Fawkes Cat
Established Member
- Joined
- 8 May 2017
- Messages
- 2,943
I'm not sure I've put this thread in the right place: if not, it would be great if an admin would move it.
In the Disputes & Prosecutions thread https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/gwr-threatening-legal-action.164245, the OP told us he had mistakenly booked and travelled on a railcard ticket with no railcard. When on-train crew picked up on this, he felt it was harsh that he was charged the full fare for the journey.
Our advice was pretty consistent - namely that the railway was well within its rights to do this, and he was lucky not to have faced a bylaw prosecution or out of court settlement with costs. But we were split on whether the railway should distinguish between intentional and accidental fare dodgers, and if so, how.
In principle, it seems to me right to be more generous to people who have made a mistake (using a narrow definition of 'mistake' that does not include 'I mistakenly thought I could get away with it') rather than those who intentionally aimed to pay less. But can we reasonably expect railway staff to distinguish between someone who has made a mistake (who will honestly say 'I made a mistake') and someone who was trying it on (who will dishonestly say exactly the same)? If we rely just on the words used, the only people punished will be those who admit their guilt on challenge. If there is some sort of attitude test, then we are relying much more on the subjective judgement of revenue protection staff.
In the Disputes & Prosecutions thread https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/gwr-threatening-legal-action.164245, the OP told us he had mistakenly booked and travelled on a railcard ticket with no railcard. When on-train crew picked up on this, he felt it was harsh that he was charged the full fare for the journey.
Our advice was pretty consistent - namely that the railway was well within its rights to do this, and he was lucky not to have faced a bylaw prosecution or out of court settlement with costs. But we were split on whether the railway should distinguish between intentional and accidental fare dodgers, and if so, how.
In principle, it seems to me right to be more generous to people who have made a mistake (using a narrow definition of 'mistake' that does not include 'I mistakenly thought I could get away with it') rather than those who intentionally aimed to pay less. But can we reasonably expect railway staff to distinguish between someone who has made a mistake (who will honestly say 'I made a mistake') and someone who was trying it on (who will dishonestly say exactly the same)? If we rely just on the words used, the only people punished will be those who admit their guilt on challenge. If there is some sort of attitude test, then we are relying much more on the subjective judgement of revenue protection staff.