Hi everyone,
I travelled the other day from Hitchin to Kings Cross on a carnet ticket. I wrote the date on at home quickly and shoved the pen in my coat pocket as I was in a rush. The ticket passed through the barrier and I got on the train. The ticket inspector came round checking tickets and I started searching for my ticket. Whilst he was dealing with another person, I found my ticket and then I gave this to the ticket inspector. My coat was folded up next to me with the pen I had used earlier to write my ticket poking out. The inspector then said I wrote the date on whilst his back was turned to which I replied that I did not.
The ticket inspector then smudged the ink on the ticket so that it wiped off. I refused to pay a penalty fine and so he took down details and interviewed me under caution. He asked if I wrote the date on when his back was turned, I said I didn't. He asked if I tried to avoid paying the fare, I said I didn't. He asked something about the pen being next to me and I had just used it to write the date on, I said I didn't.
I then added as my final comments that if I was trying to avoid paying the fare, then why would I have passed my ticket through the barrier at Hitchin station. I also added that when my ticket was given to him, there was a date on it, and that it was easy to wipe dates off carnet tickets regardless of when the date was written on due to the type of paper and texture of the ticket is made from.
I was told it would take a week to hear something but I could send off anything else I wished to add in the mean time. I was perfectly polite to him as I actually found the incident quite amusing, considering how annoyed he looked!
I'm not quite sure how to proceed with this - I've seen posts about 'forensic inspections' of tickets and even if the date was wiped off, it would've left an indent with the correct date that I put down before I boarded. Surely this is just a case of my word against his? I don't know if I should send off something else before I get anything in the post from them or if I should wait? What are my options and peoples thoughts?
I travelled the other day from Hitchin to Kings Cross on a carnet ticket. I wrote the date on at home quickly and shoved the pen in my coat pocket as I was in a rush. The ticket passed through the barrier and I got on the train. The ticket inspector came round checking tickets and I started searching for my ticket. Whilst he was dealing with another person, I found my ticket and then I gave this to the ticket inspector. My coat was folded up next to me with the pen I had used earlier to write my ticket poking out. The inspector then said I wrote the date on whilst his back was turned to which I replied that I did not.
The ticket inspector then smudged the ink on the ticket so that it wiped off. I refused to pay a penalty fine and so he took down details and interviewed me under caution. He asked if I wrote the date on when his back was turned, I said I didn't. He asked if I tried to avoid paying the fare, I said I didn't. He asked something about the pen being next to me and I had just used it to write the date on, I said I didn't.
I then added as my final comments that if I was trying to avoid paying the fare, then why would I have passed my ticket through the barrier at Hitchin station. I also added that when my ticket was given to him, there was a date on it, and that it was easy to wipe dates off carnet tickets regardless of when the date was written on due to the type of paper and texture of the ticket is made from.
I was told it would take a week to hear something but I could send off anything else I wished to add in the mean time. I was perfectly polite to him as I actually found the incident quite amusing, considering how annoyed he looked!
I'm not quite sure how to proceed with this - I've seen posts about 'forensic inspections' of tickets and even if the date was wiped off, it would've left an indent with the correct date that I put down before I boarded. Surely this is just a case of my word against his? I don't know if I should send off something else before I get anything in the post from them or if I should wait? What are my options and peoples thoughts?