To think that if a train seat has a ticket saying "reserved" on it...

[CalamityKate]

.... that's a huge clue that someone's reserved it?

Two trips to London in the past 2 days and for 3 of the four journeys we booked seats.

On all 3 occasions, someone was sitting in the seats.

And you know, I wouldn't mind so much but on all 3 occasions the people in the seats rolled their eyes, tutted, huffed and puffed and made a great show of having to move seats in a way that made it clear that WE were being incredibly unreasonable to expect to sit in the seats WE had paid for!

One woman in particular was very put out and spent the remainder of the journey casting dirty looks our way. Her and her companion had clearly been in the seats for a while, since the table was covered with litter. There were plenty of unreserved seats nearby.

Honestly, I started to wonder if there's some sort of etiquette I don't know about. Like "If you don't manage to sit in your seat before someone else then tough shit" or something?

YANBU.

A couple of weeks ago I'd booked a table seat for me, DH and 2 DSs. The seats were taken by a group of women when we got on the train, I explained I'd reserved them etc. One of them just shrugged and said they'd been sitting there since Edinburgh so tough.

The train was packed, I'm pg and my DS is disabled, standing for the 3 hour journey wasn't an option so I told them to move. There was a queue building up behind me, many people getting but these women still refused to move until the conductor came along.

Collie I would have sat on his lap

Is it true that if you can't get people to move out of their reserved seat you ask the guard, then if the guard can't make them move either, the have to find you a seat somewhere else, which could be in first class if no seats available in swcond?

its an offence to sit in reserved seats. Railway bye laws

We had this in September. We'd booked first class and Ds was happily sitting in his seat when a woman appeared and told him to move. My hackles went up at the way she was speaking to my then 9 year old.

My mum came to the rescue and said "this is coach L. Your ticket says coach K which you'll find that way" and she pointed the woman in the right direction. Then she shouted after her "your apology to my grandson is accepted and you're welcome to my help for free!"

If it's an offence with a £100 fine, as stated previously, why isn't this enforced?
a couple of posters have said that the guard couldn't get people to move either?

Had this on a train to London once.

Was travelling with a friend who used a wheelchair. On train journeys she would transfer to another seat (she could walk short distances) as her chair's brakes were a little bit iffy and it had a tendency to rock rather a lot when the train was in motion.

We booked a wheelchair space, and 2 companion seats for ourselves. There was a lady with a small child who made the biggest scene when asked politely by a member of staff to move her buggy and vacate the 2 seats we had booked. She sat on the floor behind us muttering all the way about "how disgusting it is we've been forced to move, why should we?" etc.

Then an older lady opposite us said, "Couldn't you move the wheelchair somewhere else so that she can store the buggy in the space."

I've had it happen to me when I've travelled on my own as well, and can never be bothered to try and get people to move, so just find an empty seat. If it was busy though, I'd probably say something, as I book seats for a reason (bad balance due to eyesight issues - not great to be standing on a moving train!).

It is enforced sometimes.

It should be enforced all the time!

I'll sit in seats which have reserved tickets on them if no non-reserved are available. (I wouldn't just do it for a better view or whatever!) and IME as often as not the person with the reservation doesn't turn up.

If they do though, I move instantly and am smiley and apologetic.

I do hope they don't come by and are too embarrassed to ask! Although I do try to look friendly and approachable when people get on (probably overthinking this!)

I can't imagine eye-rolling. How very rude!

I sit in reserved seats all the time. I travelled a lot for work and found that loads of the reserved seats never got used, so sat in them if they were good ones/only ones available nearby.

Having said that, I would and did move as soon as someone mentioned that they were their seats. And I wouldn't eyeroll, even if there was a perfectly good seat identical that had just become unreserved at the station they got on. They are their seats regardless of anything.

lobs grenade at thread

I have twice been sat in someone else's reserved seat and refused to move when they showed up. Once two trains had been merged so my reserved seat had gone off into a siding. I can't remember the circumstances in the second but I had a mobility problem at the time so couldn't be arsed to struggle through pain to move myself. Anyway, first scenario was 50:50 as to whether I was being unreasonable, second time I was definitely in the wrong. But on both occassions I refused to move and the person with the reservation backed down. And probably swiftly posted here. That's the glorious thing about being unreasonable, you don't give a shit if you become very, very unreasonable.

Normally I'm good though. But it is true that half the time the reservee doesn't turn up.

I once travelled from Glasgow to Penzance with my severley disabled friend, we had booked the wheelchair space and one across. They were occupied when we got on, tickets ripped off etc

Got on, lady say in her wheelchair refused to move. I had to lift my friend out of her specially adapted chair which holds her in a sitting position to a train seat where she couldnt sit properly and was uncomfortable.

Got to Birmingham, the lady stood up, folded up her whelchair, tucked it under her arm and cariied it off the train.

People are just unbelievable,sometimes, florry.

DD1 and I had reserved seats for a journey London-York a couple of summers ago. There was a mixup with the train carriages, and our carriage didn't exist. So the staff on the platform told us to sit anywhere in coach K. Which was 1st class. Except they hadn't told the staff on the train, who got a bit arsey with everyone till they'd managed to phone back and clarify what we'd been told to do.

So then they declassified coach K so it was officially standard class, and moved the actual first class passengers (one or two had got quite arsey). But they forgot to tell the staff coming round with drinks and cake . Was a fab journey .