FAQs
Q - Where can I use m-ticket?
A – You can use m-tickets on Arriva bus services throughout the UK, except for Park and Ride buses, Fastrack A route and Transport for London services.
Q – Can the system be operated using any mobile phone?
A - Yes, provided you use any GPRS-enabled phone. The only phones you cannot use are those with green screens, which typically are five or more years old. A quick guide is to see if there are any games installed on your phone. If so, your phone is supported. Alternatively, please review the list of supported handsets.
Q – Can the system be operated using BlackBerry, iPhone and Android handsets?
A – The system can be used with most BlackBerry handsets, and is now available with iPhone and Android too. iPhone users can simply download the free m-ticket application from their 'App Store' and Android users can do likewise from their 'Market' store by searching for 'Arriva' or 'm-ticket'.
Q - I only have a GSM-enabled phone, can I use that?
A – No. Unfortunately you will need as a minimum a GPRS-enabled phone. The majority of the mobile handsets in the market today are GPRS-enabled. Even if you have never used this functionality, your phone will most likely be GPRS-enabled. If you have Internet access from your mobile phone then your phone is GPRS-enabled.
Q – What is GPRS?
A – GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) is a method of enhancing phones to enable them to send and receive data more rapidly. With a GPRS connection, the phone is 'always on' and can transfer data immediately, and at higher speeds. An additional benefit is that data can be transferred at the same time as making a voice call. GPRS is now available on most new phones.
Q – Does it matter what mobile network I am on?
A – No, it doesn’t matter which mobile network you use. The m-ticket application can be used across all mobile networks.
Q – How do I register for m-ticket?
A – You can register online at www.arrivabus.co.uk or by texting REG to the shortcode 82500 and the application will be sent back down to your handset. A text message will then be sent to your mobile containing the download. Once you have downloaded the application a separate text message will be sent to your mobile containing your unique PIN number. If you have registered using the text REG method you will need to enter your details into the Registration function within the application before you can start using the m-ticket application.
Q – How long does it take to register?
A – The registration process is quick and simple and should only take a few minutes. When complete, you will receive your application within seconds.
Q – How much will it cost me to download the m-ticket application to my phone once I’ve registered?
A – It won’t cost you anything to register and receive the m-ticket application to your mobile; the only amount you will pay is cost of the actual m-ticket* that you choose to purchase once the application has installed on your mobile.
* Unfortunately, for the time being, this will not apply to some customers of T-Mobile where your usual charges will apply.
Q - I made a mistake when registering and have entered the incorrect phone number. What shalI I do?
A – Simply call our customer services team on 0844 800 44 11 and we can delete the registration from the system. You will then need to re-register with the correct details.
Q – Once downloaded, where will the m-ticket application be stored on my mobile?
A – There isn’t a simple answer to this as different handsets will store the application in different locations. The following list shows where you can find your m-ticket application on your mobile:
LG: Games and Applications
Motorola: Games and Applications
Nokia: Applications, Collections
Panasonic: Games and Applications
Phillips: Games and Applications
Samsung: Games and Applications
Sanyo: Games and Applications
Sendo: Games and Applications
Sony Ericsson: Specified by User
BlackBerry: Downloads
Q – OK, so I have downloaded the application to my handset. What do I do next?
A – Once you have downloaded the application to your handset you will then need to buy your ticket. To do this, open up the application from where it is stored on your handset and from the main menu scroll down to ‘Purchase’
Please note that by registering for and downloading the application you have not bought a ticket and no money has been taken from your account. It is only when you physically purchase a ticket that you will be charged.
Please see User Guide for full instructions.
Q – What type of tickets can I purchase?
A – You can purchase the full range of adult Day, Week and 4-Weekly Saver tickets available from Arriva throughout the UK. Student and child versions are also available. At present, single and return tickets will only be available on our Green Line services.
Q – Can I check the price of the ticket I want before actually purchasing it?
A – Yes you can do this from the ‘Ticket Prices’ function on the ticket menu. Simply enter the details of the ticket you require and the app will display the price of the ticket you wish to buy on the screen. To buy the ticket, please select 'Purchase', otherwise select 'Back' to return to the menu and you can select a different ticket.
Q - What if I don’t have a bank account or a debit / credit card, could I still purchase an m-ticket using cash?
A – Yes. You can use cash to purchase credit for your m-ticket application from any PayPoint outlet, and also most Arriva Travel Shops. If you use PayPoint, your credit will appear on your phone first thing the next day, so it’s a good idea to make sure you always have enough m-ticket credit on your phone.
Please note that the m-ticket top-up credit is a separate credit to your mobile phone airtime credit and is specific for the m-ticket application.
Find your nearest PayPoint outlet.
Q – Can I pay for my m-Ticket by adding the cost to my mobile phone bill?
A – Unfortunately not at the moment. Currently there are only two methods of payment – Credit/Debit card or Top Up.
Q – How can I be sure that someone can’t ‘hack’ into the information on my phone?
A – All the details that you register will be held securely in the Arriva m-ticket application sent to your phone (please note: Arriva does not hold this data). All your data is fully encrypted (locked) and is embedded into the application. This information cannot be accessed by anyone - not even by you, the user. Regardless of whom may gain access to your phone (lost, stolen, misplaced etc), no-one can access your data. The encryption used to lock your data is twice as secure as the encryption used when making online purchases on the Internet. You will need to enter a PIN number (you can set this to your own personal number) to open the application to purchase your ticket. In the same way that you would not store your PIN number with your credit or debit card, don’t store your Arriva m-ticket PIN number on your phone.
Q – Will my credit card/bank account details be held on Arriva’s server?
A – No, Arriva does not hold any credit/debit card details; these are encrypted and held securely in the application on your phone. You are the only person that holds this information and only you can authorise use of your card details by using the PIN number, but not even you can access the actual card information as it is so securely stored within the application on the phone.
Q – What if I realise that I don’t have enough credit on my mobile bus ticket for the journey I am making?
A – If you have insufficient credit on your mobile phone, you will not be able to purchase an m-ticket. You are able to add credit using cash at your nearest PayPoint (find your nearest PayPoint outlet) or at most Arriva Travel Shops.
Q - What if I purchase a ticket, but decide not to travel?
A – The actual m-ticket, whether for a day, week or 4 weeks' worth of travel, will only commence when you want it to (by activating the m-ticket). If you don’t wish to travel yet, you can select ‘Preview Ticket’ using the options within the application (you will recognise this because the ticket will have a yellow background, and there will be no ‘real time’ shown on the ticket). At this stage, the ticket will not have been activated yet, but it affords you peace of mind that you have a ticket at the ready for when you need it.
Q – So can I store my m-ticket on my phone until I need it then?
A – Yes. The actual m-ticket, whether for a day, week or 4 weeks' worth of travel, will only commence when you want it to (by activating the m-ticket). If you don’t wish to travel yet, you can select ‘Preview Ticket’ using the options within the application (you will recognise this because the ticket will have a yellow background, and there will be no ‘real time’ shown on the ticket). At this stage, the ticket will not have been activated yet, but it affords you peace of mind that you have a ticket at the ready for when you need it.
Q – Can I buy a ticket in advance?
A – Yes. Since the ticket is not activated until you select 'Use Ticket', you can decide when the start will be.
Q – I have downloaded the application with no problems but when I go in to buy a ticket I get a ‘No Service Must Exit Message’
A – This means you either you have no signal (are in a bad area) or you do not have the GPRS settings on your phone. In the first instance - try again in another area. If you still experience problems then please contact your network provider (O2, Orange, Vodafone, etc) and ask them to ensure your account is setup for GPRS - they may need to send some settings to your handset. If you continue to experience problems then please call us on 0844 800 44 11 or text ARRIVA to 82500.
Q – I have downloaded the application with no problems but every time I try to purchase a ticket using my credit/debit card, I get a 'Bad card' error message.
A – This means you have entered your card details incorrectly at the point of registration. In this instance, please re-register at www.arrivabus.co.uk and ensure you input the correct details. You will then be sent the application again and you will need to store the new application again, and delete the old one. If you are certain you have entered your information correctly, please check that you have entered your CVV number correctly at the point of purchase - this is the 3-digit number on the back of your card. If you do not enter your CVV number, the payment will fail and you will receive a 'Bad card' error message. If you have been using the application without problems, and then you start getting 'Bad card' error messages when you try to purchase a ticket, this means either your current card has expired, or you have insufficient funds in your account. If your card has expired you can change your card details from within the application using the registration function on the menu. If you continue to experience problems then please call us on 0844 800 44 11 or text ARRIVA to 82500.
Q – What if I buy the wrong ticket by accident? Can I get a refund?
A – No problem. If you buy the wrong ticket by mistake just give us a call on 0844 800 44 11 and we can delete the ticket from the system and refund the ticket for you, so you can then go back into the application and purchase the correct ticket that you require.
Q – How do I activate my m-ticket?
A – To activate a ticket simply select ‘Use Ticket’. Upon first activation you will be asked ‘Are You Sure?’ which gives you the option to back out in case you have gone into the wrong ticket or have pressed ‘Use Ticket’ by mistake. Once the ticket has been activated it becomes valid from that moment, so a day ticket will be valid for that day only, a weekly ticket for activation date + 6 days, and a 4-weekly ticket for activation date + 27 days. Please note that your ticket is automatically removed from your phone after expiry. Whenever you need to use the ticket, simply select the ‘Use Ticket’ option and the ticket will be displayed on your screen.
Q – Do I need to connect to the Internet each time I use my ticket?
A - No, you need to connect to the Internet when you do something that requires a connection with our server as follows:- Update Details, Change PIN Code, Query Ticket Price, Purchase Ticket, Activate Ticket. Once you have actually activated your ticket, it is stored locally on the handset and therefore you can say ‘no’ to access the internet to access your ticket. This means that if you are at a bus stop which may have a bad signal, you will still be able to access your ticket with no problems.
Q – What do I need to do when I board the bus?
A – You need to ensure that you have activated the ticket you wish to use for your journey and that it is displayed on your screen. You then simply show the ticket to the driver when boarding the bus. The backlight on the screen needs to be on so when you show the ticket to the driver it can be easily read, keeping your boarding time to a minimum.
Q - What if my mobile phone battery has run out when I board the bus?
A – Your mobile phone must be able to display the ticket on your phone screen to show the driver when boarding the bus. If your phone battery is dead when you board the bus, you will be unable to retrieve your mobile ticket, and you will have to pay the driver for the journey you wish to make, and this fare is non-refundable.
Q – Can I purchase multiple tickets?
A – Yes, if you need to purchase for example three day tickets for the following week, then that’s fine, just make sure that you only use each ticket when you need it.
Q – If I have multiple tickets on my handset how will I know which is the activated ticket?
A – You will know which ticket is the activated ticket as when you go into ‘Use Ticket’ the activated ticket will have an asterisk * to the left of the ticket description. Any activated tickets will take you straight into the ticket, where as an un-activated ticket will give you the option ‘Are you sure?’ before activating the ticket. So, if you see ‘Are you sure’ you know this is an un-activated ticket, so say ‘no’ and go back to find your current activated ticket.
Q – Can more than one customer travel on one m-ticket?
A – No. Only one person can travel per m-ticket. If there is more than one person travelling, each person should have an m-ticket on their mobile phone.
Q – What if I lose my phone?
A – Then you won’t be able to travel using an m-ticket, so try not to! Your phone is essentially your wallet, but remember that nobody else can purchase m-tickets using your phone unless they know your PIN number. We can also 'freeze' your application until you either find it, or if you replace with a new phone, we'll transfer the application, including all of your tickets, to the new phone.
Q – What happens when I upgrade my phone/get a new handset?
A – If you upgrade your phone but keep the same number, please contact us on 0844 800 44 11 and we can push the application out to your new handset (with all your existing details). If you have a valid ticket on your m-ticket account, the ticket should still be there when you re-install the application to your new phone. If for any reason the ticket is not there when you re-install, please contact us and we can push out a new ticket to the handset.
Q – What if I change my phone number?
A – If you change your mobile number you will need to re-register with the new number by going to www.arrivabus.co.uk or by texting REG to 82500 and will need to enter all your details again. If you change your number whilst still having a valid ticket on your old number, we can delete your old number and ticket from the system and push out a new ticket to your new number.
Q – I’ve not used my m-ticket - can I apply for a refund?
A – If you’ve not used your m-ticket, and would like a refund, then you can call our customer service team on 0844 800 44 11, and we will be able to refund the value of the ticket back to your phone (we will need to know your mobile phone number). Please note that if you have used a proportion of your m-ticket, we are unable to process a refund.
Q – I no longer wish to use m-ticket, and would like a refund on the remaining credit.
A – If you’ve not used your m-ticket, and you have registered your debit/credit card, then you can call our customer service team on 0844 800 44 11, and we will be able to refund directly to your card. If you’re using cash top-ups, call our customer service team on 0844 800 44 11, and we’ll arrange for a cheque to be sent to you. In both cases, we’ll need to know your mobile phone number to remove any tickets and credit from your phone.
Q - What do I do if I forget my PIN Number?
A – It is advisable to change your PIN once you have registered to something you will remember but if you do forget your PIN number then just give us a call on 0844 800 44 11 and we can send this out to you again. You can change your PIN number from the application via the ‘Settings’ function on the main menu.
Q - How do I change my credit/debit card details?
A – You can change your card details by simply going into the Registration function from the main menu within the application and entering the new details. You will be asked to confirm your PIN number and the new details will then be uploaded to the system.
Q – I still need some help, who can I contact?
A – No problem, you can call our customer service team on 0844 800 44 11 (8am until 6pm, Monday to Friday) or e-mail m-ticket@arriva.co.uk . Alternatively, if your query is more technical, then text ‘Arriva’ to 82500, and we will call you back.