Fare Evasion Prosecution TFL.

[lazim_]

In October I was travelling to uni early morning. I tapped at Rectory Road and tapped at Liverpool Street using my cousins 11-15. I am 19. I was stopped by one of the guys from TFL, he took the oyster and asked for my details. I gave incorrect DOB and gave the address of my cousin. It is now January 2020 and I received a prosecution letter for evading £3.60 fare. What can I do to avoid receiving a criminal record as it will impact my chances of going Australia. Also the staff let me out at Liverpool Street, I called my friend and asked him to pick up my oyster card. When he came I used that and tapped to finish my journey to uni and back.

 

[Fawkes Cat]

Welcome to the forum.

There's nothing you can do that will guarantee that you won't be prosecuted - and from what you say, if you are prosecuted, you will be convicted, which means that you will have a criminal record.

But what you can do is do everything you can to make it easy for TfL to decide they don't need to prosecute you. So you need to make it clear to them that you have learnt your lesson, and will not try to fare-dodge again. You also need to make sure that TfL aren't out of pocket as a result of all of this.

But you need to steel yourself for bad news. On the basis of what you have told us, not only did you use someone else's pass, but when you were caught you lied about it. That means that TfL will start off by thinking that you can't be trusted, so they may not be prepared to agree to an out of court settlement. They may insist on prosecuting you.

What does that mean in practice? It means you need to write to TfL to see if they will agree to an out of court settlement. You need to explain that you know you should not have done what you did: you understand that TfL are entitled to the full fare for every journey that you make and will make sure that you pay it in future, and that you would like to pay the fare that you dodged and the costs that TfL have incurred. And you need to write this letter politely, and make it short.

If you are lucky, TfL may agree to settle. The fare that you dodged won't be very much, but the costs that TfL have already run up will be quite a lot, because it sounds as if they will have contacted your cousin, who will have to have explained that it wasn't them, and then TfL will have to have found you. You will be looking at a settlement of maybe a couple of hundred pounds.

But this will be cheaper than what you will have to pay if you go to court: there's another thread on this forum where someone was given a conditional an absolute discharge* (so they were found guilty but didn't have to pay a fine) but also had to pay court fees of £255. If you are fined, that will be on top of the court fees. So even if TfL won't settle the first time you write to them, write to them again at every opportunity. If the case goes to court, then try talking to the prosecutor before the case is called: sometimes it is possible - even at the very last minute - to agree an out of court settlement.

But if you can't get TfL to agree a settlement and you are charged a fine, then the fine will be based on your income. If you don't tell the court about your income, they will assume that you are quite well-paid. As a student, I would guess that you don't have a full time job so you're not well-paid. So it's in your interest to find evidence of what income you do have. That means things like bank statements, and (if you do work) payslips, to show what you have coming in.

You are not in a strong position. So you need to be polite to TfL and co-operate with them. You may be lucky and it will work, or you may not be lucky and it won't. Either way, start saving now to pay the settlement or whatever the court charges you.

* edited to correct a brainstorm on my part

 

[lazim_]

Welcome to the forum.

There's nothing you can do that will guarantee that you won't be prosecuted - and from what you say, if you are prosecuted, you will be convicted, which means that you will have a criminal record.

But what you can do is do everything you can to make it easy for TfL to decide they don't need to prosecute you. So you need to make it clear to them that you have learnt your lesson, and will not try to fare-dodge again. You also need to make sure that TfL aren't out of pocket as a result of all of this.

But you need to steel yourself for bad news. On the basis of what you have told us, not only did you use someone else's pass, but when you were caught you lied about it. That means that TfL will start off by thinking that you can't be trusted, so they may not be prepared to agree to an out of court settlement. They may insist on prosecuting you.

What does that mean in practice? It means you need to write to TfL to see if they will agree to an out of court settlement. You need to explain that you know you should not have done what you did: you understand that TfL are entitled to the full fare for every journey that you make and will make sure that you pay it in future, and that you would like to pay the fare that you dodged and the costs that TfL have incurred. And you need to write this letter politely, and make it short.

If you are lucky, TfL may agree to settle. The fare that you dodged won't be very much, but the costs that TfL have already run up will be quite a lot, because it sounds as if they will have contacted your cousin, who will have to have explained that it wasn't them, and then TfL will have to have found you. You will be looking at a settlement of maybe a couple of hundred pounds.

But this will be cheaper than what you will have to pay if you go to court: there's another thread on this forum where someone was given a conditional discharge (so they were found guilty but didn't have to pay a fine) but also had to pay court fees of £255. If you are fined, that will be on top of the court fees. So even if TfL won't settle the first time you write to them, write to them again at every opportunity. If the case goes to court, then try talking to the prosecutor before the case is called: sometimes it is possible - even at the very last minute - to agree an out of court settlement.

But if you can't get TfL to agree a settlement and you are charged a fine, then the fine will be based on your income. If you don't tell the court about your income, they will assume that you are quite well-paid. As a student, I would guess that you don't have a full time job so you're not well-paid. So it's in your interest to find evidence of what income you do have. That means things like bank statements, and (if you do work) payslips, to show what you have coming in.

You are not in a strong position. So you need to be polite to TfL and co-operate with them. You may be lucky and it will work, or you may not be lucky and it won't. Either way, start saving now to pay the settlement or whatever the court charges you.

thank you very much, hopefully it goes well. is there a specific email of tfl i have to contact?

 

[Fawkes Cat]

thank you very much, hopefully it goes well. is there a specific email of tfl i have to contact?

I would expect that there is an address on the letter you received. If they have given an email address, use that. Otherwise, you may have to write and post a paper letter to the address on the letter they sent to you.

 

[Enthusiast]

If you don't tell the court about your income, they will assume that you are quite well-paid.

In fact they will assume that your income is £440pw. If you have no or limited income they will assume an income of £120pw. The usual disposal is half a week's net income, reduced by a third if you plead guilty. As well as that you may pay a "Victim Surcharge" of 10% of the fine (minimum £32) depending on what legislation the prosecution is brought under. However, the crippler is prosecution costs. I don't know about TfL but the National Rail operators usually ask for £150, though the court does have discretion to reduce that amount if you have limited means.

 

[some bloke]

I received a prosecution letter for evading £3.60 fare. What can I do to avoid receiving a criminal record as it will impact my chances of going Australia.

What offence(s) did the letter mention, and what information do you have about requirements for Australia?

You might want to upload a photo of their letter here (with identifying details removed). If you post a draft reply people on here can comment.

 

[some bloke]

I can't immediately see any problem for travel to Australia, as you'd expect a conviction to result in a fine. People from the UK can apply for an electronic Australian ETA visa:

"You must not have any criminal convictions for which you have been sentenced for a total combined period of 12 months or more, whether or not the sentence/s were served."

[click on ETA Conditions tab]
https://australianvisaauthority.org/visa-info/

 

[lazim_]

thats the letter, i only have an image of that as it went to my cousins house

 

[some bloke]

I gave incorrect DOB and gave the address of my cousin.

Did you give the date of birth for a "child" (under 16) or an "adult"? I'm not sure what advice people on here can sensibly give on that apart from telling TfL and the court the right details for date of birth and address.

thats the letter, i only have an image of that as it went to my cousins house

That's a witness statement; what they're prosecuting for (notably whether it includes the more serious charge of "intent to avoid payment") should be clear on the letter.

 

[some bloke]

The Australian government information echoes the organisation above - detailed information is here:

https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-support/meeting-our-requirements/character

...

"You have a substantial criminal record for the purposes of the character test in the Migration Act if you have been:

sentenced to death or imprisonment for life

sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 12 months or more

sentenced to two or more terms of imprisonment (even if served concurrently) where the total is 12 months or more

found by a court to not be fit to plead in relation to an offence but found to
have committed the offence and detained in a facility or institution"

https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-support/glossary#substantial-criminal-record


See also:

https://www.nacro.org.uk/resettleme...n-travelling-to-specific-countries/australia/

https://hub.unlock.org.uk/knowledgebase/travelling-australia/

 

[lazim_]

Did you give the date of birth for a "child" (under 16) or an "adult"? I'm not sure what advice people on here can sensibly give on that apart from telling TfL and the court the right details for date of birth and address.

That's a witness statement; what they're prosecuting for (notably whether it includes the more serious charge of "intent to avoid payment") should be clear on the letter.

i gave dob of 5/11/2001, meaning i would be 18. i dont know what the charge is, since the letter went to my cousins house i only got an image of the statement

 

[some bloke]

i gave dob of 5/11/2001, meaning i would be 18.

OK, so at least you didn't claim to the staff member that you're a "child". Did you give the wrong date so it would look like you were a bit less dishonest in using a "child" ticket, and the wrong address so your family wouldn't know? Again, I can't see it being sensible for people to advise anything other than giving the right details now.

Before writing as @Fawkes Cat suggests, it seems a good idea to see the letter first.

Usually at least one letter is sent asking for the passenger's view before deciding to prosecute - was there previous correspondence? If so, there may be something in it (including anything you've written to them) that influences what you write now. They may be less willing to drop the prosecution on finding out you gave the wrong details.

 

[lazim_]

OK, so at least you didn't claim to the staff member that you're a "child". Did you give the wrong date so it would look like you were a bit less dishonest in using a "child" ticket, and the wrong address so your family wouldn't know? Again, I can't see it being sensible for people to advise anything other than giving the right details now.

To reply to the letter as @Fawkes Cat suggests, it seems a good idea to see it first.

Usually at least one letter is sent asking for the passenger's view before deciding to prosecute - was there previous correspondence? If so, there may be something in it that influences what you write now. They may be less willing to drop the prosecution on finding out you gave the wrong details.

i dont think the address would be much of an issue if i can sort out a settlement and pay them few hundreds, as for my dob it was fairly accurate my actual dob is 05/11/2000. if i do come to terms for a settlement surely my dob and address wouldnt be too much of a concern im hoping?

 

[some bloke]

i dont think the address would be much of an issue if i can sort out a settlement and pay them few hundreds, as for my dob it was fairly accurate my actual dob is 05/11/2000. if i do come to terms for a settlement surely my dob and address wouldnt be too much of a concern im hoping?

The issue isn't so much the wrong information as whether TfL/magistrates think it's evidence supporting the idea that you acted dishonestly, perhaps on more than one occasion, in trying to avoid a fare. TfL may prosecute for "intent" on one occasion, or under a byelaw, and still be influenced in their decision by suspicion of a more serious offence or repeated offences.

 

[lazim_]

im pretty sure it isnt a byelaw, certain its a comviction but i just hope everything works out. thanks for the information

 

[lazim_]

im pretty sure it isnt a byelaw, certain its a comviction but i just hope everything works out. thanks for the information

correction, i just spoke to a solicitor with my cousin present and it is a byelaw

 

[some bloke]

i gave dob of 5/11/2001, meaning i would be 18

The solicitor may have picked up on this - you told the staff member you were 17 at the time of the offence (10 October). TfL have a different approach for people under 18 at the time. So you may have obtained a benefit by giving the wrong date.

content.tfl.gov.uk/revenue-enforcement-and-prosecution-policy.pdf

The staff member wrote that they had checked your details. Again, the solicitor may have clarified what that means.

 

[lazim_]

do i just plead guilty now?

 

[some bloke]

Well, as it stands you know you're being treated as a youth (irrespective of whether that has influenced TfL's decision not to go for the more serious charge) because of a lie.

 

[some bloke]

Or to be pedantic about it:

You've been given reason to believe that you're being wrongly treated as a youth because of a lie.

It's reasonable to expect that you know, if you've understood the TfL document.