To ask why people sit in reserved seats?

[Leftoverdessert]

I absolutely hate train travel for this reason. I get that if the seat is reserved from a particular station and you haven't reached it yet and are ready to get up, fair enough, but the route I go on fairly regularly it happens to me almost every time - I book a seat and someone's sitting in it. I triple check always that I have the right seat but it's always so awkward to ask them to move as often they seem to get huffy or try to dispute it! They often also seem to scatter their things everywhere which makes me think they're just hoping the person won't turn up or will feel bad when they see they're looking so settled in.

This morning, I honestly couldn't be bothered for the scene as the woman in my booked seat had stuff everywhere and seemed to be asleep to boot, so now I'm just stood up feeling all annoyed. I hate confrontation and just can't be bothered for it first thing in the morning.

If I see a seat is reserved, I don't sit on it - why oh why do people do this??

Your problem, is twofold, OP:

The selfish dick in your seat; and
The fact that you hate confrontation.

There is only one of these elements over which you have full control.

Which is preferable to you?

1. A scene, in which you stand up (excuse pun) for your right to your seat; or
2. Your sitting feeling disgruntled about missing out on your rightful seat and subsequently complaining about it on MN?

If the latter, things will never change.

I frequently sit in reserved seats on my way to and from work as the carriage is already 2/3 full before people at my stop get on and it’s very likely I’d have to stand otherwise.
I have a (sometimes hidden) disability so standing for that long would be really difficult.
Often no one approaches the seat so I don’t know if it would be used otherwise (you can usually tell if someone has reserved the seat you’re in as they check the seat number). If I see anyone doing that or if anyone asks me, I’m always happy to move. (Never has anyone ask whilst I have my crutches though)
I can’t always reserve a seat due to timings so it’s either that or stand.

floribunda That’s the train I usually get and it’s always rammed isn’t it. It’s a rare occasion when you get to your reserved seat and find it empty.

My 18 year old son says that he hates taking a train with me because I always tell people to get out of our reserved seats. I’m always polite but firm and say “excuse me, we have these seats reserved” but he doesn’t like the fact that I’ll confront people so that we can sit down, he’d rather stand than turf someone out of his seat.

This happens to DH all the time! He's had a total knee replacement and is tall so deliberately books specific seats and someone else is sitting in them about 75% of the time. He always asks them to move and this creates 'an issue' about 75% of the time! I tell him to tell them about his TKR but he doesn't see why he should reveal personal info just to sit in his own seat. It's also happened to him on a plane with a pre-booked extra leg room seat. He's had 3 DVTs as well. The woman on the plane even argued the toss...

Good for you, Madison.

I'm with madison. I have no problem 'claiming' my seat.

Well one obvious reason for sitting in a reserved seat is they sometimes on XC come up as reserved after you've sat in them. Another is that the person may get a different train/ sit elsewhere anyway and people don't want to stand.

Tbh I question the point of it all, the other train company I use don't have reserved seats but just ensure there are enough carriages so everyone can sit down, much much less complicated.

If someone is sorting in your reserved seat just ask them to move, simples. No need for drama

@Fridasrage you should be able to use disability priority seating or sit in first - you need to talk to the conductor rather than just take someone else's seat. Someone with a hidden disability might be standing on their journey instead of you if they are like OP.

I commute daily long distance. Paying thousands of £££ for the privilege.

I would only ever sit in a reserved seat if the train had already passed through the station the seat was reserved from.

I do try and reserve the same seat each morning and have no problem asking someone to move if they are sat in my seat.

However, a lot of time people reserve seats and do not turn up. Then people sit in them. I think that is fine, providing the person without a reservation is prepared to move if a fellow passenger with a reservation turns up. Not everyone is prepared to move.

What I hate as a regular commuter is when you cannot reserve seats on the train during the evening peak, as not all trains are resevable and I have to stand or sit on the floor.

@MyKingdomForBrie
@kennehora

I’d always take the disability seats if they were free, but they’re usually not.

I had no idea you could sit in first? Is this a thing? I’ll definitely be asking in future if that is the case.

Up to this point my thinking has been... I guess i know that people won’t really challenge me if I have the crutches, but if there’s an empty seat and I’m not well enough to walk unaided, I’m not just going to stand up in case someone wants the seat. I might as well get off the train and go home bc I’d be useless by the time I got to work

I have social anxiety, I can't handle confrontation. But every train journey I've been on I've heard people saying 'excuse me, this is my seat' and people replying 'oh, sorry' and moving. So the day I got on a train and found someone in my seat I took a deep breath and said 'excuse me, this is my seat' and I got back 'are you fucking joking?! You're pathetic. I'm not moving! Sit over there!' he pointed at another reserved seat. I was completely floored, everyone was looking at me, I said 'what if the person who's reserved that seat comes on?' got no response and the train was moving off so I just perched on the other seat and probably looked uncomfortable.
Next station people getting on doing the 'my seat, oh sorry' dance around us. He starts looking at his ticket, then just gets up and moves. He must have had his own reserved seat. Twat.

However, on the other side of the coin I always get a open return ticket, and have a couple of times gone through rural stations with no ticket barrier or checks at start and end of journey - so I can only assume that 'my' seat was reserved for the whole month even though I'd already used it?!

In summary, some people are twats, some of those twats use trains.

You should have said “This is my seat” please move. It doesn’t need to be a major international incident

first reply on the thread nails it, IMO. it's really ok to 'squat' in someone's seat [since you get so many no-shows] but if you do so it's very much incumbent on you to leap up the minute a ticketholder presents her- or himself.

@Fridasrage point is what if there is a person in a similar situation to you who isn't able to ask, especially given your crutches.

Onus is on you to find a way round this situation by talking to the conductor or the train company - your current approach basically says 'screw anyone who is too nice to ask me to move, I'm ok'

@rattusrattus20 as the thread shows though that's not always the way it goes, some people won't feel able to 'present themselves' - a reserved seat means it's not available and shouldn't be taken until after the station has passed that it is reserved from.

@MyKingdomForBrie

I actually called CrossCountry a couple of hours ago to suggest what i do in this situation. The woman's response was that it's a difficult, they can't really do anything in this situation, so the best bet is to sit in an unoccupied reserve seat or stand until someone notices and offers you their seat out of kindness.

Considering the fact that lots of reserved seats aren't used, it's a small number of occasions and I only use my crutches when I literally can't stand unaided, I feel absolutely no guilt about doing this.

The things is though Brie, I’ve been on trains where the lobbies are dangerously crowded and people can’t get on because everyone is leaving the reserved seats alone. As about half of them are never taken, it’s much more sensible to sit there until the ticket holder arrives.

first reply on the thread nails it, IMO. it's really ok to 'squat' in someone's seat [since you get so many no-shows] but if you do so it's very much incumbent on you to leap up the minute a ticketholder presents her- or himself.

Well apart from the dramatic leaping and incumbency stuff. When the reserver arrives you move quietly and without fuss I reckon. I know it's a figure of speech but it's unnecessary.

You should have said “This is my seat” please move. It doesn’t need to be a major international incident

^^exactly this.

@fridasrage ask them for their Disabled People’s Protection Policy (DPPP), that doesn't sound right.

Back when I was a student, I was going from Crewe to London, and had reserved a seat (one on a table of four). When I got on the train, there were three people sitting at that table, including one in my reserved seat, but there was a free (aisle) seat, so I decided just to sit there, and not stand on my rights.

When I sat down, one of the three business types occupying the other seats told me snootily that the seat I was sitting down in had been reserved by them - so I pointed out to him that he was sitting in my reserved (window) seat, and I would like to sit in it please! He meekly got up, moved all his stuff, and let me sit down.

The best bit? During the journey, I overheard their conversation and learned that they had been on a training course - an assertiveness course. I did wonder if I should suggest he asked for his money back - having been out-asserted by a student.

Looking back, I think they were hoping that I would go away so their group didn’t have to share - but it was a busy train, and I was not going to fight my way through it looking for a free, unreserved seat.

I travel quite often for work, usually for meetings obtaining with an uncertain end time. I always book an open return but the work booking system will not allow booking without choosing a seat reservation for some reason. So I make my best guess of train time but often end up on another. This is a national company so multiply the number of employees by the number of companies and that is a lot of missed reservations.

I occasionally sit in a reserved seat but get up happily if the seatholder arrives, even if I then have to stand.

Reserved seats should be abolished they cause more hassle than they are worth! If you book with a freind you cant always get a seat together or someones in your seat!