Notice of intention to prosecute, advice needed

[E_travels]

Hiya all,

Recently recieved a letter from GTR about an incident that happend back in october 2024 in brighton. The alledged offence is stating that "did not produce a valid ticket entitling travel".

What is my best response for this?

as i purchased my ticket from Bournemouth to Brighton 3 weeks prior on Trainpal which i use for all my travels.

Could it had been that my railcard had expired & i only noticed it i checked it afterwards, Then i purchased a network rail card straight away the next day

 

[Darandio]

Could it had been that my railcard had expired & i only noticed it i checked it afterwards, Then i purchased a network rail card straight away the next day

If you don't provide us with the information how would we know?

Please upload a copy of the letter you have received with all identifying details removed people will be able to provide more help.

 

[E_travels]

If you don't provide us with the information how would we know?

Please upload a copy of the letter you have received with all identifying details removed people will be able to provide more help.

Sorry about that please see attached.

 

[jfollows]

Railcards need to be valid at time of travel, not at time of purchase, so if you bought a ticket claiming a railcard discount but could then not show a valid railcard at time of travel, this would invalidate your ticket. Is this what happened?
Exact dates of purchase, travel, railcard validity would help us better understand what is happening here.

 

[E_travels]

Railcards need to be valid at time of travel, not at time of purchase, so if you bought a ticket claiming a railcard discount but could then not show a valid railcard at time of travel, this would invalidate your ticket. Is this what happened?
Exact dates of purchase, travel, railcard validity would help us better understand what is happening here

Yes that is exactly what happened,

I discovered my railcard was expired after my travel date, i didnt realise at the time that happened & told the revenue team i didnt have my railcard on me at that time.

 

[jfollows]

Yes that is exactly what happened,

I discovered my railcard was expired after my travel date, i didnt realise at the time that happened & told the revenue team i didnt have my railcard on me at that time.

Then you can look for examples in this section, but essentially apologise, say that you now have a valid railcard, you understand your mistake and won’t repeat it, and offer to pay their investigation costs.

It’s then likely you’ll be asked to pay ~£150 + full single Bournemouth-Brighton (£96.40), which will be an out of court settlement with no criminal record.

Feel free to post your intended letter here for advice before sending it.

 

[E_travels]

Then you can look for examples in this section, but essentially apologise, say that you now have a valid railcard, you understand your mistake and won’t repeat it, and offer to pay their investigation costs.

It’s then likely you’ll be asked to pay ~£150 + full single Bournemouth-Brighton, which will be an out of court settlement with no criminal record.

Feel free to post your intended letter here for advice before ending it.

ahh okay.
Thank you for the advice.
How would i write this in letter form, this is the first time i have had anything like this.

 

[jfollows]

ahh okay.
Thank you for the advice.
How would i write this in letter form, this is the first time i have had anything like this.

Look for examples of similar cases on this forum. There are lots.

 

[James Wake]

If you changed at Southampton and came along the coast via Chichester and Worthing I would hope that the £27.40 fare would be the one used on top of the settlement, rather than £96, but the advice you’ve got is solid

 

[E_travels]

If you changed at Southampton and came along the coast via Chichester and Worthing I would hope that the £27.40 fare would be the one used on top of the settlement, rather than £96, but the advice you’ve got is solid

Yeah i changed at southampton as it comes as 2 different tickets, they were Bournemouth to Southampton then Southampton to Brighton.

 

[WesternLancer]

Yeah i changed at southampton as it comes as 2 different tickets, they were Bournemouth to Southampton then Southampton to Brighton.

Well if you bought split tickets to obtain a legitimate saving they come as two tickets. But for this the railway will now charge you for through fare. Ie one ticket price from origin to destination. Just for info.

Your next step is to draft your reply. Find some other threads involving GTR for examples.

 

[E_travels]

Here is my draft of letter that i intend to send to them. Feel free to advise if anything needs changing or adding

Dear Fare Evasion Manager,

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to respond to your letter dated X.

I was stopped by a Revenue Protection Inspector at Brighton Station and was unable to produce a valid ticket entitling travel for my journey from Bournemouth due to not producing my Railcard at that time.

I apologise for my action, i didnt realise my railcard had expired at the time of travel and I make no excuse for it. I understand the severity of my actions. I greatly appreciate travelling on the railway and see this as a valuable lesson.

In the future I will ensure that I purchase a valid ticket entitling travel. i have also taken the advice from the Revenue Protection Inspector & switched from a physical to a digital Railcard so that this would never happen again & added it to my calendar so i can stay on top of it.

I would be grateful for the opportunity to settle my misconduct outside of court.

Yours Sincerely,
X

 

[AlterEgo]

I apologise for my actions and I make no excuse for them. I made an unethical decision in not purchasing a ticket before boarding the train

Didn't your railcard expire without you knowing? What do you think is "unethical" about this? Why are you saying you didn't purchase a ticket before boarding - you had a ticket, right? It was just that the railcard has expired.

I am ashamed of the choice I made and accept full responsibility.

What choice?

Your letter doesn't match your circumstances as you mention them here - have you copied this from another, unrelated case?

 

[E_travels]

Apologies on this, i wrote this out bit too quick and didnt re-read what i wrote. I had a look at others cases & was reading all responses.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 16 Jan 2025 ==

I had edited the letter above.

 

[Haywain]

At Brighton I was stopped by a Revenue Protection Inspector at Brighton Station and was unable to produce a valid ticket entitling travel for my journey from Bournemouth to Brighton due to not producing my Railcard at that time.

Edited to avoid being repetitive.

 

[E_travels]

Ahh thanks for that, i will avoid sounding repetitive.

 

[melvin]

Hello everyone, I have been given “Report for prosecution for not showing a Railcard. I am new to this, a friend helped me purchase an online Railcard put was not aware it didn’t work. I have been ticking using the Trainline app with it. Please what should I expect from SWR REVENUE TEAM.

I am panicking

 

[WesternLancer]

Hello everyone, I have been given “Report for prosecution for not showing a Railcard. I am new to this, a friend helped me purchase an online Railcard put was not aware it didn’t work. I have been ticking using the Trainline app with it. Please what should I expect from SWR REVENUE TEAM.

I am panicking

Best you start new thread so the advice can get tailored to helping you and not muddled with this thread.

 

[yorkie]

Hello everyone, I have been given “Report for prosecution for not showing a Railcard. I am new to this, a friend helped me purchase an online Railcard put was not aware it didn’t work. I have been ticking using the Trainline app with it. Please what should I expect from SWR REVENUE TEAM.

I am panicking

I have moved your latest post in this thread into a new one:

Reported for prosecution by southwestern railway

Hi, I have been issues report for prosecution from southwestern railway. I was given this a week ago. When should I expect their letter and what should I expect in the letter. I wasn’t able to show a Railcard and this is the second time. I tried applying for a Railcard but didn’t get the...

www.railforums.co.uk

This thread is dedicated to the issue experienced by @E_travels

 

[E_travels]

My 2nd draft of the letter which i have added dates in my own copy, but would this be deem enough to send to them.

Also edited to fit more info in.


Dear Fare Evasion Manager,

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to respond to your letter dated 13th January 2025

I was stopped by a Revenue Protection Inspector at Brighton Station on X and was unable to produce a valid ticket entitling travel for my journey from Bournemouth due to not able to produce my rail card.

I apologise for my action, It was an oversight on my end as I had not realised my physical railcard had expired X which I left at home on date of travel & I purchased my ticket on X. I understand the severity of my actions. I greatly appreciate travelling on the railway and see this as a valuable lesson.

In the future I will ensure that I purchase a valid ticket before travelling. I have also taken the advice from the Revenue Protection Inspector to purchase a digital Railcard instead of purchasing physical ones, so that this would never happen again & added the date of purchase to my calendar with reminder, so I can stay on top of it for renewal.

I would be grateful for the opportunity to settle my case outside of court. I wish to make amends by paying any fees you deem appropriate; the full, correct fare and any administrative costs I have created.

Yours Sincerely,

X

 

[Haywain]

was unable to produce a valid ticket entitling travel for my journey railcard to support my ticket from Bournemouth (via Barnham).

See changes above (there's no harm in a gentle reminder that you used the cheapest route!).

I apologise for my action, It which was an oversight on my end and I understand the severity of my actions.

Just a small change to help the flow.

In the future I will ensure that I purchase carry a valid ticket entitling travel railcard.

Another small change. Apologies for not picking these up earlier.

 

[E_travels]

See changes above (there's no harm in a gentle reminder that you used the cheapest route!).

Just a small change to help the flow.

Another small change. Apologies for not picking these up earlier.

Many thanks i had not notice these.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 17 Jan 2025 ==

@Haywain I have added these changes, is there anything that would need adding or removing to help

 

[Haywain]

I have added these changes, is there anything that would need adding or removing to help

With the changes I think the letter will be fine.

 

[E_travels]

With this do i just remove the bold underlined & add the "and" where you suggested or keep what i wrote just add the "and" in.

I apologise for my action, It was an oversight on my end as I had not realised my physical railcard had expired X which I left at home on date of travel & I purchased my ticket on X "and" I understand the severity of my actions. I greatly appreciate travelling on the railway and see this as a valuable lesson.