AIBU to be upset with myself for monumentally wasting money?

[StupidAroundComputers]

I bought train tickets yesterday. It's a journey that's always expensive, regardless of how far in advance you book. I was mucking about trying to see if adding another railcard (we already have one) would make it cheaper. Found out it doesn't much, so just went ahead. I thought. But actually I've just checked my email now and I've somehow bought two lots of tickets - one using the railcard we have, one using the fantasy railcard. We travel tomorrow. The site says I can only get a refund within two hours of booking and twelve hours of the train leaving. I've requested one anyway but they're going to say no aren't they?

So I've paid over £100 for two people to travel 50 miles. That's around 10% of my take home pay. I'm so, so annoyed with myself for paying twice for tickets that are overpriced anyway.

This is a journey I have to do quite frequently. I already feel stressed every time I do it over how much it costs. And now I've made it cost twice as much just through being stupid. I feel really upset and down about this.

I bought two tickets for the same day & journey.
I had booked in advance from my local station, forgot I had them & bought them again on the day of travel.
I talked to a nice man at the ticket office before my journey & he refunded the money for my mistaken tickets.
I know you booked an e-ticket but it's worth a try. You may get lucky.

Or you could say that when you made the booking the first time an error message came up and you tried to get another ticket, only realising that it actually did work first time when you got two emails.

I’ve done this and got a refund minus an admin fee. Look on the train operators website and you’ll be able to see how to do it. May be slightly hidden though!

I’d call/email/speak to the ticket office before your journey. The very worst they can do is refuse a refund. I’ve found (most of the time) if you ask for help nicely, people are keen to oblige.

Try your bank, you might be able to get the second transaction reversed.

Twitter, plead poverty publically.

Oh and in future try ticket split website for cheaper journey. So good!!

I bought non refundable tickets twice. They refunded one set. Different reason but they were totally fine about it.

Or ask that they transfer them.

@Cyclingforcake

I’ve done this and got a refund minus an admin fee. Look on the train operators website and you’ll be able to see how to do it. May be slightly hidden though!

This ^^ I've done the same before and got a refund minus Admin fee.. Good luck!

Although you bought the tickets online, have you still got to collect the physical train tickets from the machine for travel?

Under that system, If you don’t collect them you can get them refunded. I have had to do it for work a few times, when I’ve bought tickets in advance and then had a diary change.

I'd be surprised if they don't refund you if you ring them up and explain the situation.

YANBU

Mistake spending happens to be quite a lot, those over £100s really bothered me but I have learnt to let go of something I can't turn back and tell myself money is money, we can earn it back, probably not helpful but helps me a bit. I will be okay couple of days after.

I've done this with cross country trains and they've refunded minus admin fee.

I've done this for a climbing center company- managed to duplicate my online order which they could see as it was seconds apart, and the manager happily refunded me. Makes you want to go again when they offer a good service like that. Hope you manage to get it sorted!

Ring them ASAP! I did a very similar thing once and they refunded minus the admin fee, as it was an obvious mistake.

I book tickets for work all the time

Refunds will depend on the terms of the ticket, these can vary between train companies but as a rule you will get a refund for an anytime ticket, if it's an off peak or advance there will be rules, at best you will be allowed to change the dates on a booking for £10 plus any difference in fare for the new ticket

However the ticket you booked with fantasy travel cards, if you travel on them there is a high chance you will be expected to produce the card along with your ticket at the ticket inspection, if you can't produce the travel card you will be charged the difference in fare to the full price. I've seen it happen multiple times, often ends in arguments as the traveller was clearly trying it in but I have seen people let off occasionally

Thanks everyone for your tips and advice. I went to the station early and asked at the desk but was told to ring as I'd bought them online. The conductor couldn't help either. After 65 minutes on hold (during which we completed the first leg of the journey) I got through and they're refunding the lot. Hurrah, so relieved!

I also asked about how to buy cheaper tickets because I've never been able to but she just said book in advance. This makes no difference ime so I guess the answer is that I can't get any cheap tickets. I've tried splitting, looking at dates soon by, looking at dates far away etc but it's always pricey - £55 for one adult and one teen with a railcard so full price is about £80 which is crackers for a 60 mile journey. It's two different train companies for the one journey and I think they each release their cheap seats at different times.

But anyway I'm getting the money back for the ghost ticket. Thanks again all!

@user1471457751

The tickets don't sound that expensive if you've spent £100 on four tickets then the tickets are only around £25 per person.

Jesus, the well heeled privilege of this is mind blowing. You’ve only thrown £50 on the fire, OP. Just forget about it, it’s not much! 🙄

@StupidAroundComputers

Thanks everyone for your tips and advice. I went to the station early and asked at the desk but was told to ring as I'd bought them online. The conductor couldn't help either. After 65 minutes on hold (during which we completed the first leg of the journey) I got through and they're refunding the lot. Hurrah, so relieved!

I also asked about how to buy cheaper tickets because I've never been able to but she just said book in advance. This makes no difference ime so I guess the answer is that I can't get any cheap tickets. I've tried splitting, looking at dates soon by, looking at dates far away etc but it's always pricey - £55 for one adult and one teen with a railcard so full price is about £80 which is crackers for a 60 mile journey. It's two different train companies for the one journey and I think they each release their cheap seats at different times.

But anyway I'm getting the money back for the ghost ticket. Thanks again all!

Where do you buy the tickets from?

From one of the train company's website. It's the same using Trainline/other agents. I even downloaded that app that's supposed to find you cheap tickets by splitting but it comes back with the same price.

Ring the booking company and ask for help. In the past (I've booked on wrong day) they have refunded me.

Worth a try. Oh, and cry if they say no

Didn't RTFT sorry. 🙄

Glad to hear you got you money back.

Could you go by coach, that would be cheaper.

I think there is also a car sharing app, where you pay costs toward someone else's journey, that would be cheaper.

Once when we were on holiday in north wales, my DD accidentally bought cinema tickets online for a cinema in Bangor Northern Ireland - they only spotted the mistake when they got to Bangor Gwynedd to find no cinema.

@Slippy78

Take the extra tickets to the station and see if you can find someone who wants to buy them off you. You might make something back.

Op can't just go up to randoms though and see if they want to buy tickets from her! It would just come across as really dodgy.