greenfivefifty
New Member
Hi all,
Hope you are well - I have now received a letter from Govia Thameslink, notifying me of their intention to prosecute me. I attempt to summarise the facts concisely here:
My Railcard expired 24 November 2024. I was unaware of this as Railcard emails go to a Gmail account that I generally only use for promotions and for which I do not receive notifications/look at unless I have separate reason to go and open the app (although this is unfortunately true, I am considering excluding it as it sounds as if I am making up an excuse).
During the period that I was unaware of its expiry, I undertook the journeys with the Railcard discount applied as set out below.
On that trip of 13 Dec, my ticket was checked (which I produced), but then the Revenue Officer and I realised that my Railcard had expired, so he produced me a ticket. Thankfully, I acted entirely honestly/cooperatively, but when I explained the circumstances to him, he simply said to upload my new railcard to the website and that this would resolve the situation. Clearly that has not been the case, as understandably, my railcard had in fact expired in that period - so I am really not sure why he said that but obviously am not going to complain about it. It may be relevant for GTR's consideration that I have been so cooperative and generally been an upstanding passenger other than the lapse in the above - this will definitely be my first incident as I have always prided myself on sticking to the rules generally.
As I am extremely keen to avoid this being taken to court, I have drafted the following response and would be grateful for any feedback which you feel would help increase the chances of avoiding court:
Dear Prosecutions Team,
I am writing to express my sincere apologies for travelling with an expired Railcard and the administrative efforts incurred by you thereafter, a lesson which I have now most genuinely learned.
My Railcard expired 24 November 2024 - I was unaware of this as I had given insufficient attention to the seldom-used Gmail account that the notification was sent to, a mistake that will not be repeated at any point.
During the period that I was unaware of its expiry, I undertook the following journeys with the Railcard discount applied and paid as follows:
24 Nov: [x] to [x]: £14.50
6 Dec: [x] to [x]: £20.30
8 Dec: [x]to [x]: £14.50
13 Dec: [x] to [x]: £20.30
14 Dec: [x] to [x]: £14.50
These were all booked with Trainline, which I would happy to provide evidence of.
Upon being notified of this fact by the Revenue Protections team on the 13 December journey, I immediately apologised and was instructed to purchase a new railcard and upload this to the GTR website. I purchased that new railcard on 15 December and complied with instructions to upload it, doing so on 27 December. I have since made good use of that new railcard, undertaking 10 more journeys since its purchase.
I take full responsibility for this error and deeply regret my lack of attentiveness and organisation. I fully understand the gravity of the matter and its importance to Govia Thameslink Railways, and will continue to support the railway as a fully fare-paying passenger. I would be sincerely grateful if you could please consider settling this matter outside of court, and I would certainly consider it more than fair that I cover the outstanding fares, any administrative costs incurred by you and any additional amounts that may be deemed appropriate.
Please do let me know if it would be helpful to have any further details or if I can be of any other assistance in the meantime.
Kind regards,
[x]
Many, many thanks for everyone's help!
Hope you are well - I have now received a letter from Govia Thameslink, notifying me of their intention to prosecute me. I attempt to summarise the facts concisely here:
My Railcard expired 24 November 2024. I was unaware of this as Railcard emails go to a Gmail account that I generally only use for promotions and for which I do not receive notifications/look at unless I have separate reason to go and open the app (although this is unfortunately true, I am considering excluding it as it sounds as if I am making up an excuse).
During the period that I was unaware of its expiry, I undertook the journeys with the Railcard discount applied as set out below.
On that trip of 13 Dec, my ticket was checked (which I produced), but then the Revenue Officer and I realised that my Railcard had expired, so he produced me a ticket. Thankfully, I acted entirely honestly/cooperatively, but when I explained the circumstances to him, he simply said to upload my new railcard to the website and that this would resolve the situation. Clearly that has not been the case, as understandably, my railcard had in fact expired in that period - so I am really not sure why he said that but obviously am not going to complain about it. It may be relevant for GTR's consideration that I have been so cooperative and generally been an upstanding passenger other than the lapse in the above - this will definitely be my first incident as I have always prided myself on sticking to the rules generally.
As I am extremely keen to avoid this being taken to court, I have drafted the following response and would be grateful for any feedback which you feel would help increase the chances of avoiding court:
Dear Prosecutions Team,
I am writing to express my sincere apologies for travelling with an expired Railcard and the administrative efforts incurred by you thereafter, a lesson which I have now most genuinely learned.
My Railcard expired 24 November 2024 - I was unaware of this as I had given insufficient attention to the seldom-used Gmail account that the notification was sent to, a mistake that will not be repeated at any point.
During the period that I was unaware of its expiry, I undertook the following journeys with the Railcard discount applied and paid as follows:
24 Nov: [x] to [x]: £14.50
6 Dec: [x] to [x]: £20.30
8 Dec: [x]to [x]: £14.50
13 Dec: [x] to [x]: £20.30
14 Dec: [x] to [x]: £14.50
These were all booked with Trainline, which I would happy to provide evidence of.
Upon being notified of this fact by the Revenue Protections team on the 13 December journey, I immediately apologised and was instructed to purchase a new railcard and upload this to the GTR website. I purchased that new railcard on 15 December and complied with instructions to upload it, doing so on 27 December. I have since made good use of that new railcard, undertaking 10 more journeys since its purchase.
I take full responsibility for this error and deeply regret my lack of attentiveness and organisation. I fully understand the gravity of the matter and its importance to Govia Thameslink Railways, and will continue to support the railway as a fully fare-paying passenger. I would be sincerely grateful if you could please consider settling this matter outside of court, and I would certainly consider it more than fair that I cover the outstanding fares, any administrative costs incurred by you and any additional amounts that may be deemed appropriate.
Please do let me know if it would be helpful to have any further details or if I can be of any other assistance in the meantime.
Kind regards,
[x]
Many, many thanks for everyone's help!
