Freedom pass evasion

[cessie123]

Hi,
I was caught at Liverpool street station tapping out with a freedom pass. I have since received a verification letter from TFL. I would like to settle out of court, however from reading similar forums, have realised this is unlikely. I have read that it is best to reply to the letter with the following information:

- That you are sorry for what has happened
- What you have learned from the incident
- That you are keen to settle the matter without the need for court action
- Offer to pay the outstanding fare and TfL's administrative costs in dealing with the matter

Then from what I have read, I will have to plead guilty and expect to pay:
- A fine based on your income
- A surcharge of 40% of the value of the fine
- A contribution towards TfL's costs
- Compensation for the fares avoided

My questions are: If I plead guilty and pay the above, does this mean I have a criminal record? will this impact future DBS checks/ work? Is it worth me getting a solicitor? Will there be contact from tfl to the owner of the freedom pass/ reprecussions on the owner?
I am a student for context.

Any replies appreciated, thanks in advance

 

[tskir]

If I plead guilty and pay the above, does this mean I have a criminal record?

Yes

will this impact future DBS checks/ work?

The answer is really "it depends". The most usual way to get prosecuted by a train company is under byelaw offences. They are non-recordable and normally shouldn't appear on any Basic and Standard checks at all; and definitely not after 12 months, when they become "spent". They might appear on Enhanced checks, potentially for the rest of your life, but again it'll depend on the person preparing that report.

The consensus here (remember that most members aren't legal experts, and neither am I) seems to be that:

1. A conviction for ticket misuse doesn't usually have serious consequences for the careers of the vast majority of people. It might be different if you are / want to be in a high stakes profession such as a doctor, police officer or a barrister. But even then it might be possible to argue that this was a one time, not very serious incident.

2. In any case, it's absolutely vital to always disclose this conviction. If it does appear on a check, and you didn't mention it, then trying to hide it is much worse than if you honestly disclosed it.

Is it worth me getting a solicitor?

Personally, I would say yes. I think that out of the very few cases where TfL agreed to settled, a lot involved solicitors. Note that this still doesn't guarantee the result, and TfL are well within their rights to still prosecute (and likely win).

Will there be contact from tfl to the owner of the freedom pass

Yes

reprecussions on the owner?

It also depends. If the owner says they willingly gave it away, they might have their pass confiscated and not renewed. On the other hand if the owner maintains they didn't know about it, then TfL might be easier on them but potentially harder on you. This is potentially an area where a specialist solicitor might help pick the best strategy.

 

[Hadders]

Welcome to the forum!

Transport for London take misuse of Freedom Passes very seriously and a prosecution under the TfL Bylaws is the usual outcome.

TfL generally do not offer out of court settlements although in some very limited circumstances they have been known to issue a final warning instead of prosecution.

If you are found guilty by a court then this is a criminal conviction. If you are prosecuted under the TfL Bylaws (which is what normally happens) then the conviction isn't normally recorded on the Police National Computer and won't normally appear on Basic DBS checks although we always advise people to be honest when asked if they have a conviction. A conviction for a minor railway ticketing matter won’t normally adversely impact future career prospects.

It’s up to you whether or not to use a solicitor. As a first step you should carefully read TFL’s Revenue Enforcement and Prosecutions Policy, especially the sections on how they decide when to prosecute and when not to prosecute. If you are going to have any chance of not being prosecuted then you need to persuade TfL that your case firmly sits in one of the reasons not to prosecute. You haven’t told us anything about the circumstances of your case so we can’t really say if it fits the criteria of prosecute or not prosecute.

https://content.tfl.gov.uk/revenue-enforcement-and-prosecutions-policy.pdf

 

[cessie123]

In response to above, TFL can audit the history of use of the freedom pass, has anyone heard whether this is cctv footage or rather just dates/ times of tapping in and out?

 

[Hadders]

In response to above, TFL can audit the history of use of the freedom pass, has anyone heard whether this is cctv footage or rather just dates/ times of tapping in and out?

Potentially they could do either. CCTV is less likely. If you’re prosecuted it will almost certainly be for the single offence on the day you were caught. One occasion is all they need.

 

[cessie123]

And another follow-up question: if you ignored the verification letter and all correspondence, and the court ordered the money to be reclaimed from your wage/bailiffs, can they still convict you despite you not pleading guilty since you didn't reply?

I ask, as funnily enough a friend of mine was in the same situation. He used his brother's concessionary card, got caught but provided his old address but real name. As a result, he didn't receive any letters but a few months later he had £900 removed from his wage. He did not receive any criminal conviction that he is aware of. So what are your thoughts on this?

 

[Hadders]

And another follow-up question: if you ignored the verification letter and all correspondence, and the court ordered the money to be reclaimed from your wage/bailiffs, can they still convict you despite you not pleading guilty since you didn't reply?

I ask, as funnily enough a friend of mine was in the same situation. He used his brother's concessionary card, got caught but provided his old address but real name. As a result, he didn't receive any letters but a few months later he had £900 removed from his wage. He did not receive any criminal conviction that he is aware of. So what are your thoughts on this?

If you ignore the Verification Letter then TfL will prosecute you. They will send you the SJPN or court summons and if you ignore these the cae wuill be heard in your absence using the evidence available, you would be found guilty and a fine imposed as a punishment. If you don't pay the fine then one remedy is to deduct it from benefits or wages.

Your friend would have been convicted in his absence, the paperwork being sent to his old address. He might have thought he'd got away with it but he hasn't - these sort of things don't just go away. Thing is I stringly suspect £900 is far more than it would have cost had he engaged with the process from the start.

 

[Deafdoggie]

And another follow-up question: if you ignored the verification letter and all correspondence, and the court ordered the money to be reclaimed from your wage/bailiffs, can they still convict you despite you not pleading guilty since you didn't reply?

I ask, as funnily enough a friend of mine was in the same situation. He used his brother's concessionary card, got caught but provided his old address but real name. As a result, he didn't receive any letters but a few months later he had £900 removed from his wage. He did not receive any criminal conviction that he is aware of. So what are your thoughts on this?

He absolutely will have a conviction. He'll need to tell his insurance companies as they won't cover if he has a conviction he's not told them about. Obviously his employer will already know.

 

[AlterEgo]

And another follow-up question: if you ignored the verification letter and all correspondence, and the court ordered the money to be reclaimed from your wage/bailiffs, can they still convict you despite you not pleading guilty since you didn't reply?

I ask, as funnily enough a friend of mine was in the same situation. He used his brother's concessionary card, got caught but provided his old address but real name. As a result, he didn't receive any letters but a few months later he had £900 removed from his wage. He did not receive any criminal conviction that he is aware of. So what are your thoughts on this?

He got convicted of the offence and had the fine and costs removed from his wages via an attachment of earnings order.

 

[jumble]

It also depends. If the owner says they willingly gave it away, they might have their pass confiscated and not renewed. On the other hand if the owner maintains they didn't know about it, then TfL might be easier on them but potentially harder on you. This is potentially an area where a specialist solicitor might help pick the best strategy.

I have never seen on here anyone saying that TFL had any discussions with the passholder.
I would suspect that they don't bother as my feeling is that they know that many people would simply ignore TFLs correspondence
( Does anyone here know different?)

 

[Haywain]

I have never seen on here anyone saying that TFL had any discussions with the passholder.
I would suspect that they don't bother as my feeling is that they know that many people would simply ignore TFLs correspondence
( Does anyone here know different?)

TfL don't issue Freedom Passes, it's the boroughs that do that.