Hampshire County Council Concessionary Travel Scheme - General Terms and Conditions
Hampshire County Council (HCC) issues the English National Bus Pass in accordance with legislation contained within the Concessionary Travel Act 2007 and can be used for free travel on local buses anywhere in England between 9.30am and 11.00pm Monday to Friday and all day at weekends and on public holidays.
The pass is not valid in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland.
By accepting the offer of a bus pass, the eligible person indicates his/her acceptance of these terms and conditions.
The Scheme area is Hampshire County Council’s administrative area not including the Unitary authorities of Portsmouth and Southampton. All applicants must be resident within the Scheme area.
For the purposes of the National Bus Pass a person is resident in the Scheme area if the address provided is their sole or principal residence. There is no obligation to issue a pass to those who are temporarily staying in the Hampshire area.
The pass is subject to the terms and conditions of the Scheme and to the carriage conditions of the individual Operator in whose vehicle the journey is made.
Passes remain the property of HCC in their entirety and are not transferrable. A pass may only be used by the named holder and may not be used by anyone else.
HCC reserves the right to withdraw any pass from use at its discretion. If the pass is misused during bus travel or if it comes to light that any evidence used to support an application for a pass was inaccurate or fraudulent, HCC reserves the right to withdraw the pass.
Passes are valid until the agreed expiry date (printed on the pass) or until a time as agreed by the Scheme. HCC reserves the right to withdraw passes if a revision to the Scheme eligibility criteria means the pass-holder is no longer eligible.
Older person’s passes which have been digitally recorded in use and recorded on a local bus route within the previous 12 months will be renewed automatically prior to expiry.
Older person’s passes which have NOT been digitally in use and recorded on a local bus route within the previous 12 months will not be renewed automatically, but may be renewed upon request.
Applicants whose pass was issued due to a disability will continue to be automatically renewed. Continuing eligibility for a pass issued due to a disability may be reviewed from time to time where appropriate.
All applicants must notify the HCC Concessionary Travel Team of any changes in personal circumstances. This includes changes to name, address or contact details, eligibility or a significant change in appearance.
National Bus Passes will not be issued to carers and/or travelling companions unless they are eligible for a pass in their own right. A separate Hampshire Companion Pass scheme is in operation and details can be provided upon request.
Passes are only valid for travel at the times and on the services set out in the conditions of the Scheme or in other notices issued by the Scheme.
Use of the pass gives no priority over other passengers or countermand the operator’s right to refuse travel under the terms of their conditions of carriage.
The pass must be shown to the driver at the start of every journey in order to prove entitlement to concessionary travel as laid down by the Scheme, otherwise the full commercial bus fare is payable.
Where ‘smartcard readers’ are active, pass holders will be required, where relevant, to record their journey transaction through the Electronic Ticket Machine. Pass holders are still required to show their pass to bus drivers before placing their pass on the reader so that the driver can confirm the pass is correct for the person showing it.
Hampshire County Council can accept no liability for the failure of any bus service to operate or of any bus operator to accept a concessionary pass or of reimbursement of bus fare paid.
If the pass holder moves to a new residence which is outside of the Scheme area they will no longer be eligible and the pass must be returned to HCC. It is recommended that an application for a new bus pass be sent to the new authority.
The pass must be shown to any on bus/off bus inspector or authorised officer upon production of relevant identification.
Passes are not valid if out of date, illegible, damaged or altered and any such passes may be withdrawn by the driver or authorised officer.
Any fraudulent use of the pass will result in the pass being confiscated by the bus operator or authorised officer. A new application with updated evidence and new photo will be required together with an administration payment before the new application can be considered.
HCC reserves the right not to reissue a replacement pass where fraudulent activity has been found to occur.
HCC reserves the right to consider progressing prosecution and legal action where a pass has been found to be used fraudulently.
HCC reserves the right to amend and change the general terms and conditions of pass usage and/or the concessionary bus travel scheme from time to time subject to statutory notice periods.
A pass will be issued free of charge upon first application. An administration fee will be charged to replace any pass that is lost, stolen or damaged prior to the pass expiry date. The cost of a replacement pass will apply for a stolen pass unless accompanied by an official crime number.
There is no charge for the renewal of an expired pass unless updated address details have not been provided to HCC in time for the replacement of the expired pass.
If a concession holder does not update a change of address HCC reserves the right to charge an administration fee for replacement of a concession which has been sent to a wrong address and not returned or if subsequently returned and destroyed.
Calls to 0300 numbers are included in call packages, or charged at the same rate as 01 and 02 numbers. Costs may vary depending on your telecoms provider and whether you are calling from a landline or mobile.
Further information about call charges can be found at www.ofcom.org.uk
Privacy Notice:
Hampshire County Council collects information about you in order to provide you with a Concessionary Bus Pass or Travel Vouchers. We will use the information for the purposes of providing you with a Concessionary Bus Pass or Travel Vouchers and your information may be used for data matching purposes for the detection and prevention of fraud. We will process your data as necessary to comply with a legal obligation to which the County Council is subject. Where Special Category Data is used, the legal basis is necessary for reasons of substantial public interest. Hampshire County Council Concessionary Travel Team will share this information with third party organisations only for the purpose of facilitating the Concessionary Travel scheme and providing you with a Concessionary Bus Pass or Travel Vouchers.
This data will not be shared with any other third party except when authorised by the data controller or if legally obliged to. Your information will not be shared with any third-party for marketing purposes. We will store your information both electronically and on paper file. Your paper application form will be retained for 1 month. Your details will be stored electronically for the purposes of facilitating your Concessionary Travel; this data will be held for the life of the card or voucher and then according to statutory guidelines. You have some legal rights in respect of the personal information we collect from you. Please see our data protection policy.
You can contact the County Council’s Data Protection Officer at [email protected] If you have a concern about the way we are collecting or using your personal data, you should raise your concern with us in the first instance or directly to the Information Commissioner’s Office.
T & C’s Concessionary Bus Travel Scheme – July 2018