Alleged short faring - Thameslink

[Adooli]

Hi everyone,


I recently had an incident while traveling with Thameslink, and I'm looking for some advice about how best to proceed.

I had a valid ticket from station X to station Y, which I bought during or very shortly before the journey ended. The barriers at station X were open, so the ticket wasn't scanned there. When I arrived at my destination (Y), the barcode scanner wasn't working, prompting a Thameslink inspector to check my ticket. He noted that the ticket was purchased very recently and hadn't been validated at the start. I confirmed station X as my departure point, provided my accurate personal details, but the inspector was very suspicious. Eventually, he let me go, saying I'd receive a letter and mentioned involvement of the fraud team.

For context, I regularly travel on this line and have about 6-8 other journeys recorded from X to Y, and even more frequent journeys between stations A and Y which is much longer.

When the letter arrives, what is my best approach?

Should I maintain my position that I only traveled within the areas covered by my ticket (as there's no direct proof otherwise), clarify that the ticket was genuinely bought late due to open barriers, and apologise for any confusion or inconvenience caused?

Or, should I consider admitting guilt to short-faring, even if that's not exactly the situation, just to quickly resolve the matter and avoid potential complications?


Thanks in advance!

 

[simonw]

Hi everyone,


I recently had an incident while traveling with Thameslink, and I'm looking for some advice about how best to proceed.

I had a valid ticket from station X to station Y, which I bought during or very shortly before the journey ended. The barriers at station X were open, so the ticket wasn't scanned there. When I arrived at my destination (Y), the barcode scanner wasn't working, prompting a Thameslink inspector to check my ticket. He noted that the ticket was purchased very recently and hadn't been validated at the start. I confirmed station X as my departure point, provided my accurate personal details, but the inspector was very suspicious. Eventually, he let me go, saying I'd receive a letter and mentioned involvement of the fraud team.

For context, I regularly travel on this line and have about 6-8 other journeys recorded from X to Y, and even more frequent journeys between stations A and Y which is much longer.

When the letter arrives, what is my best approach?

Should I maintain my position that I only traveled within the areas covered by my ticket (as there's no direct proof otherwise), clarify that the ticket was genuinely bought late due to open barriers, and apologise for any confusion or inconvenience caused?

Or, should I consider admitting guilt to short-faring, even if that's not exactly the situation, just to quickly resolve the matter and avoid potential complications?


Thanks in advance!

You should admit to doing whatever you actually did.

 

[Gloster]

Hi everyone,


I recently had an incident while traveling with Thameslink, and I'm looking for some advice about how best to proceed.

I had a valid ticket from station X to station Y, which I bought during or very shortly before the journey ended. The barriers at station X were open, so the ticket wasn't scanned there. When I arrived at my destination (Y), the barcode scanner wasn't working, prompting a Thameslink inspector to check my ticket. He noted that the ticket was purchased very recently and hadn't been validated at the start. I confirmed station X as my departure point, provided my accurate personal details, but the inspector was very suspicious. Eventually, he let me go, saying I'd receive a letter and mentioned involvement of the fraud team.

For context, I regularly travel on this line and have about 6-8 other journeys recorded from X to Y, and even more frequent journeys between stations A and Y which is much longer.

When the letter arrives, what is my best approach?

Should I maintain my position that I only traveled within the areas covered by my ticket (as there's no direct proof otherwise), clarify that the ticket was genuinely bought late due to open barriers, and apologise for any confusion or inconvenience caused?

Or, should I consider admitting guilt to short-faring, even if that's not exactly the situation, just to quickly resolve the matter and avoid potential complications?


Thanks in advance!

Presumably the ticket couldn’t have been scanned at X because you hadn’t yet bought it.

 

[Snow1964]

Just to be clear, did you actually travel from X, or had you got on before X (without having a ticket) and then continued on the train to somewhere between X and destination Y before buying a ticket for last part of your journey.

Also do you live or work at X, or do you have an address nearer another station (which might not have barriers or regular ticket checks) which would make any investigator suspicious.

It is much easier to help, if the full truthful version is clear, not some I didn't mean to get caught story

 

[toffeedanish]

I am not clear whether a letter will refer to potential short-faring, or for buying after the commencement of a journey where there was opportunity to do so beforehand.

The OP seems not to realise that the latter is an offence?

 

[minderbinder]

Hi everyone,


I recently had an incident while traveling with Thameslink, and I'm looking for some advice about how best to proceed.

I had a valid ticket from station X to station Y, which I bought during or very shortly before the journey ended. The barriers at station X were open, so the ticket wasn't scanned there. When I arrived at my destination (Y), the barcode scanner wasn't working, prompting a Thameslink inspector to check my ticket. He noted that the ticket was purchased very recently and hadn't been validated at the start. I confirmed station X as my departure point, provided my accurate personal details, but the inspector was very suspicious. Eventually, he let me go, saying I'd receive a letter and mentioned involvement of the fraud team.

For context, I regularly travel on this line and have about 6-8 other journeys recorded from X to Y, and even more frequent journeys between stations A and Y which is much longer.

When the letter arrives, what is my best approach?

Should I maintain my position that I only traveled within the areas covered by my ticket (as there's no direct proof otherwise), clarify that the ticket was genuinely bought late due to open barriers, and apologise for any confusion or inconvenience caused?

Or, should I consider admitting guilt to short-faring, even if that's not exactly the situation, just to quickly resolve the matter and avoid potential complications?


Thanks in advance!

In buying a ticket after boarding the train, you have committed an offence (unless there were no ticket facilities at the station at which you alighted boarded). Thameslink have the right to prosecute you and, if they were to do so, you would be found guilty.

Regarding the short-faring, of course you should not admit to any offence you have not committed.

As you are looking for advice, it would probably be more useful to the experts on the forum if you were a little more forthcoming about what stations you were actually travelling to, and from. And, when the time comes, uploading any correspondence you receive.

 

[John R]

It would be very helpful to know A,X and Y. If X is a known favourite for those short faring (eg Wembley Stadium) then I suspect you would have to be able to provide fairly compelling evidence as to why the tickets purchased from there were not short fares.

 

[Haywain]

In buying a ticket after boarding the train, you have committed an offence (unless there were no ticket facilities at the station ant which you alighted boarded).

Corrected for you.

 

[minderbinder]

Corrected for you.

Much appreciated. I’ve edited my post so as not to mislead anyone reading it.

 

[Skimpot flyer]

For the best advice, you need to come clean about the stations concerned.

If Station A is the closest one to your home address, do you think GTR/Thameslink will believe you travelled to Station X by some other means, to make a journey from X to Y ?

The barriers being open is something of a red herring, I’m afraid. You committed an offence by not being in possession of a valid ticket (or tapping-in on the readers) prior to boarding , even if your journey was only from X to Y.

 

[Hadders]

GTR will normally settle these sort of cases out of court as long as you co-operate with them. My advice is to be truthful with them because it is very easy for them to prosecute you if they feel you are essing them around.

 

[Adooli]

Thank you very much. Once I get the letter I will post it here along with my reply apologizing and fessing up to short faring.
I wonder the fact that I did not confess to the inspector at the station how that would fare up. He also read me my right similar to a police officer would i.e. hurt my defence etc. What is the significance of that?
Many thanks.

 

[Haywain]

He also read me my right similar to a police officer would i.e. hurt my defence etc. What is the significance of that?

He cautioned you, which means that the answers you gave to his subsequent questions are admissable in court and can form part of the evidence against you. It's no big deal.

 

[WesternLancer]

Thank you very much. Once I get the letter I will post it here along with my reply apologizing and fessing up to short faring.
I wonder the fact that I did not confess to the inspector at the station how that would fare up. He also read me my right similar to a police officer would i.e. hurt my defence etc. What is the significance of that?
Many thanks.

Standard procedure. Esp if you started with some sort of lie as inspector needs to cover off an eventuality where they may need to prosecute. But you can avoid that by co operating going forwards