I once travelled on the 07:37 XC service from Patchway to Bristol Temple Meads, in standard class, buying my ticket at the first opportunity on arrival at Bristol Temple Meads.
I wondered at the time what would have happened if I had travelled in first class, and asked to be sold a first class ticket, given that:
1) Patchway has no purchase facilities whatsoever (so PFs are out of the question);
2) There is no first class fare between Patchway and Bristol Temple Meads, and;
3) The old 1.5 multiplier has been officially abolished
Interestingly, byelaw 19, unlike byelaws 17 and 18, does not contain a formal exception for "no purchase facilities available", meaning that it is arguable that, on weekdays at least, a passenger boarding at Patchway cannot lawfully travel in first class without some form of valid first class ticket (perhaps to a subsequent station), or the permission of the guard.
On Saturdays, where XC offer 'Weekend First' on a 'please sit in first class and wait to be upgraded' basis, I'm not even sure a byelaw 19 prosecution could succeed.
In the case of a fare evasion prosecution, the prosecution would presumably have to demonstrate which fare exactly was "his fare" within the meaning of the RRA, which could be problematic in a case such as this where a passenger was willing to pay the first class fare, whatever it was, albeit that, on weekends, it could be argued that the fare evaded would be the standard class fare plus the advertised £5 upgrade.
