West Island man out $350 after overpaying on wrong train ticket
A West Island man is out hundreds of dollars after accidentally buying the wrong Exo train ticket – one worth more than the fare he was supposed to pay.
William Mattsson says he was in a rush one day in October 2022. The then-19-year-old was headed from the West Island to an Alouettes game in downtown Montreal.
"I made the mistake of buying [an unlimited evening] ticket, which is actually more expensive than just a one-way downtown," said Mattsson, now 22.
He tried to explain to the inspector that he mistakenly bought the $5.76 night ticket, not the $3.50 day fare. The inspector initially told Mattsson he would likely receive a reduced fine, but that wasn't the case.
"A couple of days or weeks later, we get the ticket in the mail, and it's a full $272 ticket," he said.
Mattsson mistakenly bought the $5.76 night ticket, not the $3.50 day fare (Kelly Greig / CTV News)His mother, Andrea Laliberte, kept all the paperwork showing he paid for a ticket. She said it was a simple mistake that's now ballooning.
"The machines are confusing. If you're rushing at all, you have to keep scrolling over and over and over to find [the right fare]. And you’ve got A zones, B zones," she said. "We've bought the night ticket twice now instead of the day ticket. So that's easy to do."
The Exo train service said its inspectors were in the right, telling CTV News in a statement, "the person would have noticed that the ticket was not approved since a red light would have flashed on the terminal.
"It is important to say that our trains work on a payment and honour basis since there are no turnstiles on the train platforms," it added.
William Mattsson waits for a train (Kelly Greig / CTV News)Mattsson tried to fight the ticket but claims he was never notified of one of the court dates, meaning the trip that was supposed to cost $3.50 will now cost nearly $350.
"I just – I can't even," said Laliberte. "He's paid $2 more for the ticket, and he's being fined now, at the end of the day, $350."
"I was furious," added Mattsson "Even my mom was kind of yelling and freaking out a bit… we were all pretty shocked and upset."
Mattsson wants to warn others how easy it can be to make this mistake.
"My hands are kind of tied here. There's nothing I can really do except pay the ticket," he said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Guilty: Trump becomes first former U.S. president convicted of felony crimes
Donald Trump became the first former American president to be convicted of felony crimes Thursday as a New York jury found him guilty of all 34 charges in a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through a hush money payment to a porn actor who said the two had sex.
Can Trump come to Canada now that he's a convicted felon?
A Canadian immigration lawyer says now that Donald Trump is a convicted felon, he is technically barred from crossing the border into Canada.
Montreal tech billionaire charged with several sex offences
Robert Miller was charged Thursday with several sexual assault charges after Montreal police reopened an investigation into the tech billionaire.
Police: 3 killed, including suspected gunman, in Minneapolis shooting
Three people, including the suspected gunman, are dead after a shooting Thursday at a Minneapolis apartment complex, police said.
'Why didn't they stop?' Mom asks of driver in hit-and-run crash that killed son
The mother of a 13-year-old boy who was killed in a hit-and-run in Edmonton is begging the driver to come forward.
The northern lights are returning to night skies across Canada this Friday
If you missed the brilliant displays of the aurora borealis over North America on May 10, you may have another chance to see them on Friday night.
A pair enjoyed pricey meals and bolted when it was time to pay. Their dine and dash ended in jail
A Welsh couple who dined out on pricey meals and bolted when the bill came is now paying the price, behind bars.
$400K in damages for B.C. woman who had unnecessary mastectomy was 'inordinately high,' court finds
A jury's award of $400,000 to a woman who had a mastectomy after being misdiagnosed with breast cancer has been substantially reduced by B.C.'s highest court, which found the damages were "wholly disproportionate."