Ticket allows travel by train between the starting station and the London Fares Zones Area boundary, and then unlimited travel within the zones paid for. Travelcards are not valid on Southeastern High Speed 'Javelin' services between Stratford International and St Pancras International, unless they include High Speed validity from a station in Kent. Travelcards are not valid on Heathrow Express services, nor on Heathrow Connect services between Hayes and Harlington and Heathrow Airport. Extension tickets are available for this section of route.
Full bus details are available from Transport for London .
You cannot transfer your Season Ticket to another person.
Photocards
If you have a smartcard season ticket, you can travel with a photo ID or photocard. You can get a photocard free of charge at any National Rail ticket office, all you need to do is bring a passport-sized photo of yourself.
If you're buying a paper season ticket, you may need to use a Photocard, and you will need to bring one with you when you travel as ID. Where required, your photocard number must be on your Season Ticket. For your Season Ticket to be valid, you must show both your Season Ticket and photocard with matching numbers if requested by rail staff.
'Changeovers'
If you move house, change your place of work or wish to change the class of travel, you may apply to exchange any Season Ticket with a month or more remaining, for one with the same expiry date for your new journey or class. This is called a changeover.
A changeover may be applied for at any rail ticket office (preferably one relevant to the new journey), a few days in advance of the date of the change. Any additional charge or refund will be based on the ticket prices when the original Season Ticket was bought, pro rata to the periods before and after the changeover.
No administration charge is made. Any ticket that has already been exchanged in this way may be accepted for further exchanges if necessary.
Refunds
If you stop travelling and no longer need your Season Ticket, please hand it in at, or post it to, the ticket office where you bought it.
Any refund is calculated from the date the Season Ticket was handed in. It will be the difference between the price you paid and the cost of a ticket or tickets for the period for which you have actually used the ticket, plus an administration charge (see admin charges below). Because of the discounts on longer term Season Tickets, refunds are not made pro rata to the periods before/after surrender and Annual Season Tickets have no refund value after about 10 1/2 months. For this reason we recommend that employers' Annual Season Ticket loan schemes are set up so that reimbursements are made in ten equal monthly payments with two 'free' months at the end of the year, rather than in 12 equal monthly payments.
There must be at least seven days remaining on a Monthly Season Ticket or at least three days remaining on a Seven Day Season Ticket to obtain a refund (although on some Seven Day Season Tickets there may be no refund value after three days of use, dependent upon the relevant Standard Day Return price.
In cases of illness, the refund can be backdated if you produce suitable documentary evidence for a period before you hand in your ticket, provided that you have not started travelling again using your Season Ticket since your illness.
We do not give refunds or allow Season Tickets to be extended for periods of non-use, for example holidays. We do not normally give refunds on duplicate Season Tickets although consideration will be given if you can give written evidence of redundancy, prolonged illness or similar circumstances or if the original ticket is recovered and returned to the issuing ticket office within one month of its loss. Please ask at the ticket office for more details.
Lost or stolen Season Tickets or photocards
If you lose your Season Ticket or it is stolen, report this immediately to the ticket office where you bought it. You should also report this to the police. If you or we cannot recover the lost or stolen ticket, we will then consider an application for a duplicate ticket, if the original was issued for a period of one month or more. We do not issue duplicates in respect of lost or stolen Seven Day Season Tickets. We may ask you or others for information. There is an administration charge when we issue a duplicate Season Ticket (see admin charges below).
We only allow one duplicate issue in any 12 month period. However, we will only allow a second duplicate issue if: the original Season Ticket is returned to the train company which sold it within one month of you reporting the loss; or the first or second request for a duplicate was because of theft, robbery, fire or other exceptional circumstances, the facts of which have been reported to the police, the fire service or another appropriate body. We will not issue any more than two duplicate Season Tickets in any 12 month period under any circumstances.
We will refund (with no administration charge) the cost of tickets you buy while you are waiting for the duplicate ticket to be issued, if you hand these tickets in.
If you lose your photocard or it is stolen, we can issue a new one, for which a further passport-type photograph is required. If we need to reissue your Season Ticket, an administration charge will be made (see admin charges below).
Damaged or defective Season Tickets
If your Season Ticket is damaged, illegible or defective, for example it will no longer work in ticket gates, it will be replaced free of charge at any National Rail ticket office.
Travel not covered by your Season Ticket
Please buy the appropriate additional ticket at the ticket office before you travel, if your Season Ticket has expired, does not cover your journey in full, has been left behind (see admin charges below), or is for Standard Class accommodation but you wish to travel First Class.
If you are travelling from a penalty fare station on a penalty fare train and your Season Ticket does not cover you for all of your journey, you must buy an accompanying ticket or permit to travel, if you are able to*, before you start your journey. If you do not you may be liable to a Penalty Fare.
Season Tickets left at home
If you do not have your Season Ticket with you when you travel you must buy a ticket for your journey. You will be able to get a refund on the fare paid on the first two occasions this happens in any 12 month period. On the second such occasion an administration charge will be made (see below). No more than two of these types of refund will be made in any 12 month period. You will need to hand in the tickets you have bought. You should make refund claims of this type within 28 days of travel.
Season Ticket administration charges
- Refunds: Not more than £10
- Duplicates for lost or stolen tickets: £20
- Issue of replacement photocard including new Season Ticket: Not more than £10
- Replacement of damaged or illegible season tickets or those which can no longer operate ticket barriers: Free of charge
These charges are subject to change.