Train passengers are missing out on the cheapest tickets and paying more for journeys than is necessary due to poor advice from rail staff.
An undercover investigation by the consumer group Which? found that 59% of station clerks and 43% of operators on the National Rail Enquiries helpline failed to advise passengers of the cheapest options available for their journey.
Which? researchers asked staff a total of 150 questions and got similar results to the last time they carried out the study in October 2007 and September 2009.
In one of the worst examples of overcharging, a researcher was quoted £400 for two round trips between Oxford and Cardiff when the cheapest option was £112 cheaper.
Staff were tested on whether they were giving customers the chance to make savings by travelling on off-peak services, taking a slower route or buying a season pass instead of multiple tickets throughout a week.
Which? also criticised the National Rail website for failing to identify the cheapest options.
A spokesperson for train operators said the research was based on “unrealistic scenarios”.
Which? chief executive Peter Vicary-Smith said: “Train operators seem blind to the fact their ticketing systems are too complicated. If people who do this for a living can’t find the cheapest fare, what hope do passengers have? We’d like to see much clearer signposting to help passengers find the best deals, whether they’re buying tickets online, over the phone or at a station.”
A separate poll carried out by Which? found around half of passengers were not confident they were being offered the cheapest fare available and only 54% were satisfied overall with train services. Only 31% of the 1,500 rail users questioned rated value for money as excellent or good and just a quarter rated ease of understanding ticket pricing as excellent or good.
The Department for Transport spokesman said: “Train operators are obliged to sell the most appropriate through fares for their journey but it’s clear more needs to be done to ensure their customers are offered the best deals available. That’s why we have asked the Association of Train Operating Companies to put forward proposals to make ticket retailing easier for passengers and more efficient for the taxpayer.”
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