Cross Country ITAL Settlement Offer - help requested!

[Starmill]

The CPS website suggests that normally the date of the alleged offence isn't counted for the purposes of the six month time limit on the charge, if it applies. Either way, they still appear to be out of time...

If you were actually charged last Monday or before you should have heard by now... but of course a delay is a possibility.

 

[AlterEgo]

Thanks - having any kind of criminal record would be extremely negative for me due to my profession which requires enhanced DBS checks and has strict criminal declaration requirements. Paying their settlement amount to avoid a potential criminal record, if that's a realistic prospect, would be massively favourable in that context.

I think what I should do is:

1. Contact them, pointing out the evidence of the ticket purchase.
2. Ask them if they have started any proceedings with the magistrate.

If they dont respond by their deadline date I may have to bite the bullet and just pay this to get it dealt with though.

No, don't pay these feckless toerags anything. They had their six months. You paid for your ticket and they didn't suffer any loss.

And don't ask them if they've started proceedings; they'd have told you if they had (or you'd be receiving a SJPN or summons soon anyway) and their correspondence says that the payment is to "prevent" legal proceedings. Which they have not started.

They're writing to you one day after expiry because that is all they can do at this point, and they can take a long walk off a short pier for their money. You owe nothing; in a civil court they'd need to evidence their loss, which is - nothing.

These people at ITAL are losers and bullies and it is they who are in the weak position here, not you.

 

[Kite159]

And all this hassle would have been avoided if the XC guard had the ability (or willingness) to print of the tickets on the train as a TOD Recall, people do forget to print tickets off, especially if they are used to having it as e-tickets (i.e. if they have made a cycle reservation or it's one of those flows where for various reasons e-tickets haven't been enabled)

Cases like this give the railway a bad name, they have suffered no loss (from what I can gather, the tickets haven't been automatically refunded by Trainline).

 

[WesternLancer]

We know this can (and has on the forum I’m pretty sure) work with companies like GTR and I believe Northern, but we generally see IRCAS take a much harder line and overall seem very happy to prosecute people, whereas other companies try to avoid it or at least give people a good chance at avoiding it.

Good points.

Actually not sure we’ve seen a lot of evidence of ital- IRCAS actually prosecuting people more than other cases we get on here with other train companies. But they do have a habit if repeatedly threatening to do it.

Ie they are certainly tougher in their rhetoric. But that’s not quite the same thing.

 

[Skiddaw]

And all this hassle would have been avoided if the XC guard had the ability (or willingness) to print of the tickets on the train as a TOD Recall, people do forget to print tickets off, especially if they are used to having it as e-tickets (i.e. if they have made a cycle reservation or it's one of those flows where for various reasons e-tickets haven't been enabled)

Cases like this give the railway a bad name, they have suffered no loss (from what I can gather, the tickets haven't been automatically refunded by Trainline).

I absolutely agree.

Happened to me once on a TPE between Penrith & Carlisle. I was certain I had an e-ticket as is usually the case and I still have no idea why it had defaulted to collect ticket at station. The train manager couldn't have been kinder- printed off my tickets for me there and then.

 

[Starmill]

I absolutely agree.

Happened to me once on a TPE between Penrith & Carlisle. I was certain I had an e-ticket as is usually the case and I still have no idea why it had defaulted to collect ticket at station. The train manager couldn't have been kinder- printed off my tickets for me there and then.

Indeed. It has been common across a range of different operators for over a decade to be able to recall ToDs onboard the train, and is something regularly done in the real world, as you found.

 

[father_jack]

And all this hassle would have been avoided if the XC guard had the ability (or willingness) to print of the tickets on the train as a TOD Recall, people do forget to print tickets off, especially if they are used to having it as e-tickets (i.e. if they have made a cycle reservation or it's one of those flows where for various reasons e-tickets haven't been enabled)

The guard couldn't have printed the TOD- because the ticket was one of LNER's single leg pricing tickets with a maltese cross/"via London" marker on it, although the reservations were on the XC normal route. The PRT (Paper roll ticket) wouldn't have worked on the underground- it would have to be a CCST (Credit card sized ticket) printer which guards don't (or no longer) carry. An unintended consequence of that system and really the whole reason for the whole issue here.

 

[Starmill]

The guard couldn't have printed the TOD- because the ticket was one of LNER's single leg pricing tickets with a maltese cross/"via London" marker on it, although the reservations were on the XC normal route. The PRT (Paper roll ticket) wouldn't have worked on the underground- it would have to be a CCST (Credit card sized ticket) printer which guards don't (or no longer) carry. An unintended consequence of that system and really the whole reason for the whole issue here.

Not really. It was CrossCountry's free choice to not offer a printer type that can issue such tickets. I recently bought a ticket from a conductor on a Southeastern train and it was on credit card sized ticket stock, even though the ticket type could be issued on paper roll.

 

[saismee]

The guard couldn't have printed the TOD- because the ticket was one of LNER's single leg pricing tickets with a maltese cross/"via London" marker on it, although the reservations were on the XC normal route. The PRT (Paper roll ticket) wouldn't have worked on the underground- it would have to be a CCST (Credit card sized ticket) printer which guards don't (or no longer) carry. An unintended consequence of that system and really the whole reason for the whole issue here.

Conductors on GA have both printers, and some conductors refuse to use the PRT one for returns as the quality of the paper is atrocious. Removing the CCST printer is silly. What if someone wants to buy a cross-London ticket?

 

[father_jack]

Conductors on GA have both printers, and some conductors refuse to use the PRT one for returns as the quality of the paper is atrocious. Removing the CCST printer is silly. What if someone wants to buy a cross-London ticket?

You choose "TOD" on the ticket issuing system when doing the sale and the customer gets a receipt that acts as authority to travel to the first location with a ticket vending machine.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 1 Apr 2026 ==

Not really. It was CrossCountry's free choice to not offer a printer type that can issue such tickets. I recently bought a ticket from a conductor on a Southeastern train and it was on credit card sized ticket stock, even though the ticket type could be issued on paper roll.

It was a financial choice by the further away from London TOCs to have PRT only.

 

[Starmill]

It was a financial choice by the further away from London TOCs to have PRT only.

Indeed. Not a 'hard' problem, but one of their own making. They moved away from the fulfilment method deliberately.

 

[ticketunmaster]

UPDATE: I emailed ITAL to robustly reiterate the facts of the case and to ask whether they had already started initiated any legal proceedings. I have now received a reply from them stating:

"Thank you for your email. Your case is currently under review and we will be in touch once this has been completed. It will remain on hold during this time. Kind regards"

I will update the forum if and when i receive any further reply.