Thameslink prosecution letter

[jcsorla]

Hi,

I was travelling from harlington to Farringdon but had a ticket from St Pancras to Farringdon and got stopped by the fraud team at the station. (This isn’t my first time I’ve done this but first time getting caught). I was on my way to work. I was coming back to work after the Christmas break and didn’t have enough money to cover my train and my bills so I did stupid thing and thought I’d be fine.

I have received my letter and need to respond. I am trying my hardest for them to even give me the maximum fine. I have severe anxiety and depression. This matter is actually making me extremely suicicdal, if I get prosecuted I will loose my career and everything. I will no longer be able to work. It was such a stupid thing to do and I haven’t done it since(I got caught in jan).

Is there anything I can add to my letter or what do I even start to stay in it. I am riddled with anxiety about this it’s even affecting my work and I can’t stop thinking about it. I’m scared I’m going to do something stupid over this matter. I will not be able to handle it if I get a court date, I will loose everything I have, I can only see one way out of it. I support my mum and brothers financially, if I loose my job I loose everything. Please help me, I’m begging

Am I better off to hand write it or type it.

I pay for all my tickets on Trainline

 

[Pushpit]

Don't worry too much. I can see this has badly affected you but it's unlikely to be anything like as bad as you suggested. If you need help or support, talk to your GP surgery, it may not be a doctor you need, they can signpost you to the right person and help you to cope a bit better. But while it was a bad idea to evade the fare, that is now in the past, you won't be doing it again. What remains is resolving the problem that you caused previously. It may help if you see it in that light, a technical process.

In terms of more specific advice from the experts, it would help to get a copy of the exact letter you have received, with personal details and reference numbers redacted. Train companies vary and so the text of the letter - and the sending company - is important.

Don't worry, you will get through this. In fact you've done one really important useful thing: reached out to get support and advice from other people. Do the same with people you know in real life too, it's the single most effective way to handle anxiety and for that matter depression.

 

[jcsorla]

Thank you, ever since it happened and they read me rights I have been a mess. My depression is horrendous. I genuinely will not be able to cope with a court hearing.

I have no idea what to put back in my response. I can’t even bring myself to write it without sobbing. Sadly I can’t handle situations how normal people do.

I don’t know if I can continue with this feeling for much longer.

 

[Fawkes Cat]

Welcome to the forum!

Let's start with your job: if you can settle this out of court (more on that later) that is almost certainly a private matter between you and the train company: unless your job has very specific rules to say otherwise, you won't have to tell your employer.

If the railway DO take you to court, you might have to tell your employer. But with only a few exceptions, employers generally aren't too worried about fare dodging - they're more worried about people lying about it. So my suggestion would be that if you are in a union, you should talk to a union rep to find out what your employer might do. If you work in a regulated profession (medical, healthcare, the law, teaching - that sort of thing) have a look at your regulator's website which may let you know the rules you need to meet.

So you want to avoid going to court. The good news is that as long as you can persuade the railway that you know you are wrong and you won't do it again, the railway company that you are dealing with (Thameslink is run by GTR) will normally agree not to take you to court if you 'settle out of court' by paying the train fare you dodged and pay the railway's investigation costs: think maybe £200 or so.

@Hadders gives some excellent advice on what to say: they may well be along soon on this thread but if you look through some other threads you should be able to find it. And I don't think the railway are too worried about whether your reply is hand written or typed: unless you have really been readable handwriting, I would go for typing it.

 

[jcsorla]

Thank you.

I really don’t even know where to start with my response, I know what I’ve done is incredibly stupid and that’s why I’m so annoyed at myself. But there’s no way I will be able to handle a court hearing, I genuinely will not be able to do it. I have been a mess since they read me rights at the station.

I don’t know how much longer I can handle feeling like this.

I can’t even bring myself to start writing my response.

 

[ikcdab]

If you do get prosecuted and you plead guilty, then you probably don't have to attend in person. You will just get a letter telling you the outcome.
So please don't worry about that.
Please look at other threads on here where you find many example letters. Whatever you do, don't use chatgpt or any other ai which gives awful results.
Just imagine you are in the same room as the other person and think what you might say to them. Then write it down.
Come back here with a draft response for feedback.
Don't delay or ignore it or it will get worse.

 

[alholmes]

You’ve got until Wednesday to reply. If you reply and cooperate there’s every chance that they will offer you an out of court settlement - that means you’ll have to pay them a sum of money, but it means it won’t go to court.

Even if it does go to court, it’s very unlikely to result in the end of your job. I can’t recall a single case on this forum where that’s happened. It may mean you need to have an awkward, embarrassing conversation with your manager / HR department, but it’s extremely unlikely to result in the end of your job.

The important thing now is to draft a letter. You need to accept that you’ve made an error of judgment, apologise for it, and then satisfy Thameslink / GTR that you won’t do it again. If you’ve been buying the correct ticket since you were stopped (I hope so), then say so in your letter - it helps to demonstrate that you’ve learnt your lesson. Don’t give them a sob story, or say how much stress and anxiety you are under - it’s irrelevant to the rail company. And don’t just use ChatGPT to produce a letter - it come’s across as insincere and unnatural.

Have a look in this section of the forum for other cases with mention Thameslink or GTR - you’ll see some good examples of what people write in their letters. And do post a draft of what you propose to send on here - we can then help you. But important thing is to make sure you reply on or before Wednesday.

 

[furlong]

You only need to write a very short letter. You do not need to go into any details of what you did. A short and simple apology, saying you've learned your lesson and won't do it again, and offer to pay the fares you avoided together with the costs of their investigation. There are lots of examples on this forum, but most of them are longer letters than necessary!

 

[jcsorla]

Ok thank you all so much.

So do I not mention the fact that I mentally will not be able to attend a court date?

Of course, I am deeply sorry I’ve done it, it is extremely stupid thing to do.

 

[ikcdab]

So do I not mention the fact that I mentally will not be able to attend a court date

No. It's of no relevance to the fact that you evaded the full fare.

 

[08221]

If you are genuinely feeling that bad, please seek help from a professional. Either your Doctor or a charity/help line. Otherwise please tell someone you trust so they can support you.

Take care.

 

[furlong]

So do I not mention the fact that I mentally will not be able to attend a court date?

You won't need to mention that. When you send a short letter like we suggest, the train company involved here normally offers a financial settlement and if you pay it there will be no court proceedings.

 

[Brissle Girl]

You won't need to mention that. When you send a short letter like we suggest, the train company involved here normally offers a financial settlement and if you pay it there will be no court proceedings.

And if they do prosecute (which with GTR is unlikely, though not impossible), it will typically be dealt with using a streamlined process, (abbreviated to “SJPN), which means provided you plead guilty you don’t have to attend court. So you can put that worry out of your mind.

 

[amethyst16]

Hey! I’ve been dealing with this for the past two months! I received my letter while I was abroad and wouldn’t be back in time for the deadline of when I had to send it. I was sleeping horribly, not eating and it really affected me. I know this is hard but please try not to stress!

If this is your first time getting caught and getting this letter, it’s a first offence. From my experience they don’t want to make your life difficult they just want to scare you a little bit.

In your letter, make sure to apologise profusely an mention that you would really like to settle out of court and you are willing to pay the outstanding ticket price and any admin fees. Most importantly, do not incriminate yourself further, only speak about this specific time, no other time.

My letter was such a mess because I wrote it the same night I got back and was extremely emotional. However, i received my out of court settlement yesterday and have paid it today.

What also helped me was calling them up asking them for updates and explaining a bit further my side and how what happened was a genuine mistake and that I would never do it again. The prosecutions team who answered the phone to me were all so kind as every time on the phone I would get a bit emotional.

As someone who was dealing with this up until yesterday, please try stay calm and good luck!

 

[Pushpit]

Ok thank you all so much.

So do I not mention the fact that I mentally will not be able to attend a court date?

Of course, I am deeply sorry I’ve done it, it is extremely stupid thing to do.

OK, the good news is that if you engage with GTR on this, there is a good chance - in fact very good chance - they will not take you to court at all. But you do need to send in a reply before the deadline. The letter sent to you is deliberately written to spook you, which it has done very successfully, but at some cost to your health. I wish they didn't do this but my opinion is irrelevant.

See the "Please read" thread on top of this forum, but you need to write a short, apologetic letter, acknowledging you did something wrong and that you will never do so again. I really wouldn't tell them about attending court, the idea is that you don't go anywhere near a court, but you will have to pay a penalty to GTR for what you did wrong. If this works out the way this usually works out, you will not get a criminal record, and you won't go to court.

Just think in your own words - not using ChatGPT - what you want to say in line with my previous paragraph. We can then help you to bash it into shape for you. Make a request at the end along the lines of "In view of my comments above, and recognising the mistake I have made here, I would really like to request an out of court settlement to resolve this matter. I will be willing to pay your costs as well as the travel costs that I evaded". This letter needs to be short, apologetic, contrite. There are dozens of other letters you can look at in the forum.

You need to do this quickly, you ideally want something in the post, using "Signed for" 1st class mail, on Tuesday at the latest.

I know you are worried, and what you did was wrong, but it really isn't that serious. Think about all those people who get fined for driving too fast (and who could kill someone from that mistake) - they don't lose their jobs, nothing that bad happens to them. You will get over this, and you will be all the stronger from getting through this adversity.

 

[jcsorla]

Thank you so much. You have no idea how much it means to me. Thank you!

I will start the letter now.
Thank you

Sorry it is late, it has taken me a while to build up to write this.

Could you let me know if this is ok, I want to print it tonight and post it signed for tomorrow.

Thank you.

Any comments are welcomed.

 

[Fawkes Cat]

Thank you so much. You have no idea how much it means to me. Thank you!

I will start the letter now.
Thank you

Sorry it is late, it has taken me a while to build up to write this.

Could you let me know if this is ok, I want to print it tonight and post it signed for tomorrow.

Thank you.

Any comments are welcomed.

Generally, that's fine. There may be people here who think that it's too wordy, or that you used chatGPT to write it, but the important thing is that you are saying more or less the right thing in more or less the right order.

I would suggest that you remove the phrase about 'paying the maximum fine': that's because if GTR agree to settle out of court then what they will ask for is the train fare and their costs - and you rightly go on to mention those.

Don't forget to include GTR's reference in the version of the letter that you send!

 

[jcsorla]

Ok thank you, I will will remove the maximum comment.

I did have less but didn’t want it to look as if I didn’t care. Which part do you think is unnecessary and I should delete?

I have amended it a bit further. Does this read better?

Are the details I have missed out?

Amended

 

[alholmes]

Looks good to me. Wait to see what others say, and then send it to them tomorrow.

 

[ikcdab]

It would be worth adding "since the incident I have ensured that I always buy valid tickets for every journey i have undertaken"
If that true, of course.

 

[Pushpit]

Ok thank you, I will will remove the maximum comment.

I did have less but didn’t want it to look as if I didn’t care. Which part do you think is unnecessary and I should delete?

I have amended it a bit further. Does this read better?

Are the details I have missed out?

Amended

I think this is a good letter, about the right length and has the necessary content. I think you did a good job there. I hope it will work for you.

As a personal opinion, I would take out "I trust this finds you well", since that's what ChatGPT often puts there, and if I was the person opening the letters it would drive me crazy! But it's not a big thing, it needs to be your letter rather than anyone else's letter.

 

[waseem haneef]

I also received a letter same this but when i am travelling but i have a ticket so i did reply with the ticket so i don’t know what he will say next.

 

[Hadders]

I also received a letter same this but when i am travelling but i have a ticket so i did reply with the ticket so i don’t know what he will say next.

Please start you own thread if you need our assistance. We have a forum rule of one case per thread as no two cases, however similar they might appear at first, are never the same. Discussing two cases in a single thread just causus confusion.

 

[lholden]

Ok thank you, I will will remove the maximum comment.

I did have less but didn’t want it to look as if I didn’t care. Which part do you think is unnecessary and I should delete?

I have amended it a bit further. Does this read better?

Are the details I have missed out?

Amended

Have you heard anything back yet?