I think you can see what they think has happened here in terms of what they think you have done....the key question is, is it true and can you persuade them it's true.
But some points that might help you to know ref points in your post
I started my journey and Stansted mountfitchet and ended my journey at Stansted Airport,
Given what I think they suspect it might help if you can evidence this in any way (evidence that ultimately you would be prepared to show in court - at least in theory - if you do not pay what they are asking), as they seem to believe you started your journey in London -
did you say that to the member of staff who stopped and questioned you?
When trying to leave the station my ticket was not working, some kind of enforcement officer took a look at it and basically said its not valid as for that journey I had to have used a "barcode" style ticket as they dont use paper tickets anymore on this journey.
If that was what they said to you then that is certainly not true. Any ticket like this can be be used on any journey on the National Railway network. I buy tickets without barcodes on them all the time and travel using them without question.
Quite bizzare as i bought my ticket on trainline and it specifically said the opposite, that I HAVE to use a collection code to print my ticket out. Which I did obviously.
Long story short they wanted me to pay a fine there and then
I assume that would probably have been a Penalty Fare (strictly speaking this is not a 'fine' though obviously it feels like one) - for future reference a Penalty Fare is the least worst sanction for a ticket irregularity that can be issued to a passenger (apart from a verbal warning I suppose). Penalty Fares have legislation that governs their issue etc, which includes a 3 stage right of appeal. They are £100 (reduced to £50 if paid promptly) plus the price of a ticket
and i refused, gave them my details and went on.
Now I got a letter through the post stating they are prosecuting me etc and to pay an even bigger fine.
That's usually called a TIR (IIRC a travel or ticket irregularity report) triggers a back office investigation and / or letter requesting your version of events, or in this case a letter asking you to pay a sum of money to resolve it based on what they think you have evaded paying ticket wise - again this is not a 'fine' - it's basically an offer of an out of court settlement - ie if you pay this they will not take you to court for fare evasion.
There is no right of appeal (apart from letting it go to court, pleading not guilty, and seeking to persuade the magistrates that you have done nothing wrong.
However, if you can demonstrate to the railway company that you did nothing wrong they will often withdraw the case before they try to prosecute you.
Via a company called IRCAS.
They are a contractor that works for some railway companies over enforcement and ticketing issues. From what we see on here they are not easy to deal with unfortunately.
Im unable to appeal through their portal
As above, there is no right of appeal like there is with Penalty Fares (so a Penalty Fare will have the portal for making an on line appeal but this can't be dealt with via that)
so i called them and they said to appeal I have to email in regarding this specific fine. I did so, made sure to include a photo of my ticket and and my trainline booking email, and got the following reply today;
Yes, you have to make a written submission as you did.
"Thank you for your email.
You were reported for traveling from a London Terminal to Stansted Airport however your ticket is only valid from Stansted Mountfitchet. This is not a London Terminal and so this makes your ticket invalid and you have been reported correctly.
The full amount outstanding is £120.40 and will need to be paid within the next 14 days."
So they didn't believe you in terms of where you started your journey. Can you evidence that you are right and they are wrong? If so I think the best thing to do would be to do that.
So now they are apparently trying to fine me for a completely different reason.
Well, there not trying to fine you strictly speaking - they are trying to charge you the correct fare from London (where they believe you started your journey) plus an 'admin fee' - do you recall being asked where you started your journey when you were questioned?
Were you given any paperwork by the person who stopped you? If so what does it say?
Can someone advise me on how I fight this please?
Two options I suspect
a) try to persuade them that the ticket was correct for your travel (ie you started your journey at Stansted Mountfitchet - eg if you stayed the night there in a hotel before getting a flight can you send them a copy of a room booking e-mail or some such)
if that fails
b) advise them that they will need to escalate the matter to court where you will present your case
(But - be aware if it escalates to court and you are found guilty the resulting costs (court fine etc) will likely be more than the sum they are asking for now, plus you will have a criminal record which may have other impacts eg job applications / insurance costs when answering typical questions insurance companies ask about convictions - albeit a relatively minor offence it might be said)
So if you have evaded any of the fare for your journey then my advice would be to pay what they are asking for to stop this escalating to court
Given it's IRCAS that are involved here I would expect them to want to see clear evidence that you did not travel from London before they drop this, and will almost certainly happily escalate it to court if they think they can win that. They will certainly continue to tell you that is what they are going to do.
