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High-speed train ticket buyers chasing credit card points on track for ban

Published: 09 Apr. 2025, 15:29 Updated: 09 Apr. 2025, 19:04

A train is seen on the Super Rapid Train network in this undated photo. [SR]

SR, the operator of the Super Rapid Train (SRT) high-speed railway network, announced on Wednesday that it will impose stricter penalties on customers who repeatedly exploit bulk ticket purchases and cancellations to accrue credit card rewards.

The policy comes in response to a growing trend in which individuals purchase large volumes of tickets on the SRT network only to later cancel them, often within days, with the primary intent of inflating their monthly card spending for rewards points or promotional discounts.

SR said it would begin revoking memberships of individuals who cancel more than 1 million won ($674) worth of tickets three or more times in a single month with a refund rate exceeding 90 percent.

Ticket refund abusers will face permanent expulsion from the SRT membership system. Those who cancel over 5 million won in tickets with a full refund rate during the same period will be immediately disqualified. Additionally, any individual who cancels more than 5 million won worth of tickets with a 100 percent refund rate during the same period will be immediately disqualified.

Those who are removed will be prohibited from rejoining for one year.

To prevent re-registration under a different name, SR said it will introduce a new monitoring system that uses identity verification to detect and block duplicate or fraudulent memberships.

There were over 10,000 instances of mass ticket purchases followed by cancellations, totaling nearly 900,000 tickets, between 2021 and August 2024, according to SR. On average, around 1 billion won worth of SRT tickets were being issued and then refunded each month through this practice.

SR believes that such activity is intended to take advantage of credit card point accumulation or partnership discounts tied to high monthly spending.

The company said these abusive practices limit ticket availability for genuine passengers. It introduced a stricter refund penalty policy late last year and is now expanding its enforcement to include sanctions on bulk purchasers.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.

BY JEONG JAE-HONG [[email protected]]