GWR launched pay-as-you-go as a way of paying for rail fares in mid and west Cornwall in 2023, see launch of pay-as-you-go. I tried out the system and it seemed to be working well.
In late 2025, GWR extended the system to cover the rest of Cornwall and to/from Plymouth and on the Tamar line.
Yesterday (2 March), GWR announced a promotion to push the use of pay-as-you-go by offering 10% off all fares paid by this method for 2 months.
Unfortunately, last week, GWR had changed their website and the change affected everyone who has an account with them. They asked customers to login and update their payment details in order to be able to continue to use pay-as-you-go. I did this, I thought successfully, but unfortunately, my touch card is no longer working. A half-hour conversation with customer support today was unable to resolve the issue. I have spoken to another pay-as-you-go regular user and he has had similar problems of GWR saying that payment cannot be taken from his bank account and they will close his pay-as-you-go account.
I am reasonably confident that we are not the only two passengers with problems with the pay-as-you-go system. I suspect that it is widespread and that many others are having similar issues. Whoever was overseeing the migration to their new website system has made a mistake somewhere.
It is disappointing that GWR has brought this problem on itself. In 2025, I highlighted major problems with overcharging on tap and cap on buses in Cornwall. It took 3 months for Go Cornwall Bus to sort it out. At the time, I thought that the railway’s tap on and off system was a good example of how such a system should work. Unfortunately, it also is now in danger of putting off passengers using what should be an excellent way of paying for public transport by messing this up.
Update
6 March 2026
Since posting the above, I had feedback from another rail passenger in the Bath/Bristol area who had the same problem with his Touch card no longer working after the new website was launched last week.
With regard to my own experience, I made another attempt to update my payment details on the website and tried again to use the PAYG card - that was unsuccessful.
After a Whatsapp message exchange with GWR, I was told to use the National Rail Smartcard App to update/reactivate my PAYG card. It was then a case of third time lucky because I was able to touch in and out on a short test journey from St Austell to Par and back.
However, the fare that I was charged bore no relation to what I should have been charged according to the GWR scale of fares in Cornwall and the supposed 10% off. It was less than 10% off a day return fare, but more than 10% off two singles. And my Devon and Cornwall railcard discount of one third was not applied. That railcard is still on my account but seems to have become detached from my PAYG card.
I have attempted to explain all the issues in a lengthy Whatsapp message to GWR. They then suggested that I ring their helpline. When I did that, they suggested I put it all in an email to their feedback team!
It is clear that there is nobody in their customer support team who actually understands how PAYG and the underlying IT system works. Unfortunately, therefore, I would caution anyone against using PAYG on the trains. It may be too much hassle.
If you are one of the lucky ones who has found that their Touch card is still working fine after last week’s website changes, I hope that you continue to have stress-free use of the system. I would just advise that you check carefully your bankcard statements and make sure that you are being charged the correct fares.
If you have any comments that you want to pass on to me, please do so either through the contact page or email directly at the address at the bottom of the page.