Help with GTR intention to prosecute letter reply/appeal.

[katcoco]

Hi, I was caught on board with the incorrect train ticket when travelling 2 months ago. My ticket was valid from East Croydon to Preston Park, and I had purchased it on board after entering the barriers at London Bridge using my contactless card. I panicked when questioned and basically told the team member questioning me that I had gotten on at East Croydon and that the reason I hadn't scanned my ticket was due to the barriers being open.

It is my first offence, and I am unsure of how to go about replying. I have read some other posts in this thread and drafted a response. Would someone be able to assist me with cleaning it up and letting me know if I have got the correct stance and included all relevant information? Thanks in advance!

DRAFT:
Dear Govia Thameslink Railway Prosecutions Department,

I am writing in response to your Intention to Prosecute letter dated ---

Firstly, I would like to sincerely apologise for my actions and for the inconvenience caused to your revenue protection staff and prosecution team.

On ---, I boarded the train at London Bridge without first obtaining the correct ticket for my journey. After the train had departed, I made the wrong decision to purchase a ticket from East Croydon rather than from my actual boarding station. I fully accept that this was dishonest and that I should have had a valid ticket before travelling.

When I was questioned by the Revenue Protection Officer, I did not properly explain what had happened. Looking back, I deeply regret both my decision to purchase the incorrect ticket and my failure to fully explain the circumstances when asked. I am genuinely ashamed of how I dealt with the situation.

I understand that being in a rush does not excuse my actions. It was entirely my responsibility to ensure I had the correct ticket before beginning my journey, and I accept full responsibility for my mistake. Since this incident, I have made sure to always purchase the correct ticket before travelling so that this cannot happen again.

I have never been in trouble for anything like this before. I work as a nursery practitioner while studying for my degree, and a criminal conviction would have a significant impact on both my career and future opportunities.

I respectfully ask whether you would consider allowing me to resolve this matter without court proceedings. I am more than willing to pay the full outstanding fare from London Bridge to Preston Park, together with any reasonable administrative costs incurred by Govia Thameslink Railway.

I fully appreciate the seriousness of my actions and sincerely regret my poor judgment. I can assure you this was an isolated incident and will not be repeated.

Thank you for taking the time to consider my response.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 6 Jul 2026 ==

They don't know that the station I boarded the train on was London Bridge; however, they are aware that it wasn't East Croydon, as this was why the revenue protection officer flagged me onboard.

 

[tatitiliti]

Hi, I was caught on board with the incorrect train ticket when travelling 2 months ago. My ticket was valid from East Croydon to Preston Park, and I had purchased it on board after entering the barriers at London Bridge using my contactless card. I panicked when questioned and basically told the team member questioning me that I had gotten on at East Croydon and that the reason I hadn't scanned my ticket was due to the barriers being open.

It is my first offence, and I am unsure of how to go about replying. I have read some other posts in this thread and drafted a response. Would someone be able to assist me with cleaning it up and letting me know if I have got the correct stance and included all relevant information? Thanks in advance!

DRAFT:
Dear Govia Thameslink Railway Prosecutions Department,

I am writing in response to your Intention to Prosecute letter dated ---

Firstly, I would like to sincerely apologise for my actions and for the inconvenience caused to your revenue protection staff and prosecution team.

On ---, I boarded the train at London Bridge without first obtaining the correct ticket for my journey. After the train had departed, I made the wrong decision to purchase a ticket from East Croydon rather than from my actual boarding station. I fully accept that this was dishonest and that I should have had a valid ticket before travelling.

When I was questioned by the Revenue Protection Officer, I did not properly explain what had happened. Looking back, I deeply regret both my decision to purchase the incorrect ticket and my failure to fully explain the circumstances when asked. I am genuinely ashamed of how I dealt with the situation.

I understand that being in a rush does not excuse my actions. It was entirely my responsibility to ensure I had the correct ticket before beginning my journey, and I accept full responsibility for my mistake. Since this incident, I have made sure to always purchase the correct ticket before travelling so that this cannot happen again.

I have never been in trouble for anything like this before. I work as a nursery practitioner while studying for my degree, and a criminal conviction would have a significant impact on both my career and future opportunities.

I respectfully ask whether you would consider allowing me to resolve this matter without court proceedings. I am more than willing to pay the full outstanding fare from London Bridge to Preston Park, together with any reasonable administrative costs incurred by Govia Thameslink Railway.

I fully appreciate the seriousness of my actions and sincerely regret my poor judgment. I can assure you this was an isolated incident and will not be repeated.

Thank you for taking the time to consider my response.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 6 Jul 2026 ==

They don't know that the station I boarded the train on was London Bridge; however, they are aware that it wasn't East Croydon, as this was why the revenue protection officer flagged me onboard.

Where exactly were you checked and exactly which point on your journey did you buy the e-ticket (i.e. when is the timestamp?)?

Unless I’ve read incorrectly, depending on your answers to those two questions above, you may not have committed an offence, provided the ticket from East Croydon to Preston Park was purchased before the train departed East Croydon. Valid ticket for travel from London Bridge to East Croydon (contactless) and valid ticket for travel from East Croydon to Preston Park (e-ticket). RPI obviously got suspicious that East Croydon to Preston Park wasn’t scanned in though this is not required for it to be valid.

 

[SECR 65]

Would the lack of contactless tap-out at East Croydon mean that a maximum fare was charged - would this still make the payment valid? But presumably the ticket was valid at the point of boarding. As @tatitiliti has said, if I'm understanding your record of events correctly, then no offence has been committed.

However, I'll make some suggestions about your letter. Make sure it does accurately reflect what happened. If you did tap in with contactless, then tell them this, and attempt to get them to drop the matter.

Dear Govia Thameslink Railway Prosecutions Department,

I am writing in response to your Intention to Prosecute letter dated ---

Firstly, I would like to sincerely apologise for my actions and for the inconvenience caused to your revenue protection staff and prosecution team and for travelling without a valid ticket.

On ---, I boarded the train at London Bridge without first obtaining the correct ticket for my journey. After the train had departed, I made the wrong decision to purchase a ticket from East Croydon rather than from my actual boarding station. I fully accept that this was dishonest and that I should have had a valid ticket before travelling.

When I was questioned by the Revenue Protection Officer, I did not properly explain what had happened. Looking back, I deeply regret both my decision to purchase the incorrect ticket and my failure to fully explain the circumstances when asked. I am genuinely ashamed of how I dealt with the situation.

I understand that being in a rush does not excuse my actions. It was entirely my responsibility to ensure I had the correct ticket before beginning my journey, and I accept full responsibility for my mistake. Since this incident, I have made sure to always purchase the correct ticket before travelling so that this cannot happen again.

I have never been in trouble for anything like this before. I work as a nursery practitioner while studying for my degree, and a criminal conviction would have a significant impact on both my career and future opportunities.

I respectfully ask whether you would consider allowing me to resolve this matter without court proceedings. I am more than willing to pay the full outstanding fare from London Bridge to Preston Park, together with any reasonable administrative costs incurred by Govia Thameslink Railway.

I fully appreciate the seriousness of my actions and sincerely regret my poor judgment. I can assure you this was an isolated incident and will not be repeated.

Thank you for taking the time to consider my response.

 

[WesternLancer]

Would the lack of contactless tap-out at East Croydon mean that a maximum fare was charged - would this still make the payment valid? But presumably the ticket was valid at the point of boarding. As @tatitiliti has said, if I'm understanding your record of events correctly, then no offence has been committed.

However, I'll make some suggestions about your letter. Make sure it does accurately reflect what happened. If you did tap in with contactless, then tell them this, and attempt to get them to drop the matter.

Good advice being given here to the OP and by @tatitiliti

Whilst I suspect the OP did actually intend some sort of fare evasion (and statistics tell us it won't have been the first time...) and Preston Park is another red flag evasion point to avoid barriers at Brighton (@katcoco do you genuinely live close to Preston Park? if so fair enough but it will help your story if you have an address that supports that when you gave your details) - so I suspect the staff thought this was potential evasion and reported it for investigation as a consequence (although the fare East Croydon on Preston Park isn't that much different from London Bridge to Brighton fare)

But

Yes, important to establish of the OP did in fact have a valid ticket(s) which they may not have realised and thus not been able to show that to the inspector - because if so the response to GTR needs to be a differently worded one to set that out clearly so they know this - so if the OP gives more detail on their tickets we can check that for them

However
Ref suggested amends to the draft, if that ends up needed ti be sent - I agree with the edits from @SECR 65 - but would suggest reversing the order of these two paragraphs towards the end

ie move this towards the end

I respectfully ask whether you would consider allowing me to resolve this matter without court proceedings. I am more than willing to pay the full outstanding fare from London Bridge to Preston Park, together with any reasonable administrative costs incurred by Govia Thameslink Railway.

and put this paragraph above the one commencing 'I respectfully ask...'

I fully appreciate the seriousness of my actions and sincerely regret my poor judgment. I can assure you this was an isolated incident and will not be repeated.

This is because when busy people read these sorts of things they will skim to the end to find out what the writer is asking for / seeking - so leave that request (the most important part of the letter seeking the out of court settlement) as the last or virtually last thing they read before the sign off ('thanks and your sincerely' etc ) at the end.

 

[katcoco]

Hi, Thanks for all the help! My closest station really is Preston Park, and my address supports this, so hopefully that will be okay.

I'm not sure if the ticket from East Croydon was purchased before or after the station stop, but I'm pretty certain it was before, as I was checking the arrival time of the train I was on and it wouldn't have allowed me to purchase it if it was past the station. I was checked at Gatwick Airport. I can't find any proof of my contactless journey and therefore am unsure if they will accept this.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 7 Jul 2026 ==

Due to not having evidence of my contactless journey - tapping in at London Bridge - would it be better to say something along the lines of
"I boarded the train at London Bridge without holding the correct ticket for my journey. After the train had departed, I made the wrong decision to purchase a ticket from East Croydon instead. I fully accept that this was dishonest and that I should have had the correct ticket before boarding."

 

[SECR 65]

Just to clarify, the reason the timing of the ticket purchase is important is that a ticket purchased after departure from East Croydon would not be valid.

 

[katcoco]

Yes, completely. I will check now, however, due to the lack of proof supporting my contactless entrance at london bridge, would it be better to not mention the means of entering those barriers as I dont want to give them further details for which I cannot support.

Regardless if my train journey was valid due to the ticket via contactless from LB to EC and then through the purchase of my second ticket from EC to PP, I am more interested in having this over with and would rather just pay a settlement than have to go through a back and forth and try to find the contactless journey - which as of now, I cannot.

Just to clarify, the reason the timing of the ticket purchase is important is that a ticket purchased after departure from East Croydon would not be valid.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 7 Jul 2026 ==

This response is maybe what I will go with as it doesnt detail any further information for which I cannot prove and I just want this to hopefully be done with, even if that means paying a fee.

Would the lack of contactless tap-out at East Croydon mean that a maximum fare was charged - would this still make the payment valid? But presumably the ticket was valid at the point of boarding. As @tatitiliti has said, if I'm understanding your record of events correctly, then no offence has been committed.

However, I'll make some suggestions about your letter. Make sure it does accurately reflect what happened. If you did tap in with contactless, then tell them this, and attempt to get them to drop the matter

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 7 Jul 2026 ==

Is this likely to be accepted as an out-of-court settlement due to it being my first time offending? I have been so worried about the whole thing since it happened and am terrified of further action being taken

 

[tatitiliti]

Hi, Thanks for all the help! My closest station really is Preston Park, and my address supports this, so hopefully that will be okay.

I'm not sure if the ticket from East Croydon was purchased before or after the station stop, but I'm pretty certain it was before, as I was checking the arrival time of the train I was on and it wouldn't have allowed me to purchase it if it was past the station. I was checked at Gatwick Airport. I can't find any proof of my contactless journey and therefore am unsure if they will accept this.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 7 Jul 2026 ==

Due to not having evidence of my contactless journey - tapping in at London Bridge - would it be better to say something along the lines of
"I boarded the train at London Bridge without holding the correct ticket for my journey. After the train had departed, I made the wrong decision to purchase a ticket from East Croydon instead. I fully accept that this was dishonest and that I should have had the correct ticket before boarding."

Check the time you received the email for the e-ticket (or the time the transaction went through on your bank statement) and then the departure time of your train from East Croydon.

If the ticket was purchased prior to departure from East Croydon and you’re sure of it, you should tell them the truth and save your self a couple of hundred quid having to settle or risking further investigations on your account. For the latter reason, I’d be reluctant to confess to something I hadn’t done.

Having said that, if you genuinely can’t find any evidence of your contactless transaction anyway, then it may be a hard sell to GTR and it may be simplest to just pay up.

 

[rmHawk765]

Is this likely to be accepted as an out-of-court settlement due to it being my first time offending?

GTR almost always settle out-of-court.

Theoretically, though, if the ticket was purchased before departure from East Croydon, the only fare that should be charged is a maximum contactless fare as you did not tap out. But it would be difficult to prove this to GTR.

 

[katcoco]

I have found the receipt, and the ticket from East Croydon was purchased after departing the station as far as I can work out. I am not 100% sure, as the ticket was an anytime day single and i've tried to match it with the time found on my witness recipt thing given by the revenue officer at the time but I can't be 100% sure.
I have had a real search for the contactless payment, but I am unable to find it and therefore wouldn't be able to prove this to GTR and might just end up in a back and forth which I really dont want.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 7 Jul 2026 ==

With only a few days left to reply, I am considering just sending forward the above reply and accepting the fine which will inccur.

 

[SECR 65]

If you are unable or unwilling to prove your innocence in the methods outlined above, then you could just send the revised draft above as per my and @WesternLancer 's suggestions.

You are highly likely to achieve an out of court settlement for the anytime single fare between London Bridge (£37.80) plus an admin fee, maybe £80, but could be more e.g. £150. That should resolve the matter.

 

[MotCO]

I have had a real search for the contactless payment, but I am unable to find it and therefore wouldn't be able to prove this to GTR

If you used a debit card, there would be an entry on your bank statement; if you paid by credit card, it would be on your credit card statement. They may not show the time of purchase but it would show you had purchased a ticket, and without tappping out, it would be the maximum charge. You can get copy statements on line or from your bank.

On the other hand, if you did not use contactless to enter at London Bridge, there would be no entry on your statements........

 

[katcoco]

The thing is, I get the tube and travel with contactless a lot. I often reach the daily cap when I'm in London, so I'm not sure how to distinguish between individual transactions. Around the time of this occurrence, I have multiple TFL travel charges... however, there is no way for me to identify the correct one and further for it to be proven (due to the inconsistencies between travel dates and travel charges) that any of them were indeed for when I tapped in at London Bridge on this occasion.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 7 Jul 2026 ==

If you are unable or unwilling to prove your innocence in the methods outlined above, then you could just send the revised draft above as per my and @WesternLancer 's suggestions.

You are highly likely to achieve an out of court settlement for the anytime single fare between London Bridge (£37.80) plus an admin fee, maybe £80, but could be more e.g. £150. That should resolve the matter.

should I add evidence of my ticket from East Croydon to Preston Park or is this unnecessary due to it being invalid?

 

[SECR 65]

should I add evidence of my ticket from East Croydon to Preston Park or is this unnecessary due to it being invalid?

I can't see the point, if it was purchased after the train departed East Croydon.

 

[WesternLancer]

Hi, Thanks for all the help! My closest station really is Preston Park, and my address supports this, so hopefully that will be okay.

That's good - and my apols for suggesting it was therefore suspicious. In my defence we see a few Preston Park evasion cases on here from time to time. I should be more trusting

The thing is, I get the tube and travel with contactless a lot. I often reach the daily cap when I'm in London, so I'm not sure how to distinguish between individual transactions. Around the time of this occurrence, I have multiple TFL travel charges... however, there is no way for me to identify the correct one and further for it to be proven (due to the inconsistencies between travel dates and travel charges) that any of them were indeed for when I tapped in at London Bridge on this occasion.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 7 Jul 2026 ==


should I add evidence of my ticket from East Croydon to Preston Park or is this unnecessary due to it being invalid?

I assume you can register your contactless payment cards with TfL and then get the associated travel records that link to the payments - not sure how far back this then goes for you to access - I don't use contactless, just Oyster, so I don't personally know what it shows on a contactless account record

But you may not get what you need - you could say in your reply along the lines of 'I believe that I had commenced my journey with a contactless payment card tap in at London Bridge, and then purchased a ticket for onward travel from east Croydon whilst on board the train' *
But this has to be 100% true - do not lie over anything because the process is a pathway to court (worst case scenario) and lying will make things come unstuck

So you may want to avoid going down this route at all - or you may want to blend it with your earlier draft, including the suggested edits to it above.

It has to be you call.

In all of this I think you would get a settlement based on GTR usuals processes and approach - tho no one can ever 100% guarantee that

*edit - I now note this was bought after East Croydon stop so may not be relevant
(but doesn't contactless extend to Gatwick Airport? - or is this not relevant)

 

[SECR 65]

(but doesn't contactless extend to Gatwick Airport? - or is this not relevant)

Ahah! I suppose this means the OP you had a valid ticket! You might be ok after all!

 

[WesternLancer]

Ahah! I suppose this means the OP you had a valid ticket! You might be ok after all!

I’ve not checked if I am correct.

 

[tatitiliti]

If you are unable or unwilling to prove your innocence in the methods outlined above, then you could just send the revised draft above as per my and @WesternLancer 's suggestions.

You are highly likely to achieve an out of court settlement for the anytime single fare between London Bridge (£37.80) plus an admin fee, maybe £80, but could be more e.g. £150. That should resolve the matter.

Agree with this at this point

 

[furlong]

Register the card on the TfL website to see the journey history.

 

[tatitiliti]

(but doesn't contactless extend to Gatwick Airport? - or is this not relevant)

Ah, yes - this is probably your best line of defence!

 

[katcoco]

hi,

Just an update: they closed my case with no further action!
thanks for the help

 

[tatitiliti]

hi,

Just an update: they closed my case with no further action!
thanks for the help

A good outcome, thanks for letting us know!

Was this after you wrote to/contacted them?

 

[katcoco]

A good outcome, thanks for letting us know!

Was this after you wrote to/contacted them?

Yes, this was after I wrote to them!

 

[WesternLancer]

Yes, this was after I wrote to them!

Well done.