Bought a ticket for a few stops after the station i had entered from

[Rayblaze24]

I was taking the Thames link train from Finsbury Park to Gatwick Airport at around 5am and the barriers for Finsbury Park were open so rather than buy a ticket I just walked thru. I then saw a ticket inspector in the train a few stops after Finsbury Park so I quickly bought tickets from the stop we were at, at the time so not Finsbury Park, to Brighton which ended up only being £7 cheaper. The inspector scanned my ticket and realised what I had done so I told them that I had actually came from Finsbury and didn't buy a ticket because of the open barriers. They took my info and told me they would contact me soon. Will I be taken to court?

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Will I be taken to court?

@Rayblaze24. Welcome to the forum. Yes, you could well be taken to court, where, from what you've told us, there's every chance you'd be found guilty. However, if you engage positively with the train company's investigation team, when you hear from them in due course, you may well be able to negotiate a so-called "out of court" settlement. If offered this, and it's not guaranteed, expect to pay the correct fare payable from Finsbury Park to Gatwick Airport (= £29.30 at the undiscounted Anytime Day Single rate) plus a three figure sum on top, towards their admin and investigation fees. Good luck!

 

[Brissle Girl]

In addition, the investigators may look at your account for any other purchases which look as though they could be short fares. If your trip to Gatwick was a one-off, (as it might be if you were travelling early for a flight) then this might not be an issue. But if it's a journey you do regularly and, as an example, there are "short fare" purchases from Horley to Gatwick to enable you to exit there, then expect these to be queried too.

 

[Hadders]

Welcome to the forum!

Govia Thameslink Railway will write to you at some point int he next few weeks asking for your version of events before they decide how to proceed. Post a copy of the letter in this thread (with any personal details and case reference numbers redacted) along with your draft reply and forum members will be happy to proof read it for you.

GTR are entitled to prosecute you should they decide to do so but they normally offer an out of court settlement to people who co-operate with them and who have not come to their attention before. Expect a settlement to cost around £150 plus the fare avoided.

 

[Rayblaze24]

@Rayblaze24. Welcome to the forum. Yes, you could well be taken to court, where, from what you've told us, there's every chance you'd be found guilty. However, if you engage positively with the train company's investigation team, when you hear from them in due course, you may well be able to negotiate a so-called "out of court" settlement. If offered this, and it's not guaranteed, expect to pay the correct fare payable from Finsbury Park to Gatwick Airport (= £29.30 at the undiscounted Anytime Day Single rate) plus a three figure sum on top, towards their admin and investigation fees. Good luck!

Thank you for the help

In addition, the investigators may look at your account for any other purchases which look as though they could be short fares. If your trip to Gatwick was a one-off, (as it might be if you were travelling early for a flight) then this might not be an issue. But if it's a journey you do regularly and, as an example, there are "short fare" purchases from Horley to Gatwick to enable you to exit there, then expect these to be queried too.

I've been purchasing tickets from Thames link every other weekend and most are long trips are not usually to Gatwick

Welcome to the forum!

Govia Thameslink Railway will write to you at some point int he next few weeks asking for your version of events before they decide how to proceed. Post a copy of the letter in this thread (with any personal details and case reference numbers redacted) along with your draft reply and forum members will be happy to proof read it for you.

GTR are entitled to prosecute you should they decide to do so but they normally offer an out of court settlement to people who co-operate with them and who have not come to their attention before. Expect a settlement to cost around £150 plus the fare avoided.

Thank you so much, I'll post it here when I do receive it

 

[Mcr Warrior]

I've been purchasing tickets from Thames link every other weekend and most are long trips are not usually to Gatwick

That should be fine, unless there's any hint of short-faring, for example, trips ostensibly from (say) Burgess Hill to just Brighton, or from Foxton to Cambridge which might have been made having boarded a train in London.

 

[TrainLover79]

I was taking the Thames link train from Finsbury Park to Gatwick Airport at around 5am and the barriers for Finsbury Park were open so rather than buy a ticket I just walked thru. I then saw a ticket inspector in the train a few stops after Finsbury Park so I quickly bought tickets from the stop we were at, at the time so not Finsbury Park, to Brighton which ended up only being £7 cheaper. The inspector scanned my ticket and realised what I had done so I told them that I had actually came from Finsbury and didn't buy a ticket because of the open barriers. They took my info and told me they would contact me soon. Will I be taken to court?

After they scanned your tickets, what “info” did they ask for ? It’s very important that you have given the correct details