Expired 16-25 railcard help

[Alfiewilk]

Hi everyone!

On Feb 2nd of this year I was caught travelling with an expired railcard. This was a genuine mistake as I didn’t know you had to renew them yearly…I thought it just became invalid after I turn 25 after talking to the ticket inspector he took my details and said he won’t issue a fine but he will have to pass my details on still to SWR.

3 and a bit months later I have a letter stating after looking into my case they have sufficient evidence to prosecute me for an offence committed under the ‘railway bylaws or regulation of railways act 1889’

I have 2 options.

Option 1 - pay £1959
Option 2 - request a court hearing.

I am in utter shock that this has happened and they are able to fine me this much money for a genuine mistake. I couldn’t have been more apologetic on the day and renewed my railcard as soon as I could. I do not have the money to pay the fine and don’t want to risk court. Please someone tell me there is something I can do I already spend nearly £400 a month on SWR train tickets a month.

I have tried calling the prosecution department but no answer.

Thank you so much in advance! Not sure if I’m able to post the letter but I will do if some asks and cover my personal details.

 

[Fawkes Cat]

Welcome to the forum! As you thought, it would be helpful to see the letter: if you click on the ‘Attach files’ button when you reply that should let you upload a picture of it.

 

[swt_passenger]

Did they provide a breakdown of the total figure?

Presumably they have been through your previous online purchase history during the period before you were stopped in February?

 

[AlterEgo]

How far out of date was the railcard?

 

[Alfiewilk]

My railcard expired in November 2022

How far out of date was the railcard?

November 2022

 

[AlterEgo]

You have three options:

1) Go to court - not recommended. This will result in you being found guilty of at least a Bylaw offence.
2) Pay the full amount.
3) Accept responsibility, write a letter saying sorry, and your lessons learned, and try to negotiate the fare down to at least the difference between the fares you paid and the undiscounted fare - I recommend this course of action.

Have you audited your own journey history to see exactly which fares were "short"? This is a good place to start.

 

[Fawkes Cat]

Have you audited your own journey history to see exactly which fares were "short"? This is a good place to start.

Also bear in mind that the railway does these sums on the basis of unreduced anytime fares: there's no deduction for the money you have already paid for the 'railcard' tickets that you have already bought. There are arguments about whether this is a fair way to do things or not, but that's how it is.

So try to work out what journeys you have made and see how much that comes to. Then if there's a significant difference from what the railway are asking for, ask them politely for a breakdown of how they came up with their figure.

 

[Haywain]

I already spend nearly £400 a month on SWR train tickets a month.

That will be a discounted £400, I guess. SWR will be looking to recover the full adult fares for these journeys, not the difference between what you'd paid and the full fare. So that's 2 months plus of unpaid fares.

 

[spag23]

One way of looking at the situation is that you have mistakenly deprived the railway of 6 months of Railcard subscription (ie £15). Unfortunately the TOC doesn't have to look at it that way. So don't even suggest it to them!
There are two things you can do in the future to help yourself, and others.
1. Note the expiry of your new card somewhere where it will reliably alert you (and in your response, tell the Company you've done this).
2. Make sure your friends know that - although people are eligible for them till Age 25 - they need to be renewed annually. (You are not the first poster on this forum to misunderstand this!)

 

[island]

I do not have the money to pay the fine and don’t want to risk court.

Unfortunately you don't get to choose "neither", you've skipped the fare for nearly 3 months and SWR have probably audited your purchase history with whatever online retailer you use to calculate the value of the settlement.

It's possible, though I would not say likely, to negotiate the amount downwards. You may need to start saving, borrow, use a credit card etc., because if it goes to court the likely outcome is a bigger fine and a criminal record.

 

[thedbdiboy]

Note that the amount they are asking for is not a 'fine'. It is the amount they have calculated as a settlement to avoid you being taken to court. Only the courts can fine you.

 

[Jim the Jim]

The expiry date is displayed very prominently on both the physical and digital versions of the card so it's not surprising that they might take "I didn't realise when it expired" as an excuse that doesn't wash.

 

[fandroid]

I refer to your post (#5) with a copy of the letter from SWR. Your attempts to anonymise it have failed as your full name is still visible. I suggest deleting it and re-posting it with more red felt-tip applied. You username is a bit obvious too. If you report it, the mods may be able to help you change it.

I'm not sure that anonymity will help your case, but it's usual to adhere to it on this forum.