All go free in Oyster cards fiasco

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Staff were ordered to let Tube and bus commuters travel for nothing if their pre-pay cards registered an error.

The move was aimed at avoiding rush-hour chaos at ticket barriers as between 40,000 and 80,000 people discovered their cards were not working. It followed a catastrophic failure of the Oyster card system - the worst in its five-year history. Passengers who used a swipe machine on Saturday morning between 5.30am and 9.30am had their card ruined.

Others who topped up their cards during this period may also have been affected. Tube bosses said at least 60,000 people had their cards corrupted. There are fears the number could be as high as 100,000.

More than 21,000 cards have already been replaced. An investigation has been launched but senior sources say the full extent of the problem is not yet known.

An LU source said: "It was only by luck the breakdown happened on a Saturday morning. If it had been during the week it would have resulted in bedlam with millions of passengers affected."

Passengers with corrupted cards will have been charged the maximum "short hop" fare of £4 every time they swiped in or swiped out on Saturday.

Many using the card several times will have been charged £4 each time, instead of the fare cap which should automatically apply so that passengers pay no more than the cost of a one-day travelcard for multiple journeys.

Some Freedom Pass and Young Persons Oyster card holders have also been damaged. Stocks of replacement cards have been sent to stations around the network.

It is thought a fault in the card software "touch-in" system was to blame.

A spokesman for Transport for London said: "All passengers who incurred a maximum fare on Saturday will be given an automatic refund from tomorrow."