Obar
Member
Hi everyone,
I was recently caught at Birmingham Snowhill Station with a ticket that covers only a short part of the journey made. The Officer noticed the ticket was bought within 10 mins and that there were officers at Jewellery Quarter Station where i bought from. I then told him i was coming from Kidderminster and i got on the train in a rush and slept off. I got a mail today for short farin - see below;
We have recently been handed a file relating to an incident on 9th April 2025 when approached by staff carrying out their revenue duties, you were asked to show your valid ticket you offered a ticket that was not valid for the journey you had completed, possibly committing short journey fraud.
You were interviewed under caution for possibly committing short journey fraud.
West Midlands Trains take travel fraud seriously and are committed to prosecuting all cases of fare evasion to the full extent of the law. Travelling on the railway with the intent to avoid paying the full fare is an offence under the Regulation of Railways Act 1889, as such, a single offence carries a maximum fine of £1,000 and/or three months’ imprisonment and, a criminal record.
Consideration will be taken as to whether this matter amounts to a much more serious offence under the Fraud Act 2006, in particular ‘Fraud by false representation’.
At this stage we would be grateful if you would provide any evidence to support the claim that none of the above legislation has been contravened to prevent further action being contemplated.
I have drafted a response below and would like your suggestions before I send;
I am writing in response to your letter regarding the incident that occurred on 9th April 2025, during which I was approached by members of staff and was found to be travelling without a valid ticket for the full journey.
I would like to sincerely apologise for my actions and accept full responsibility for this mistake. I understand the seriousness of fare evasion and the potential implications under the Regulation of Railways Act 1889 and the Fraud Act 2006.
There was no intention on my part to deliberately commit fraud or avoid paying the correct fare. However, I fully acknowledge that by presenting an invalid ticket, I failed to comply with the rules and expectations of rail travel. I deeply regret this lapse in judgment.
Following this incident, I have taken proactive steps to ensure this does not happen again. I have now subscribed to a Swift season ticket via direct debit to ensure I always travel with a valid and appropriate ticket for my journeys.
I am fully committed to acting responsibly going forward and would be extremely grateful if you would consider settling this matter out of court. I am willing to pay any reasonable administrative or penalty fare charges that you deem appropriate in order to resolve this issue without further legal action.
Once again, I offer my sincere apologies and assure you that this will not happen again. Thank you for considering my response.
I was recently caught at Birmingham Snowhill Station with a ticket that covers only a short part of the journey made. The Officer noticed the ticket was bought within 10 mins and that there were officers at Jewellery Quarter Station where i bought from. I then told him i was coming from Kidderminster and i got on the train in a rush and slept off. I got a mail today for short farin - see below;
We have recently been handed a file relating to an incident on 9th April 2025 when approached by staff carrying out their revenue duties, you were asked to show your valid ticket you offered a ticket that was not valid for the journey you had completed, possibly committing short journey fraud.
You were interviewed under caution for possibly committing short journey fraud.
West Midlands Trains take travel fraud seriously and are committed to prosecuting all cases of fare evasion to the full extent of the law. Travelling on the railway with the intent to avoid paying the full fare is an offence under the Regulation of Railways Act 1889, as such, a single offence carries a maximum fine of £1,000 and/or three months’ imprisonment and, a criminal record.
Consideration will be taken as to whether this matter amounts to a much more serious offence under the Fraud Act 2006, in particular ‘Fraud by false representation’.
At this stage we would be grateful if you would provide any evidence to support the claim that none of the above legislation has been contravened to prevent further action being contemplated.
I have drafted a response below and would like your suggestions before I send;
I am writing in response to your letter regarding the incident that occurred on 9th April 2025, during which I was approached by members of staff and was found to be travelling without a valid ticket for the full journey.
I would like to sincerely apologise for my actions and accept full responsibility for this mistake. I understand the seriousness of fare evasion and the potential implications under the Regulation of Railways Act 1889 and the Fraud Act 2006.
There was no intention on my part to deliberately commit fraud or avoid paying the correct fare. However, I fully acknowledge that by presenting an invalid ticket, I failed to comply with the rules and expectations of rail travel. I deeply regret this lapse in judgment.
Following this incident, I have taken proactive steps to ensure this does not happen again. I have now subscribed to a Swift season ticket via direct debit to ensure I always travel with a valid and appropriate ticket for my journeys.
I am fully committed to acting responsibly going forward and would be extremely grateful if you would consider settling this matter out of court. I am willing to pay any reasonable administrative or penalty fare charges that you deem appropriate in order to resolve this issue without further legal action.
Once again, I offer my sincere apologies and assure you that this will not happen again. Thank you for considering my response.
