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Forgot that I didn't have a pass on 19-25 m-card

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TrainTick

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Hi

So I recently got onto a train from Huddersfield to Dewsbury. The gates at Huddersfield were open and so I didn't scan my card. When I got to Dewsbury, I tried scanning my card thinking that I had a pass on it. However, it had expired. I was stopped by the officer who then took my details and confiscated my card. He said I was going to receive a letter in the post in a couple of weeks. This is my first offence. I think the company is Transpennine Express and Northern Railway.

Anyone know what could happen? I am panicking now.

Thanks
 
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ForTheLoveOf

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Hi

So I recently got onto a train from Huddersfield to Dewsbury. The gates at Huddersfield were open and so I didn't scan my card. When I got to Dewsbury, I tried scanning my card thinking that I had a pass on it. However, it had expired. I was stopped by the officer who then took my details and confiscated my card. He said I was going to receive a letter in the post in a couple of weeks. This is my first offence. I think the company is Transpennine Express and Northern Railway.

Anyone know what could happen? I am panicking now.

Thanks
What kind of ticket/card were you using? Was it a Railcard-discounted ticket? Did you have a valid and in-date Railcard if so?
 

30907

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A 19-25 mCard is a discounted West Yorks mCard. It has to be loaded with a (day or season) ticket valid at the time of use. A bit like having a Day Travelcard or Travelcard Season on Oyster.

The OP failed to have a valid ticket or to scan the card at Huddersfield.
 

Fawkes Cat

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Hi


Anyone know what could happen? I am panicking now.

Thanks

(this is a slightly edited version of what I have posted in another thread to someone who had a similar problem, but I think that it fits your situation as well)

There are essentially three things that the railway could do:
- decide that you have made a mistake, and they will say no more about it
- decide that whether you made a mistake or were meaning to pay less than you should, the best solution is to ask you to settle out of court: that would mean they would ask you to pay the train fare that you should have paid and the costs that they have incurred in having to look at your case (so this will come to an amount of around £100, or maybe more)*
- decide that you have done the wrong thing, and take you to court. This could result in a fine, plus 'victim surcharge' (the cost of the ticket you should have bought), plus a court fee. Depending on what you are charged with, it could also result in a criminal record.

All of these are possible outcomes. My feeling is that the most likely is the railway offering you the chance to settle out of court, so start saving now to pay them!

Try not to worry too much: the worst that can plausibly happen is that you will receive a fine and a (minor) criminal record: you won't be sent to prison and a small black mark on a criminal record rarely stops you getting a job, although it may mean the occasional embarrassing conversation with an employer explaining what happened and why something will show up on a DBS check.

So wait for the railway to come back to you. When that happens, we should be able to give some more suggestions of what you should do.

* It seems to me that there's also a possibility that you could be charged a 'penalty fare' but (a) this amounts to much the same thing (it's more than the fare you should have paid but less than you would pay at court, and doesn't risk producing a criminal record) (b) I would have expected that to have been done at the time (c) I'm not sure what impact your intending to have used an M-Card (instead of an 'ordinary' railway ticket) would have had on the use of a penalty fare.
 
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TrainTick

New Member
Joined
13 Jun 2018
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(this is a slightly edited version of what I have posted in another thread to someone who had a similar problem, but I think that it fits your situation as well)

There are essentially three things that the railway could do:
- decide that you have made a mistake, and they will say no more about it
- decide that whether you made a mistake or were meaning to pay less than you should, the best solution is to ask you to settle out of court: that would mean they would ask you to pay the train fare that you should have paid and the costs that they have incurred in having to look at your case (so this will come to an amount of around £100, or maybe more)*
- decide that you have done the wrong thing, and take you to court. This could result in a fine, plus 'victim surcharge' (the cost of the ticket you should have bought), plus a court fee. Depending on what you are charged with, it could also result in a criminal record.

All of these are possible outcomes. My feeling is that the most likely is the railway offering you the chance to settle out of court, so start saving now to pay them!

Try not to worry too much: the worst that can plausibly happen is that you will receive a fine and a (minor) criminal record: you won't be sent to prison and a small black mark on a criminal record rarely stops you getting a job, although it may mean the occasional embarrassing conversation with an employer explaining what happened and why something will show up on a DBS check.

So wait for the railway to come back to you. When that happens, we should be able to give some more suggestions of what you should do.

* It seems to me that there's also a possibility that you could be charged a 'penalty fare' but (a) this amounts to much the same thing (it's more than the fare you should have paid but less than you would pay at court, and doesn't risk producing a criminal record) (b) I would have expected that to have been done at the time (c) I'm not sure what impact your intending to have used an M-Card (instead of an 'ordinary' railway ticket) would have had on the use of a penalty fare.


So if it was to be out of court, would that give me a criminal record?
 

Fawkes Cat

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So if it was to be out of court, would that give me a criminal record?
No. You only get a criminal record if you go to court, and you are convicted.

(Actually, that's not quite true: if the railway takes you to court and charges you under the railway bye-laws (and you are convicted) then you still don't get a criminal record. And more generally away from the railway if the police caution you for an offence rather than taking you to court, that will show up on a DBS check. But for most purposes, my short answer works.)
 
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