Tube and rail passengers in west London were charged millions of pounds last year when their Oyster cards had maximum fares deducted for 'incomplete' journeys.

Figures released by Transport for London show where travellers were most frequently hit, either by Oyster card readers failing to register them touching in or out, or by forgetting to touch their card against barriers that are left open.

Oyster users were charged a total of £559,000 in maximum fares at Hammersmith Tube station in 2010, far more than at any other station in Hammersmith and Fulham. The next highest total in the borough was Shepherd's Bush, where charges for incomplete journeys netted Transport for London £368,000.

Ealing's biggest transport hub, Ealing Broadway, recorded £404,000 worth of charges - five times as much as any other station in the borough. And in Kensington and Chelsea, the Tube station with the most incomplete journeys was Earl's Court, resulting in £363,000 being charged last year.

Tube and rail passengers across Westminster, which includes many busy central London stations, paid a massive £10.3m for incomplete journeys in 2010, with £1.6m coming from Victoria station alone and another £862,000 coming from Oxford Circus, the borough's second biggest contributor.

Overall, around 14 million journeys made in London last year resulted in people being charged the maximum fare of £7.40, equivalent to a single journey from zones one to six, for an incorrectly logged journey.

The figures were compiled by Caroline Pidgeon, Liberal Democrat leader at the London Assembly, based on written responses to questions she put to Mayor Boris Johnson.

Ms Pidgeon said: "This level of overcharging is totally unacceptable. There is something very seriously wrong when each and every week of the year Londoners are ripped off by more than £1 million. Of course in some cases passengers might forget to touch in and touch out, but such huge levels of overcharging clearly demonstrate that there are some structural problems with how Oyster is operating."

A TfL spokeswoman said it is estimated that between 60 and 80 per cent of the maximum fares charged would have been paid anyway had the passenger been able to tap in or out correctly, and that only two per cent of Oyster pay-as-you-go journeys are recorded as incomplete.

She said: "Maximum fares are not overcharges. We have maximum fares in place to ensure customers validate their journeys or we would open to widespread fare evasion across our network."

She added that refunds for incorrect charges are available via the Oyster helpline or at station ticket offices.

CHARGES TO OYSTER CARDS FOR INCOMPLETE JOURNEYS IN 2010

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HAMMERSMITH & FULHAM
TOTAL: £1,798,000

Barons Court 86,000
East Acton 46,000
Fulham Broadway 194,000
Goldhawk Road 23,000
Hammersmith 559,000
Parsons Green 111,000
Putney Bridge 111,000
Ravenscourt Park 38,000
Shepherd's Bush 368,000
Stamford Brook 45,000
West Kensington 63,000
White City 108,000
Wood Lane 46,000

EALING
TOTAL: £1,014,000

Acton Main Line 7,000
Acton Town 79,000
Chiswick Park 33,000
Ealing Broadway 404,000
Ealing Common 43,000
Greenford 58,000
Hanger Lane 43,000
North Acton 62,000
North Ealing 12,000
Northfields 51,000
Northolt 75,000
Northolt Park 4,000
Park Royal 29,000
Perivale 33,000
South Ealing 45,000
West Acton 24,000
West Ealing 22,000

KENSINGTON & CHELSEA
TOTAL: £2,060,000

Earl's Court 363,000
Gloucester Road 227,000
High Street Kensington 202,000
Holland Park 53,000
Knightsbridge 232,000
Ladbroke Grove 71,000
Latimer Road 23,000
Notting Hill Gate 271,000
Sloane Square 216,000
South Kensington 402,000
(Note: Figures unavailable for Kensington Olympia and West Brompton)

CITY OF WESTMINSTER
TOTAL: £10,324,000

Baker Street 337,000
Bayswater 100,000
Bond Street 418,000
Charing Cross NR 861,000
Charing Cross 195,000
Covent Garden 243,000
Edgware Road 165,000
Embankment 244,000
Great Portland St 86,000
Green Park 315,000
Hyde Park Corner 87,000
Lancaster Gate 82,000
Leicester Square 465,000
Maida Vale 43,000
Marble Arch 250,000
Marylebone NR 203,000
Marylebone LU 73,000
Oxford Circus 862,000
Paddington NR 636,000
Paddington LU 301,000
Piccadilly Circus 457,000
Pimlico 103,000
Queensway 131,000
Regents Park 43,000
Royal Oak 28,000
St James's Park 117,000
St Johns Wood 70,000
Temple 95,000
Tottenham Court Rd 441,000
Victoria NR 1,562,000
Victoria 982,000
Warwick Avenue 58,000
Westbourne Park 51,000
Westminster 220,000