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Using your free bus pass terms and conditions

Defined terms

‘Disabled Person + Companion Pass' means a pass granted at the sole discretion of KCC for use by somebody who is not an eligible person and for the sole purpose of accompanying a named eligible person and not otherwise.

‘Device’ means an electronic or mechanical device used by a bus company to deduct payment for or to account for a journey taken by a person on one of its services.

'Eligible Person’ means an elderly person or a disabled person over the age of 5, whose sole or principal residence is in Kent.

‘KCC’ means the Kent County Council of Sessions House, County Hall, Maidstone, Kent ME14 1XQ.

‘Pass’ means a bus pass for concessionary travel under the Concessionary Bus Travel Act 2007.

Qualifying Service’ means any local bus services in Kent, Medway or East Sussex and bus services running throughout England which operate between 9:30am and 11pm between Monday and Friday and at any time at weekends and on public holidays and for the avoidance of doubt does not include season tickets, long distance coach tickets, excursion tickets or railway tickets. Bus passes are valid on bus routes which serve the Canterbury Park and Ride, but parking charges are not covered.

Terms and conditions

  • Legal basis

    1.  
    2. The Pass is the property of KCC and may only be used by the person to whom it was issued for as long as that person meets the criteria of an Eligible Person. By issuing the Pass to the Eligible Person KCC is complying with its obligations under the Transport Act 2000 as amended by the Concessionary Bus Travel Act 2007.
    3. The Pass must be surrendered to KCC on request.

    Use of the Pass

    1. By accepting the offer of a Pass the Eligible Person’s indicates his/ her acceptance of these terms and conditions.
    2. There is no entitlement to use the Pass and use may constitute fraud except by the Eligible Person to whom it was issued for as long as the Eligible Person lives in Kent.
    3. There is no entitlement to use the Pass and use may constitute fraud except on a Qualifying Service.
    4. The Pass may not confer a discount unless the following conditions are met:
      i) the Eligible Person has either shown the Pass to the bus driver and/ or held it over a Device as appropriate whenever a concession is sought;
      ii) the Eligible Person has answered if requested any reasonable question put to them by a bus driver, ticket inspector or KCC representative about the Eligible Person’s place of abode or the journey they are making;
      iii) the Eligible Person adhered to the conditions of carriage of the bus operator on whose service the Eligible Person is travelling;
      iv) the Pass is not altered or defaced in any manner whatever.
    5. Entitlement to a Pass and any Companion Pass ceases when the Eligible Person to which it relates ceases living in the county of Kent.

    Disclaimer

    1. By accepting the offer of a Pass (and if sought and granted a Companion Pass) the Eligible Person undertakes to notify KCC should he/she move outside of Kent and to return the Pass and any Companion Pass to KCC in that event.
    2. KCC cannot guarantee the availability of any bus service.
    3. KCC explicitly disclaims any responsibility for any losses or damages suffered or incurred by Eligible Persons using Passes on journeys howsoever such loss or damage has been caused or incurred and any correspondence or proceedings should be addressed to the bus operator on whose service the loss or damage was incurred.

    Disabled Person+Companion Bus Passes.

    1. Acceptance of the Pass confirms the Eligible Person’s acceptance of KCC’s decision at its absolute discretion to award a Disabled Person+Companion Pass if the Eligible Person has sought this.
    2. A Disabled Person+Companion Pass only entitles a person to travel with the Eligible Person named on the Disabled Person+Companion Pass for journeys commencing in the Kent County Council area, but in all other respects a Disabled Person+Companion Pass is subject to the same terms and conditions as a Pass held by an Eligible Person.

    Lost or damaged passes

    KCC may replace lost or damaged Passes subject to payment of an administration fee, which fee will be non-refundable save in exceptional circumstances to be judged at the discretion of KCC.

    Data

    KCC will not disclose personal information to any unauthorised person. Information will not be shared with other branches of KCC or disclosed to third parties save by the operation of law. KCC is under a duty to protect the funds that it administers and to this end it may use the information that an Eligible Person has provided for the prevention and detection of crime. It may also share this information with other bodies responsible for auditing or administrating public funds or to assist the police in the detection of crime or protection of vulnerable persons. KCC will keep the documentary evidence of an Eligible Person’s address and age/disability until either an application form has been successfully processed and a Pass awarded or three months have passed whichever occurs first, after which KCC will destroy such evidence securely. Where an application has been successfully processed KCC will scan the Eligible Person’s photographs into a secure password-protected software system which will store the image on an Eligible Person’s computer record permanently. The image will be used for processing requests for replacement Passes and deal with any other matters in connection with an Eligible Person’s Pass.

    For more information about how we handle your personal information please read the Concessionary Fares privacy notice.

    More information

    Call 03000 41 83 83 or email buspass@kent.gov.uk to get this information in other formats including Braille, large print or audio tape or in another language.