The credit on your card never expires - it stays there until you use it. If you run out of credit on your card, it's easy to top it up and use it again.
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Children under 11 travel free on most public transport services in London when accompanied by a fare-paying adult, or with a 5-10 Zip Oyster photocard. Children aged 11 to 15 years old can get free or discounted travel with a Zip Oyster photocard, or a Young Visitor discount.
In addition to cheaper individual rides, when traveling with an Oyster Card, a 'cap' is automatically applied once you reach a certain amount each day. For example, the most you will ever spend in one day when traveling within zones 1 & 2 with an Oyster Card is £7.70.
Simply touch your Oyster card on the yellow card reader on the ticket machine, select Oyster refund and follow the on-screen instructions. You can see the refunded amount due on the screen before finalising your request.
You just have to ask a member of staff at a station to reactivate it for you as travellers cannot do that themselves. It's only if you returned the card for a refund of the deposit/credit that you have to get a new card.
If you want to do it over the phone, call TfL customer services on 0343 222 1234 between 8am and 8pm. For full info on what to do about lost, stolen or faulty Oyster cards, see the 'Refunds and replacements' section of the TfL website.
A card with a negative balance may only be reused once it is topped up. The Oyster card deposit has been there specifically to prevent customers having an incentive to discard cards with a negative balance.
Daily cappingOnce you have made three bus or tram journeys in a day using your Oyster/contactless card you will pay no more and can travel for free the rest of the day.
What happens if my value/credit runs out? If you need to add more value/credit to your Visitor Oyster card you can simply 'top up' at one of the machines in the stations, or by going to one of the Transport for London ticket desks. Any credit you don't use can be kept on your card for use at a later date.
If you only have pay as you go credit on your Oyster card, you can lend it to someone else. Two people can't use the same contactless or Oyster card for a journey. If you have a Travelcard, Bus & Tram Pass or discount added to your Oyster card, you can't lend it to someone else.
It's more than 50% cheaper than buying a paper Travelcard or single tickets with cash. Oyster cards have a daily price cap – once you reach this limit, you won't pay for any additional journeys (excluding Thames Clippers River Bus where there is no capping).
Image courtesy of Shutterstock. Children under 11 travel free on most public transport services in London when accompanied by a fare-paying adult, or with a 5-10 Zip Oyster photocard. Children aged 11 to 15 years old can get free or discounted travel with a Zip Oyster photocard, or a Young Visitor discount.