Great Western Railway ticketing problems

Yes, had a similar problem last month. Finally resorted to trainline and for an additional small fee booked through them.

try any other Train Operating Company eg virgintrainseastcoast.com - same tickets same prices

http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/tocs_maps/tocs/TrainOperators.aspx

What does the error message say?

I've been having trouble buying tickets from the UK with my U.S. credit card.

I can't get the GWR website to work at all. Tried several browsers. I had this problem a few weeks ago when I was buying my tickets to Bath and York. I would suggest Trainline, even if you have to pay 50-75 cents for a booking fee. It's worth it, and there were no problems booking any of my tickets for this summer.

Also look at Loco2.com - best IMO for UK (and French) trains. They certainly accept most credit cards and even PayPal, although these attract a fee, whereas debit cards are free. Their support service is excellent and very prompt if you do run into difficulties. The fares their site shows should be identical to those on GWR.

I had no problem buying tickets with AmEx on the GWR website earlier today.

My browser is Mozilla Firefox, if that makes any difference.
Sorry to hear you are having difficulty.

Check with your credit card company and see if they have a security block on that transaction. A couple of years ago when working on some tickets from Munich to Vienna, the transaction would not clear. Finally MasterCard got me through to their security department and come to find out they blocked the website in general. After telling them what I was doing and the amount I was going to charge +/-, they gave me time window of a few hours to buy the tickets. No problem. The first time I called MasterCard, the initial contact could not find any issue with my account or why it was being blocked. In fact they noted it in the record. It took two calls to resolve. I would suggest you call again and ask for the security group.

Ed

I have also been trying this week to purchase tickets on GWR's website for roundtrip London to Bath. After entering my credit card (I tried both VISA and Mastercard) I got an error - something with "3D authentication", then "We are unable to take your payment. Please check details and try again.". The website does not have a specific spot for state; maybe that's the problem. Last night I was successful in ordering tickets from VirginTrainsEastcoast, as someone suggested (thanks!). Prices are identical to GWR, no fees. I will pick them up in London so hopefully no problems.

Yes, I finally gave up on GWR and bought on Virgin as well!

I had the same problem a couple years ago and I had to call them direct (I used google voice call - CHEAP), and it turns out the problem usually stems from North American banks using a different credit card validation network than European banks. The agent was able to run the credit card transaction manually and everything worked out fine.

You could try and make your bookings for British train travel with www.crosscountrytrains.co.uk - even if you don’t use them. (They do long distance trains that don’t go to London). They are the only booking site that will later let you change your booking without incurring a £10 fee - though you would have to pay any increase in the cost should the ‘new’ train be more expensive.

If travelling with Virgin Trains, I think they will let you have some choice regarding seating - on their own services.

In the event that your train is delayed by more than 30 minutes, you can claim compensation from the train company involved. This is easier to get if you actually book with that company direct. (Be sure to retain your ticket as proof - tell staff at gate and ask for a compensation form).

I just bought a ticket from Gatwick to Bodmin Parkway on GWR on Friday. I didn't have any problems. How annoying for you! I'm glad you were able to work it out.

I attempted to purchase tickets on GWR's website 3 days ago using 2 different credit cards. I purchased elsewhere after the payments failed. Today I looked online at one of the banks and saw a pending charge for GWR. The bank said to wait until the vendor reverses the charge or I can dispute if the charge goes through. Make sure to check your credit card account if you get an error. ** update as of 5/3 the pending charge from GWR has disappeared.

The issue appears to be cards failing 3d secure authentication. This is something to sort out with your card issuer although I understand some USA card issuers don't participate. It can sometimes be down to browser behaviour too though.

I have a chip Visa which I've used extensively for last 5 years in Europe.
Chase said problem wasn't on their end- never received nor in my account.
GWR has issues.
Purchased on virgin train site for same price. First attempt

Chase will be the 'problem' whatever they tell you, by not having 3d secure on their cards - this is well known. This lack causes failure on many European online sites as a potential fraudulent transaction. Some payment providers may be willing to take more risk than others.

I understand that it may be possible to opt individual cards in, but that requires maybe more authority than a run of the mill agent. Much easier to fob the issue off.

I have not read all the replies so maybe someone has said this. After I had told my credit card issuer that I was going to the UK and was buying tickets ahead of time, the transaction went thru fine. At first it was blocked. Hope your problem is that simple, or you have the other options mentioned.

Well, I am having the same problem and is not the fault of the credit card companies. I tried using one card and kept getting error messages. I thought I would use another card in case the first was being blocked. I got the same error message. Then card 1 called to let me know that there were multiple charges from GWR. I told them to decline all of them. I then called credit card 2 and they said they had 2 charges from the GWR. I asked them to put one through and decline the other. BUT, 5 days later I still have had no email confirmation from GWR and my GWR account does not show that I have booked any journeys. I emailed them and they said it would be several weeks before they could respond.

I think I will call and ask that all GWR charges be declined and start over with trainline. Is that working for everyone?

Thanks for any helpful suggestions.

I was able to book through Virgin Trains for the same cost. GWR finally emailed me back to say they would respond with a few weeks or I could call - ha!

I had to notify my credit card company that I was going to be in England in July and then had no problems getting train tickets. I had tried through Virgin Trains, Chiltern Railway, and National Rail Company. As soon as I notified the credit card companies, it was like magic. One had called me, as in a post above, that there were several requests from Virgin Trains, etc.. I did end up ordering tickets for several trips from Virgin Trains and one from Chiltern Railway and had no problem, received email confirmation that evening, and today my credit card statement came with just what I had ordered.

think I will call and ask that all GWR charges be declined and start
over with trainline.

You don't need to use Trainline, which adds fees. You can buy from any of the UK rail operator sites. They sell each others' tickets, without those fees. Here's what the Man in Seat Sixty-one says:

There's no need to find the 'right' operator's site or to compare
prices on different sites, as all train operator websites sell all
tickets for all operators' trains at exactly the same prices from
exactly the same National Rail fares database.

Train operator websites don't add a booking fee... Train operators'
own websites such as www.virgintrains.co.uk don't charge a booking fee
or credit card fee. So buying from a train operator website is a
no-brainer.

He points readers to www.virgintrains.co.uk but also notes other train operators' websites work the same way.