Help needed to draft letter - Travelling on an altered railcard

[aforamazon]

Hello everyone,

I would really appreciate some advice as this seems like a helpful community. I have been ridden with anxiety considering I made a grave error of judgement and quite frankly, something very silly.

The incident:
My railcard expired on 19th September

On 16/12/24, I travelled from Sheffield to Mossley (Manchester) on a TPE ticket I purchased with said expired railcard. I edited the date on a screenshot I had of the railcard and presented this to the official when asked and she scanned it and realised it had expired. She questioned me and I admitted I had edited it. She then gave me a travel irregularity ticket and I received a letter from TPE (attached) in the mail 4 days later (20/12/24) stating I had 14 days to respond.

I have been reading some posts on here and I have a faint idea of what my letter should look like but I would appreciate further help drafting it. Please see my draft below:

"Dear Prosecution Manager,

Please find below my statement, regarding case reference: XXXXX

I am writing in response to the recent correspondence regarding the travel irregularity on 16 December 2024. I deeply regret and take full responsibility for my actions.

I have been facing significant financial challenges following my father's passing earlier in the year, which has left me financially struggling as a full-time student. This hardship contributed to poor decision-making on my part.

Initially, I did not realise that my railcard had expired. When I discovered the expiration, I altered the date on a screenshot I had, out of desperation, knowing I could not afford a renewal at that moment. I recognise the gravity of my actions and sincerely regret the choice I made. I should not have done this. Please accept my sincere apology.

Since the incident, I have taken steps to ensure this does not happen again. Immediately after the encounter with the train official, I deleted the altered image. I purchased a new railcard as soon as I could (1 year, 16-25), two days after the incident (18/12/2024). I have also set multiple calendar reminders (10 Dec 2025 and 15 Dec 2025) which are near the date of expiry of my new railcard (17 Dec 2025), so that I renew it in time and avoid a repeat of this situation. My new railcard number is XXXXXXX.

I hope that this matter can be resolved between us without any court actions and therefore I ask that you please consider an out-of-court settlement.

Thank you for taking the time to review my response.


Yours faithfully,
XXXX."


I regret what I did and understand it was wrong. Please advise on anything I should add or change.

I also have a few questions:
1. I’ve read threads stating it took quite some time to get a response. I know I will be moving in 2 months max but don’t have a new address yet. Should I still give my current address? What happens if they send the letter after I’ve moved and I don’t know about it? - I’m away from my address until the second week of January.

2. I’m trying to calculate all the fares I booked since my railcard expired but how do I know what the full fares were? Do I subtract the prices I actually paid from that total or would I be required to pay them again as though I never had any tickets?

Thank you all in advance.

 

[Fawkes Cat]

Welcome to the forum.

I think your response is fine, although I suspect that the railway will not be particularly interested in your distressing personal circumstances <edit> although I am not saying that you should remove something which I am sure is important to you - but don't expect the railway to go easy on you because of it</edit>. For your numbered questions:

1. Is there an address where you can always be reached? For example, many people go to stay with their parents over Christmas and New Year: if you are doing something like that you may be able to get your parents to pass on any post addressed to you at that address.

Otherwise, the important thing is to do your best to make it possible for the railway to keep in touch with you. So let them know what your email address is: you can also get post redirected to a new address for a fee: see https://www.royalmail.com/personal/receiving-mail/redirection

2. There's a very useful website called BR Fares: see https://www.brfares.com/. Put in your origin and destination stations and look for the Anytime Day Single fare i
n the Standard class fares.

 

[aforamazon]

Welcome to the forum.

I think your response is fine, although I suspect that the railway will not be particularly interested in your distressing personal circumstances <edit> although I am not saying that you should remove something which I am sure is important to you - but don't expect the railway to go easy on you because of it</edit>. For your numbered questions:

1. Is there an address where you can always be reached? For example, many people go to stay with their parents over Christmas and New Year: if you are doing something like that you may be able to get your parents to pass on any post addressed to you at that address.

Otherwise, the important thing is to do your best to make it possible for the railway to keep in touch with you. So let them know what your email address is: you can also get post redirected to a new address for a fee: see https://www.royalmail.com/personal/receiving-mail/redirection

2. There's a very useful website called BR Fares: see https://www.brfares.com/. Put in your origin and destination stations and look for the Anytime Day Single fare i
n the Standard class fares.

Thank you for responding so swiftly, your response is quite helpful. I completely understand that they are not particularly interested in my circumstances.

For question 1:
Coincidentally, my family is also moving houses around the same time I am so I'd rather not use their current address. I will look into the mail forwarding suggestion; that will probably be my best bet.

Thank you again.

 

[30907]

Coincidentally, my family is also moving houses around the same time I am so I'd rather not use their current address. I will look into the mail forwarding suggestion; that will probably be my best bet.

You could also offer an email address?

 

[aforamazon]

You could also offer an email address?

Yes. There is a section asking for my email address, so I will provide that as well. Thank you.

 

[Elecman]

The train company will normally not give any allowance for the tickets yo7 purchased as they weren’t valid so they will expect the Full Anytime Single ticket price for each journey ( return = 2 singles) plus and administration fee of around £150. They will expect the full payment within14 days typically of it being offered normally without the option of a paymen5 plan as they need to have had the full amount before the 6 month limit for prosecution ends

 

[John R]

For reference the Anytime Single from Sheffield to Mossley is £26.80.

 

[aforamazon]

Hello everyone,

I sent the correspondence as I mentioned above and got the email attached today. I am panicking. Does this mean they are still considering whether to take me to court or to fine me? Is there anything I can do? I am bothered this will affect my visa application.

Please help. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[Fawkes Cat]

Hello everyone,

I sent the correspondence as I mentioned above and got the email attached today. I am panicking. Does this mean they are still considering whether to take me to court or to fine me? Is there anything I can do? I am bothered this will affect my visa application.

Please help. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Essentially, this is a holding reply. It's not letting you off, but if you have further information to give them, then they will let you send it in. And (sensibly from where the railway sit) they are only asking you to send in further information - they don't want you to send stuff in that they have already seen.

Overall, this email is not bad news: you know that they got your previous message and that you have a way to communicate away from paper letters that might not reach you. It's not good news either in that they haven't said that they won't prosecute you, but it's not a reason to panic.

 

[aforamazon]

Essentially, this is a holding reply. It's not letting you off, but if you have further information to give them, then they will let you send it in. And (sensibly from where the railway sit) they are only asking you to send in further information - they don't want you to send stuff in that they have already seen.

Overall, this email is not bad news: you know that they got your previous message and that you have a way to communicate away from paper letters that might not reach you. It's not good news either in that they haven't said that they won't prosecute you, but it's not a reason to panic.

Oh, that's quite helpful. Thank you very much.

 

[30907]

First, they are not asking you to fess up to previous offences.

Second, I can't see that you can supply additional mitigation let alone evidence of a valid ticket, so I am not sure a reply is called for.

At most, a brief reply acknowledging the mail and repeating that you would be very grateful if they would consider settling. You understand that you would be required to repay the amount avoided plus their admin expenses. (I say "amount" rather than "fare" as you are not then claiming it was a one-off).

What do other members think of the above?

 

[Hadders]

This is the sort of thing Transport Investigations Limited do (although as far as I know they don't deal with TPE cases).

I would send a slightly reworded reply, basically making the same points, asking if they will settle.

 

[aforamazon]

Thank you all for your help. Sending another response does seem reasonable but as 30907 said, I don't have anything new to add so I am a bit wary of sending a reply because of the line that reads:

"...please ensure that any reply you make provides only new evidence or mitigation that has not already been presented before..."


Do I still proceed with sending a reply despite this?

Thank you all again so much.

First, they are not asking you to fess up to previous offences.

Second, I can't see that you can supply additional mitigation let alone evidence of a valid ticket, so I am not sure a reply is called for.

At most, a brief reply acknowledging the mail and repeating that you would be very grateful if they would consider settling. You understand that you would be required to repay the amount avoided plus their admin expenses. (I say "amount" rather than "fare" as you are not then claiming it was a one-off).

What do other members think of the above?

This is the sort of thing Transport Investigations Limited do (although as far as I know they don't deal with TPE cases).

I would send a slightly reworded reply, basically making the same points, asking if they will settle.

 

[Hadders]

Do I still proceed with sending a reply despite this?

Yes, you must send a reply otherwise they are likely to proceed to court.

 

[MotCO]

I don't want to be a harbinger of doom, but the reply does mention fraud which altering the date of a railcard obviously is. The OP has admitted doing this (I'm not sure that they had any choice), so the key thing is what offence the TOC will be pursuing. In your favour, you have bought a new railcard, so the likelihood of reoffending is remote, which is what the TOC want to hear.

I agree with others that you need to respond again, asking if they will agree to an out of Court settlement, and maybe just mentioning that you have renewed your railcard (even though you have already told them) for the reasons I stated above.

 

[aforamazon]

I have drafted the response below. I would appreciate any pointers on anything to change or edit.


"Dear Prosecution Manager,

Thank you for your response.

I fully understand the seriousness of this matter and take full responsibility for my actions.

I deeply regret my decision to alter the date on my railcard screenshot, and I am sincerely sorry for the poor judgement I displayed in this instance.

Following the incident, I immediately purchased a new railcard (16-25, valid until 17 December 2025, number: XXXXX). I have also put measures in place to ensure that such a situation does not happen again, including setting reminders to renew my railcard well in advance of its expiration.

I kindly ask that you consider an out-of-court settlement for this matter. I fully understand that this would involve repaying the amount avoided along with any administrative expenses incurred. I am committed to resolving this matter responsibly and avoiding further action.

Thank you for considering my request. I appreciate the opportunity to demonstrate my remorse and to make amends for this mistake.


Yours sincerely,
[Your Full Name]"

I'm not sure if I should repeat the text in red.
On a slight side note, can anyone please advise on the typical expectation for repayment? As I mentioned my current financial situation, I am worried I may not be able to pay it all back at once, and I don’t know how that may affect the entire process.

Apologies if my questions seem a bit basic and thank you all again.

 

[MotCO]

I'm not sure including the text in red adds anything.

If they offer you a settlement, they will expect you to pay in one instalment. It becomes too big a management task to keep track of instalment payments, and to make sure it is all repaid within 6 months of the incident to ensure they could still pursue the case through the Courts if you do not keep up with the instalments.

 

[aforamazon]

Hello everyone,

I appreciate all your help thus far.

I finally received a response on the matter I described above (please see attached images). Although I am incredibly saddened by the response, I am holding on to the hope that I could possibly get an offer for settlement.

I was wondering if it would be necessary to send another response still pleading for out-of-court settlement, since they said the contact is now closed and a new message will reopen it?

Any advice at all on what to do right now would be greatly helpful.

Thank you all once again.

 

[tonycockram]

I’d reply asking for them to ask to toc for an out of court settlement. It can’t do any harm.

We have seen that this company can be one of the more ‘hard faced’ companies we deal with!

Good luck

 

[Fawkes Cat]

I’d reply asking for them to ask to toc for an out of court settlement. It can’t do any harm.

We have seen that this company can be one of the more ‘hard faced’ companies we deal with!

Good luck

This is good advice - you have nothing to lose by asking again.

However, going back to the start of the thread, I see you altered the date on a Railcard. You need to prepare yourself for the possibility that TPE will see this as a deliberate and serious attempt to defraud them, and will want to take this to court whatever you now say.

 

[aforamazon]

I’d reply asking for them to ask to toc for an out of court settlement. It can’t do any harm.

We have seen that this company can be one of the more ‘hard faced’ companies we deal with!

Good luck

This is good advice - you have nothing to lose by asking again.

However, going back to the start of the thread, I see you altered the date on a Railcard. You need to prepare yourself for the possibility that TPE will see this as a deliberate and serious attempt to defraud them, and will want to take this to court whatever you now say.

Thank you both.

I will send the email and hope for the best.

 

[WesternLancer]

Thank you both.

I will send the email and hope for the best.

Reiterate that you now fully understand how serious what you did was and how much you regret making such a severe error of judgment.

 

[Hadders]

Given that TPE have incicated that they are taking the matter to court it might be worth engaging a solicitor who soecialises in rail fare evasion. They don't come cheap (at least £1,000) but thsi is probably your best hope of keeping the matter out of court.

 

[MrJeeves]

The email from TPE indicates that, where a settlement offer is available, it will be included with the court paperwork.

I would wait to see what arrives in the post.

 

[Sharif94]

Hi OP,

Any updates ??

 

[John R]

Hi OP,

Any updates ??

The OP hasn't been back since March, and whilst we do appreciate an update on any resolution, that's entirely their call.

If you have your own problem then please do start a new thread, where members will be happy to assist you. It will be very helpful if you can follow the guidance here, to make sure we have all the information needed to assist.

Please read before posting in Disputes & Prosecutions

Guidance for those asking for advice: Please bear in mind the following, when asking for advice in this section: We need to know all relevant facts in order to assist you, including, for example: The stations* where you actually started & finished your journey The stations* where you changed...

www.railforums.co.uk

 

[MotCO]

Hi OP,

Any updates ??

If you require help for a similar experience, please start a separate thread. In this way, we can tailor our help to your precise circumstances - no two cases are ever the same.