Technical question about Paris Metro "bad" tickets?

She can just wait behind the barrier for you. It's not much of a separation.

I said that we really don't want to be separated.

(Let me make it easier...My travel partner is my 6 year old daughter)

Yes, she has wasted a ticket. However, if you've purchased a carnet, chances are you will have more tickets available, so you can just use another one to catch up. To avoid the problem, always have at least 3 tickets on hand...one for you, one for your daughter, and one extra. However, I must say that, in all the times I've purchased tickets, I've never had one go bad.

We bought Paris Visite Passes (tickets that were good for 5 days). One of our tickets was a bad ticket. Whoever got the bad ticket (because my husband kept them in his pocket)would wait. We all went throught the same turnstile and turned around and handed our good ticket to the person who got stuck with the bumm ticket. There is very little "policing" of ticket sharing in the metro. Interesting thing is sometimes the "bum" ticket would work and sometimes not. We had a hard time finding a ticket window with a person and when we did they did not speak english. I took RS advice and said "ticket (tickay) kaput" totally understood and let us through.

Never had a "bad" one when we were there. If my 6yo were on the other side, I would jump over to catch up. Better yet, you go first and she can easily duck under the turnstile if needed. I wouldn't worry about it.

I would worry more about mixing up the used and unused tickets, and/or misplacing the "partially" used ticket in stations where the ticket is also required to exit. I could never figure out which places those were, so I wound up keeping that ticket in my hand until we were out, then tossing it in the nearest can.

Agreed, always keep your ticket until you exit.
I always carried my children through using one ticket for both of us. Lived in Paris for eight years and never had a bad ticket. Could it be all the magnetized equipment we haul around these days demagnetizes the tickets?

We had this problem, but neither my ticket nor my wife's would work. We purchased a carnet one day, the rides that day worked. The next day none of the tickets worked. We had to go to the window to get them exchanged. The agent was only willing to fix a couple at a time, later we found another agent who did not mind doing four at a time. We bought another carnet the next day and the same thing happened. You do get a discount for buying that way, but it sort of defeats the purpose half way if you have to go to the window. At certain times, especially at a RER station, waiting at the window can be very time consuming.

I have never had a "bad" ticket (and returned today from 6 days in Paris)

However, I was checked twice on this trip and saw another check to make sure that I had a valid ticket with me (and the guy who came "running" back towards the exit was "scooped" up by some "checkers" watching for just this trick. When he saw the checkers he made a quick turn the other way and someone stepped off the side wall and asked for his ticket....)

So "jump" at your own risk, but they looked to be working hard at cracking down on this!