Gautrain *****ing unclaimed refunds

Don't top-up your Gautrain card if you use it infrequently - Gautrain will ***** your money. Gautrain has never communicated to a consumer when a card is about to expire and has answered the following when requesting a refund which is the biggest bull**** story ever:

Kindly note that your card has not been used in over three years, therefore you do not qualify for a refund.

Smart cards such as the Gautrain Gold Card contain quite sophisticated electronics. These may become impaired over time through normal wear and tear in someone's back pocket or wallet. This could result in faulty transactions. It would be advisable to purchase a new Gautrain card and link it to your profile as some Gautrain cards become problematic when they are old, or exposed to electromagnetic interference such as cell phones and microwaves. As a mitigation measure, these cards all have pre-set expiry dates. Our website does indicate that this expiry date will be 5 years after issue but in fact, the first batch of our cards only expired towards the end of 2017.

An individual Gautrain card will expire if it has not been used at all for a three year period. In that event, any unused value on the expired card is transferred to the Gauteng Provincial Government. This is fully compliant with the CPA regulations and was verified so by the Commissioner several years ago. This practice is a common operational measure with anonymous cards anywhere in the world and is implemented to clean out "dormant" cards (for example of once-off users (such as international visitors) or deceased customers etc.). To prevent your Gold Card from expiring, use it at least once in 3 years. Funds on an expired card cannot be refunded.

Kindly note that we do not refund cards that have not been used for over three years.

Kindly note that the Gautrain has developed a system for communicating passenger information that is aimed mainly to provide information to passengers before their trips, to enable them to make informed decisions about their routes, departure times, fares, how to use the system and Gautrain Rules. The information is available on the web site and in the stations.

With the purchase of a Gautrain Card, the passenger declares that he/she will comply with the Business rules published and the Gautrain invites you to fami****ise yourself with the passenger information that is published to enable you to make informed decisions about the routes, departure times, fares, products and Gautrain Rules so that you can enjoy the full benefits of a safe, clean and efficient transportation system.

Sincerely Gautrain