Tap2Go

Your South Western Railway (“SWR”) Touch Smartcard Tap2Go account is issued subject to the following Terms and Conditions. Your smartcard is issued free of charge and remains the property of SWR, there is an initial charge of £1.00 to create your Tap2Go account.

We reserve the right to withdraw the Touch Smartcard or Tap2Go account at any time.

The conditions of your Touch Smartcard can be found here.

Any ticket that you buy and use for travel on a Touch Smartcard is issued subject to the National Rail Conditions of Travel and Railway Byelaws. Further details and a copy of these conditions are available here. Tickets stored on a Touch Smartcard are subject to normal refund rules in accordance with the National Rail Conditions of Travel.

All refunds must be arranged through our Customer Service Centre by calling 0345 810 1010.

Registering for Tap2Go

1. You will need to register for Tap2Go through your account. Tap2Go can either be loaded to an existing Touch Smartcard or you can request a new one. The registration is completed in ‘Your Account’.
2. A valid debit or credit card must be associated with your account. You must also agree to a Continuous Payment Authority (CPA) via your payment card. A CPA is an agreement between you and us that authorises us to withdraw money from your account via your payment card without having to seek individual repeated consents from you.
3. You must keep your credit or debit card details up to date. If your details are not up to date and failed payments occur, we will notify you via email to ask for the details to be updated. We may try and debit your payment card at a later stage on more than one occasion.
4. You must ensure there are sufficient funds available in your nominated payment card account to cover Tap2Go charges payable to us. Your Tap2Go account will be closed and legal action taken to recover any amounts owed following three consecutive failed payment requests.
5. The payment card associated with your account may be changed at any time.
6. When you register for your account an initial charge of £1.00 is required, this will be used towards your first journey using Tap2Go.
7. When your account balance falls below zero, we will make a payment request to cover the journeys made. The threshold of the account is zero, we will not charge any amount that brings your balance above zero.
8. Additional credit can be added to your Tap2Go account up to the value of £100.
9. Any additional credit added to the account will be used to cover the cost of your journey before any charge is made to your registered payment card.
10. Your card will be activated when you touch in at an SWR Tap2Go station. The Tap2Go stations are highlighted green on the Tap2Go map showing the Tap2Go network.
11. The credit balance will remain on your Touch Smartcard account for you to use as payment towards future Tap2Go Journeys.
12. You may request to have the credit balance refunded back to your payment card through your online account.
13. If we are unable to refund the credit balance back to the payment card associated with your account, we will offer you an alternative option for instance e-voucher or cheque. E-vouchers will be applicable only to the Touch Smartcard user’s online account for use against ticket purchases through the website. Cheques are made payable to the registered smartcard user and posted to the address associated with smartcard.

Using Tap2Go

1. Your Tap2Go Touch Smartcard can only be used on South Western Railway operated services within the Tap2Go network area. If a journey begins or ends outside of the Tap2Go network, the journey will be considered incomplete.
2. Tap2Go is not currently available for travel using services operated by Transport for London (TfL). You can only use Tap2Go as far as London Waterloo, it cannot be used to travel to any other London Terminal.
3. You must always touch in at the start and touch out at the end of your journey by placing your Touch Smartcard on the card reader at gatelines or using a platform validator.
4. You must touch out to end your journey, if you do not touch out no fare can be calculated. We will contact you via email to ask that you call us to complete the journey. You will be asked to provide a reason why you were not able to touch in or touch out on your journey.
5. If you do not touch in and touch out on your journeys, you may be charged an incomplete journey charge of £25 per journey as we do not know if you have travelled within the validity of your pre-purchased ticket.
6. Where possible, we will auto-complete incomplete journeys up to 3 times in a 28-day period based on your previous journey history, further failure to complete a journey may result in an incomplete journey charge.
7. Failure to touch in or touch out on 4 or more occasions may result in account closure.
8. Railcard discounts are not currently available on journeys made using Tap2Go.
9. Child discounts are not currently available on journeys made using Tap2Go.
10. Break of journey is available whilst using Tap2Go, the best daily fare will be calculated.
11. Period returns are not available. If you travel out on day one and return on day two, you will be charged a single fare for each journey.
12. First Class travel is not available when using Tap2Go. You will need to purchase a separate ticket when traveling in First Class.
13. If you hold Carnet tickets on the same Touch Smartcard, travel between the stations of validity will result in one of your day tickets being used. You will not be charged through Tap2Go.
14. Each time you touch out at a station, the journey will be considered completed, unless you touch in and continue your journey within 4 hours and 36 minutes – in this instance we will calculate the best daily fare for the journeys completed.
15. You must produce your Touch Smartcard when asked to do so for inspection. The Touch Smartcard will be checked for any valid tickets. If you don’t touch in at the start of your journey, no valid ticket will be displayed, and you may be liable to pay a penalty fare for travelling without a ticket.
16. The registered holder of the card is liable to pay the fare for all journeys made. If your Touch Smartcard is used by someone else, we will not be held liable for any journeys completed without your consent.
17. If you have forgotten your Touch Smartcard, you must purchase a valid ticket to travel. There is no refund available on tickets purchased when a Touch Smartcard is forgotten. If you have an additional season ticket on your Touch Smartcard that covers the journey you are making, you may be entitled to a refund of a single or day return fare purchased
18. If you lose your Touch Smartcard, you must contact the Smart Support team on 0345 810 1010 as soon as possible. Your card will be blocked to ensure it cannot be used by anyone else. A replacement Touch Smartcard will be issued with any products held preloaded. If you notice any charges made using your reported lost Touch Smartcard, you must notify the Smart Support team on 0345 810 1010 immediately. We will refund you for any journeys made following contact to report the loss.
19. You can purchase season tickets on the same Touch Smartcard. Where a journey is made that is covered by your season ticket, no charge will be made. If you travel outside the validity of the ticket within the Tap2Go network area, you will be charged for the extension through your Tap2Go account.
20. Daily tickets can be bought for use on the same Touch Smartcard as Tap2Go. Please be aware that if you break your journey covered by the daily ticket, the location where you break your journey will not be recorded which may result in an additional charge covering the same journey. Please contact our Smart Support team on 0345 810 1010 if you experience this.
21. If you feel you have been charged the wrong fare for the journeys completed, please contact out Customer Service team on 0345 810 1010. Any changes must be requested prior to Thursday of the following week of travel, after this time changes will not be possible.
22. Delay Repay compensation is available when you are delayed by 15 minutes or more at your destination station. Claims can be made here.
23. If you decide not to travel due to disruption or cancelled trains after you have touched in at the station, you will need to touch out again within 15 minutes. If you touch in and then touch out again outside of 15 minutes, you may be liable for a maximum fare.
24. At the end of each day, all your journeys will be assessed to calculate the best fare (see how we calculate the best daily fare paragraph 28 below). These journeys will then be debited from your account balance or charged to the registered payment card the day after travel. If you hold a credit balance on your Touch Smartcard account, we will first use this balance to pay the relevant fare(s) before we take payment from your nominated payment card for the remaining balance.
25. We will notify you of any planned outages of the Tap2Go network to ensure your journey is unaffected.
26. If the Tap2Go network is unavailable for reasons out of our control, we will not be liable to pay compensation for a loss in service.
27. You may close your Tap2Go account at any time by logging into your account and closing the account or by contacting our Smart Support team on 0345 810 1010. The Tap2Go product on your Touch Smartcard will be blocked to prevent further charges being applied, as well as finalising any outstanding tap data collected to apply a final charge and bring the account balance to zero. If you have added additional credit to your account, this will be refunded to your payment card. Please be aware that the account closure process takes 11 days to allow for any outstanding taps to be collected and the final balance calculated.
28. The best day fare offer is based on tickets that can be bought on the day of travel. We will charge you the cheapest fare based upon the taps you have made on your journey and the journey length to best guess the route you took. Fares are based on paper equivalent tickets defined as Peak, Off-Peak Day and Super Off-Peak Day single and Day return and Oyster fares for journeys made wholly within the London zones 1-6. Where journeys occur within the London zones 1-6, journeys will be Price Matched with the equivalent Oyster zone day fare or Travelcard price for journeys that begin or end outside the London area. When a Journey is made within the Tap2Go area, your rail Journeys will be reviewed and the best fare calculated on your behalf.
29. You may cancel your CPA directly with your bank instead of through your Touch Smartcard account. The Financial Conduct Authority’s guidance on cancelling CPAs is set out here. If you cancel the CPA in this way rather than through your Touch Smartcard account you may incur debt to us for journeys made using Tap2Go for which we cannot take payment. If you refuse to pay these when contacted, we may take legal action to recover any amounts due and owing.
30. Tap2Go account closure will not affect any other tickets stored on your Touch Smartcard.
31. You agree not to use Tap2Go for any purpose that is abusive, illegal, fraudulent, a nuisance or for criminal activities. We reserve the right to suspend or terminate the use of your Touch Smartcard if we have reasonable belief that it is being used for or in connection with any such activities.
32. Tap2Go is for use only by the registered user of the relevant Touch Smartcard. The Touch Smartcard and/or Tap2Go may not be used for reward or hire.
33. We may suspend or cancel your Touch Smartcard account in the following circumstances:

33.1 If we believe your Touch Smartcard or Tap2Go is being used in a way that is not permitted under these Conditions.

33.2 If we believe that the right to use any number or password used in relation to your Touch Smartcard account is or has been gained by a third party or in an unauthorised, illegal, improper or fraudulent way.

33.3 If we no longer hold valid payment card details associated to your account and are unable to take payment.

33.4 If you register for Tap2Go but do not make your first Journey within six months.

33.5 If we believe that you have paid us or are trying to pay us using a stolen or otherwise barred or false debit or credit card or if the debit or credit card transaction is at some time charged back to us.

33.6 If you tell us that your Touch Smartcard has been lost or stolen.

33.7 If you tamper with your Touch Smartcard in any way which damages or affects the operation or security of the Tap2Go network, the Touch Smartcard or Tap2Go.

33.8 If we are permanently unable to provide the Tap2Go service to you or we choose to withdraw them.

33.9 If the emergency services or any regulatory authority tell us to cease to provide the Tap2Go service, or a law or regulation is passed which means we need to do so;

33.10 If you cease to have a valid email address associated with your Account.

34. We may make changes to the Tap2Go services at any time and we can make changes to or introduce new terms to these terms and conditions at any time. If possible we will give reasonable notice of these changes. The changes will apply when we publish details of them in a way, which we consider is reasonable, for example by displaying messages on our website, your online account or contacting you directly at your registered email address.
35. We will be legally responsible to you if our negligence causes death or personal injury. We will not be legally responsible to you for any, whether direct or indirect:

35.1 loss of income or profit;

35.2 loss of use of the Tap2Go service;

35.3 lost business or missed opportunities; or

35.4 any loss or damage that is not directly caused by us or which we did not reasonably expect at the time you entered into this agreement.

36. Our maximum liability to you under these Conditions will be to refund the balance on your Touch Smartcard account on the date our dispute with you is settled.
37. These terms and conditions of use are governed by English law and shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Courts of England and Wales.

We may contact you about your Tap2Go account for the following reasons:

• Registration
• Account Closure
• Failure to add/collect the Tap2Go product when it has been ordered
• Incomplete journey information (request to complete)
• Autocomplete journey information (where we have completed)
• Successful payment
• Payment failure
• Update/expiry of payment card
• Changes to our Tap2Go service/service interruption
• Changes to these terms and conditions