Caught short faring. Please help with advice.

[Domino2012]

Hi everyone,

I have been reading plenty of similar stories on this thread and want to share my experience to-date.

Firstly, some background. I travel from witham to Stratford with Greater Anglia twice a week for work. I have a Network Railcard but do not, unfortunately, quality for a young-persons or 25-30 railcard anymore meaning my costs to travel are c.£34/day for a return trip.
Money has been tight recently and I was trying to save for my wedding this year. With what i can only describe as horrible judgement and, because I thought I was clever, i decided to buy tickets from witham to Shenfield and tap in at stratford to continue my journey which saves me roughly £20/day in fares.

I was caught last week at Stratford. At first I panicked and told a bunch of lies including a fake name. Eventually came clear about everything but my name (i know that’s super stupid) and I was compliant with the person who questioned me, showing trainline statements and tickets for proof. I showed full history on my trainline account which showed that I have been short faring since June last year and they wrote that down.
I worry I misled them by hiding my real name and that this could be the reason i am taken to court.
They have all the correct details for my trainline account, address and email but i was so ashamed to come clean on my name. the amount of times I had done this, albeit completely unintentionally. The lady was very reassuring that it won’t come to court and I will be contacted by a team to settle the amount i have evaded paying but after reading threads on here i am really panicking that because i gave a wrong name and they will clearly see what my real name is on my trainline account, they will take me to court.
I am so sorry for what i’ve done and ready to take full responsibility and settle but the thought of going to court is very scary because i may lose my job if this goes on my DBS record.

I was stupid and desperate to save money (no excuse, I know). I'm also, obviously, hoping for an out of court settlement.

I have come to this form for some form of support but to also ask a couple of questions that may help me 'relax' a bit over the situation;

1. Would the mismatch in names cause more harm and erase my chances at ‘out of court settlement’?
2. Is the fact that I may have to a degree intentionally misled the inspector in my panic going to go against me?
3. What is the usual waiting time before the first email is received?
4. I’ve seen some comment regarding certain train companies being more forgiving than others- any insight into how GA deals with such cases?

Any help here would be appreciated and of course, happy to answer any questions you may have. D

 

[John R]

Welcome to the forum. As you probably realise you’ve committed fare evasion on an industrial scale, so at the very least this is going to be a very expensive exercise, even if you are offered an out of court settlement.

In answer to your questions, railway stafff will be used to people being evasive and giving the wrong answer when caught, so whilst it is not helpful to your case, it may not be the deciding factor in terms their approach. How you respond from now on is very important too, in terms of being honest and cooperative.

In terms of waiting time, it sounds as though they will have to do some investigation into your past ticket purchases, which might mean a bit of a delay, but all you can do is wait I’m afraid.

I can’t comment on GA’s general philosophy in these cases - arguably if they don’t prosecute you then when would they, given the scale of the evasion.

Finally, if you are offered a settlement , they will no doubt seek to recover all the fares evaded. This could, at its most penal, be based on single fares (£21) for each journey taken, with no offset for the fare paid. That is likely to run into four figures, and they will give you a very short and non-negotiable deadline to pay, so worth working out how much that could be and make sure you have it to hand.

 

[WesternLancer]

1. What is the usual waiting time before the first email is received?

Just on this be aware that they may not contact you by e-mail but by formal hard copy post (you say you gave them a correct address but the wrong name so you need to watch out for post sent in the name you gave). I guess you need to watch out for hard copy post, e-mail and potentially e-mail that goes to your spam.

It's vital you reply and engage with them when they contact you. Correcting your name can be part of your response and apology, as mentioned by @Brissle Girl many people will do this so they will be used to it, but being clear and honest with them going forwards will hopefully help.

 

[Islineclear3_1]

This could go two ways: 1) you'll be prosecuted for fraud (which is the most serious) or 2), you'll be offered an out of court settlement

Either way, you'll need to wait for a written letter to arrive. You may also want to start saving as an out of court settlement is likely to be at least 3 figures....

 

[SuspectUsual]

This could go two ways: 1) you'll be prosecuted for fraud (which is the most serious) or 2), you'll be offered an out of court settlement

Either way, you'll need to wait for a written letter to arrive. You may also want to start saving as an out of court settlement is likely to be at least 3 figures....

There are more than two options here. A fraud prosecution is only one avenue that could be taken in court; there are also RORA or Bylaw related charges. Obviously the fraud route is most serious because it can result in a custodial sentence, but we see it very infrequently

If the short faring has been going on for as long as the OP describes, if - big if - an out of court settlement is offered I would expect it to be into four figures, not three

 

[Domino2012]

There are more than two options here. A fraud prosecution is only one avenue that could be taken in court; there are also RORA or Bylaw related charges. Obviously the fraud route is most serious because it can result in a custodial sentence, but we see it very infrequently

If the short faring has been going on for as long as the OP describes, if - big if - an out of court settlement is offered I would expect it to be into four figures, not three

Thanks for your response. What is RORA or Bylaw related charges?

 

[SuspectUsual]

Thanks for your response. What is RORA or Bylaw related charges?

RORA = regulation of railways act. The penalties are more serious than the Bylaws, but there is a requirement for the prosecution to prove the offence was committed deliberatel

Bylaws = the railway bylaws. The most commonly used offences under the bylaws are strict liability, ie no need to prove intent, you’re judged purely on your actions (a bit like being zapped by a speed camera going 35 in a 30, doesn’t matter if you didn’t mean to do it)

 

[John R]

If the short faring has been going on for as long as the OP describes, if - big if - an out of court settlement is offered I would expect it to be into four figures, not three

Absolutely. If the OP commutes 5 days a week it could, at worst, be calculated at around £210 for each complete week, together with an admin fee.

 

[Haywain]

Any help here would be appreciated and of course, happy to answer any questions you may have. D

Won't your Trainline account be in your real name? That would rather highlight that you gave a false name. Other than that, which company stopped you - this could have a significant effect on what happens next?

 

[WesternLancer]

Absolutely. If the OP commutes 5 days a week it could, at worst, be calculated at around £210 for each complete week, together with an admin fee.

The OP states they go to work twice a week.

I travel from witham to Stratford with Greater Anglia twice a week for work.

Apols if I missed it but I don't think the OP states how long they have been doing this pattern of evasion. Of course no need to state it here - they can work out the the sums they have evaded, which as you say, will be the sort of figure the railway will be looking for - and can work out by checking the OP's on line purchase record where they can see the pattern and how long it has gone on for.

As pointed out to me in post #11 - this commenced last June

 

[SuspectUsual]

Apols if I missed it but I don't think the OP states how long they have been doing this pattern of evasion

I showed full history on my trainline account which showed that I have been short faring since June last year and they wrote that down

 

[WesternLancer]

Many thanks @SteveM70 ! Apols for missing it

 

[John R]

The OP states they go to work twice a week

Thanks for clarifying - at least that will make any settlement more manageable.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

So, what's the OP potentially looking at coughing up, even if they are able to negotiate a so-called "out of court settlement"?

Maybe up to 30 weeks (since June last year) x 4 single journeys per week (one return journey = 2 single journeys) x £12.10 (Anytime Day Single fare if perhaps calculated for the part of the journey from Shenfield to Stratford).

Plus at least a three figure sum on top towards the train company's investigation and admin fees?

So, potentially, well over a grand? Ouch! Expensive!

 

[Domino2012]

Won't your Trainline account be in your real name? That would rather highlight that you gave a false name. Other than that, which company stopped you - this could have a significant effect on what happens next?

Hi, that’s correct, my trainline acc is in my real name which is why I raised this point. I think when i receive contact in my response I would clarify what my real name is to set the record straight.
I can’t remember what company stopped me as there were two officers ( man and a woman) and felt quite intimidated initially which is why i mumbled a bunch of lies in my panic. So i can’t recall if they even mentioned it, i remember one of them showed me a badge.
Seems like my best option is to continue being open and cooperative and hope for ‘out of court settlement’. Like i said i’m happy to take full responsibility and pay whatever fine comes. I’m just hoping I won’t be taken to court as that will destroy my career potentially.

 

[Haywain]

I think when i receive contact in my response I would clarify what my real name is to set the record straight.

I think that would be an appropriate course of action, and I doubt it will count against you by much because it's a trivial matter when looked at alongside your fare evasion.

I can’t remember what company stopped me

I think we should hope that it was Greater Anglia, because Transport for London tend not to offer out of court settlements. However, you will have to wait for a letter to arrive to establish who you are dealing with.

 

[furlong]

"The lady was very reassuring that it won’t come to court and I will be contacted by a team to settle the amount i have evaded "

I doubt that anyone at TfL would have said that, so it's almost certainly GA. In practice they normally offer a settlement if nothing else because it's a more efficient use of their time - there are so many people doing this now, the less time they spend dealing with you, the more time they have to catch more people. As long as you co-operate from now on and correct the name at the first opportunity, that's unlikely to make any difference.

 

[Domino2012]

Hi all, I received the letter from GA and have attached it with details redacted.
I have also drafted a response below. Would be great if someone can proof read it and advise if it’s in good shape to be sent.


Response:

I am responding to the letter dated 5th February 2024, regarding the notice I received on the 25th of January and the subsequent investigations into this incident.

First I would like to make a correction to a couple of details:

• the letter arrived at number xx (next door). I live on number xx so just wanted to make sure that is captured correctly for any future correspondence.
• During the time I was questioned by the GA member of staff I was very anxious and stressed and due to that and bad lapse in judgement I made up a different name. My actual name is xxx. This corresponds to my Trainline account and my rail card.

I acknowledge that on the 25th of January, I travelled without a valid ticket for the entirety of my journey, and I also further admitted to the member of staff that this was not the first time I did this.

Additionally, I have looked at my purchasing history and tried to provide an estimate of the times I have committed this offense. Between March 2023– 25 Jan 2024, I have identified 55 days where I believe I did not pay the full correct fare. I trust you have done your own investigation, and I am open to that too.

I want to sincerely apologise for my actions, understanding the gravity of the situation and its impact on Greater Anglia’s railway service.

I am also remorseful for the unfairness of my actions especially as it is a burden to those who diligently pay their fares.


I am truly ashamed, and want to take full responsibility. It’s not an excuse by any means but the last 12 months have brought great financial burden to my family which is why I felt the need to cut corners and made such a bad judgment.

I have learned a lot from this incident, and want to assure you I now understand how evading fares impacts the service and incurs additional costs.

I have since taken corrective measures to ensure this does not repeat. I have consistently purchased valid tickets for my journeys and will continue to do so.

I would be very grateful if you would consider offering a settlement to avoid any court action, covering the outstanding fares and administrative costs as quoted by Greater Anglia.

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

 

[furlong]

If you've worked out it was 55 times, attach the detailed list to your letter.

 

[ikcdab]

the letter reads well to me. You have admitted to the additional offences, so you just now need to wait for their response.

 

[Domino2012]

Thank you! I will send the email and await their reply.