My 21yr old son ( who has Aspergers Syndrome ) was stopped and given a Travel Incident Report by Northern ( by Arriva ) a couple of weeks ago and has just received a letter requesting his version of events which we are about to complete and return.
Was hoping to seek the advice of the community regarding the possible outcomes we can expect from this incident ( which I will outline below ) and how to approach our response to the letter.
Here is briefly what happened ( according to the notes my son made )
Date of Incident 04 / 06 / 19
Detail of journey - Sankey for Penketh to Manchester Piccadilly ( though planned final destination was Manchester Oxford Rd )
He arrived at Sankey Station to catch the 8.20 am train to Warrington Central. As he arrived quite late ( and the ticket office is located on the Liverpool bound side of the Station ) he decided to board the train and purchase his ticket from the Inspector en route ( something he has done previously when he worked in Manchester )
He did not encounter an Inspector.
Exited the train at Warrington Central ( one stop down ) and waited for his connection ( 8.55 to Manchester Oxford Rd )
Once again, he did not encounter an Inspector.
A friend of his joined him on the train at Padgate Station ( the next stop down ) and they continued on to Manchester Oxford Rd.
Again, no Inspector.
Upon arriving at Manchester Oxford Rd, he intended to purchase the ticket for his journey ( again, something he had successfully done previously when not able to purchase ticket at start of / during his journey )
However, he and his friend realised that Manchester Piccadilly actually got them closer to their actual destination, and a train to Piccadilly was already in the station, and so they got onto that train ( this was either the 9.39 or 9.43 train - he's not sure which ).
Upon arriving at Manchester Piccadilly he approached what he thought was an Inspector and asked if he could purchase his ticket as he hadn't been able to up to that point.
He was asked by this Officer ( and I quote ) " Where have you come from" ? …..and this is where my sons' Aspergers made an unwelcome appearance.
Clearly the Officer meant " Where did you start your journey " but my sons condition means he sometimes misses "sub-text".
So to the question " Where have you come from" ? , my son answered "Manchester Oxford Road" ( which was where he had JUST come from)
Of course, the officer knew he couldn't have got onto Oxford Rd station with out a ticket and pointed this out to my son who then realised the mistake he had made and panicked ( thinking that the Officer might think he was deliberately giving false info) and told the Officer he had come from Warrington. ( again, not a deliberate lie - just a panic reaction …..we live in Great Sankey which is part of Warrington )
The officer then directed him to the ticket booth where he purchased a ticket for a journey from Warrington Central to Manchester Piccadilly. ( another genuine mistake caused by his panicked /stressed state …..his most frequent journey when he worked in Manchester was from Warrington Central and he believes he said it out of habit / without thinking ).
When he showed the ticket to the Officer on his way out of the station, the Officer again pointed out to him that he couldn't have got on at Warrington Central Station without purchasing a ticket....my son finally realised that the Officer wanted to know where he started his journey and told him he had got on at Great Sankey
At this point the Officer informed him that due to him stating multiple different starting locations he was raising the Travel Incident Report.
Sorry that was so long winded.
There was never any intention to avoid paying his fare - he was trying to pay for his ticket when the incident occurred.
There was also no deliberate attempt to be deceptive regarding his starting point OR to short fare by purchasing a ticket from a different point of origin.
It is easy to understand why the Officer thought he was being untruthful and became suspicious due to his first answer but, had the question been phrased differently my sons answer would have been very different and he would have probably negotiated this situation more successfully ( not trying to blame the Officer at all here …..Aspergers can make social interactions very difficult - even when you know the person has it )
Based on the above, can anyone advise what action he is likely to face and how we might approach Northern By Arriva to settle this matter.
Thanks
Porcytree
Was hoping to seek the advice of the community regarding the possible outcomes we can expect from this incident ( which I will outline below ) and how to approach our response to the letter.
Here is briefly what happened ( according to the notes my son made )
Date of Incident 04 / 06 / 19
Detail of journey - Sankey for Penketh to Manchester Piccadilly ( though planned final destination was Manchester Oxford Rd )
He arrived at Sankey Station to catch the 8.20 am train to Warrington Central. As he arrived quite late ( and the ticket office is located on the Liverpool bound side of the Station ) he decided to board the train and purchase his ticket from the Inspector en route ( something he has done previously when he worked in Manchester )
He did not encounter an Inspector.
Exited the train at Warrington Central ( one stop down ) and waited for his connection ( 8.55 to Manchester Oxford Rd )
Once again, he did not encounter an Inspector.
A friend of his joined him on the train at Padgate Station ( the next stop down ) and they continued on to Manchester Oxford Rd.
Again, no Inspector.
Upon arriving at Manchester Oxford Rd, he intended to purchase the ticket for his journey ( again, something he had successfully done previously when not able to purchase ticket at start of / during his journey )
However, he and his friend realised that Manchester Piccadilly actually got them closer to their actual destination, and a train to Piccadilly was already in the station, and so they got onto that train ( this was either the 9.39 or 9.43 train - he's not sure which ).
Upon arriving at Manchester Piccadilly he approached what he thought was an Inspector and asked if he could purchase his ticket as he hadn't been able to up to that point.
He was asked by this Officer ( and I quote ) " Where have you come from" ? …..and this is where my sons' Aspergers made an unwelcome appearance.
Clearly the Officer meant " Where did you start your journey " but my sons condition means he sometimes misses "sub-text".
So to the question " Where have you come from" ? , my son answered "Manchester Oxford Road" ( which was where he had JUST come from)
Of course, the officer knew he couldn't have got onto Oxford Rd station with out a ticket and pointed this out to my son who then realised the mistake he had made and panicked ( thinking that the Officer might think he was deliberately giving false info) and told the Officer he had come from Warrington. ( again, not a deliberate lie - just a panic reaction …..we live in Great Sankey which is part of Warrington )
The officer then directed him to the ticket booth where he purchased a ticket for a journey from Warrington Central to Manchester Piccadilly. ( another genuine mistake caused by his panicked /stressed state …..his most frequent journey when he worked in Manchester was from Warrington Central and he believes he said it out of habit / without thinking ).
When he showed the ticket to the Officer on his way out of the station, the Officer again pointed out to him that he couldn't have got on at Warrington Central Station without purchasing a ticket....my son finally realised that the Officer wanted to know where he started his journey and told him he had got on at Great Sankey
At this point the Officer informed him that due to him stating multiple different starting locations he was raising the Travel Incident Report.
Sorry that was so long winded.
There was never any intention to avoid paying his fare - he was trying to pay for his ticket when the incident occurred.
There was also no deliberate attempt to be deceptive regarding his starting point OR to short fare by purchasing a ticket from a different point of origin.
It is easy to understand why the Officer thought he was being untruthful and became suspicious due to his first answer but, had the question been phrased differently my sons answer would have been very different and he would have probably negotiated this situation more successfully ( not trying to blame the Officer at all here …..Aspergers can make social interactions very difficult - even when you know the person has it )
Based on the above, can anyone advise what action he is likely to face and how we might approach Northern By Arriva to settle this matter.
Thanks
Porcytree