Woman refuses to give up seat for elderly passenger on train and divides views

A train passenger has been praised for refusing to give up her seat on a train journey despite an elderly lady requesting it. It is probably about fair to say that it is generally accepted as a default courtesy to offer one's seat to the elderly if they have nowhere to sit, but this passenger remained resolute in her desire to keep hold of the priority seat she had reserved ahead of time.

The Mirror reports that the woman was taking a trip from London to Aberdeen and secured a first-class ticket to guarantee a solo seat and tranquil journey. However, when she boarded the train, she discovered that her assigned seating was in fact the carriage's priority seat, usually reserved for passengers with mobility issues. When an older lady insisted on taking the seat, the original ticket-holder decided to stand firm.

Venting her frustration on Reddit, the woman narrated: "I recently got a train across the UK from London to Aberdeen. It's a seven-hour journey so I booked myself a first-class seat well in advance. First-class seats on trains in the UK can be expensive, but I decided to treat myself because, one, I knew I'd have work to do on the train, so I wanted to make sure I had space/comfort to be able to work, and two, certain trains [have] 'individual seats' which means you're not sitting next to or opposite anyone. I specifically booked one of those seats to enable me to work."

She added: "I got on the train in London and sat in my seat. The seat they'd assigned me was also the 'priority seat'. Priority seats are the ones at the end of carriages for people with mobility issues due to age or disability. A woman got on after me who was around 60 years old and pointed at the sign above my head and, quite rudely, told me to move because she was elderly. I told her I'd booked the seat and she'd need to speak to a member of staff to find her one. She pointed out that the train was full and there were no other seats. I apologised but reiterated that I'd booked the seat and wasn't going to move."

The woman and the older passenger were eventually seen to by a member of staff, who discovered that while the older woman had a first-class ticket, she hadn't booked a seat so therefore wasn't guaranteed to get one.

The member of staff then tried to persuade the two women to come to some middle ground in which one of them would step down to an available seat in standard class, but the woman who booked the seat still refused to budge. She said: "Eventually, a train guard came over to try to help. The lady had booked a return ticket, but she hadn't reserved a specific seat. For those who don't know how trains work, if you have a ticket but haven't also booked a seat reservation, it means you can travel on a train, but you aren't guaranteed a seat unless there's one available.

"He asked if either of us would consider moving to standard class if he could find us a seat. I again refused, explaining I'd booked the seat well in advance and that I needed it. Eventually, he took the woman to standard class and I assume found her a seat there. I felt bad, but I also don't think I needed to put myself in severe discomfort because someone else didn't think ahead and reserve a seat."

The incident has sparked debate online, with opinions divided. Some supported the woman's decision to keep her booked seat, while others criticised the train company for not making the priority nature of the seat clear.

One person commented: "The train company are the a**holes here. They sold the disability seats as the most expensive seats on the train. Those seats should never be sold unless the occupier is disabled. That's on the train operator. It's not on you."

Another added their view: "If it was a first-class seat on a plane and someone asked you to move to economy, you'd tell them to f**k right off. Same applies here, in my mind."

Yet another reader weighed in, stating: "The woman was for thinking she was entitled to your reserved seat though. Elderly or not, you paid in advance and shouldn't have to move just because she showed up."