Advice on west midland railway fine

[dxzz]

I got fined for not having a valid ticket on a West Midlands railway train and I gave my old address which I no longer live at anymore and a misspelled version of my name, I added an extra letter to my first name and took a letter off the end of my last name. I’m worried is there a way they can still track me down and issue me the fine or could I get away with it as they won’t be able to identify me

 

[AlterEgo]

Once that penalty fare goes unpaid, unappealed and unacknowlegded you'll be prosecuted in the magistrates court for a criminal offence. The bailiffs will then be able to track you down (very easily, it isn't like you gave them the Enigma code!) and force entry to your home to seize your property if you cannot pay the court fine.

So you had better pay the penalty fare, or, better still, upload a copy of it here with your name removed and we can see if it can be appealed for some reason.

 

[dxzz]

X

Once that penalty fare goes unpaid, unappealed and unacknowlegded you'll be prosecuted in the magistrates court for a criminal offence. The bailiffs will then be able to track you down (very easily, it isn't like you gave them the Enigma code!) and force entry to your home to seize your property if you cannot pay the court fine.

So you had better pay the penalty fare, or, better still, upload a copy of it here with your name removed and we can see if it can be appealed for some reason.

How would they track me down tho because I didn’t provide my correct address and my name was spelt incorrectly

 

[AlterEgo]

X

How would they track me down tho because I didn’t provide my correct address and my name was spelt incorrectly

Because that's not very hard. Your previous address will appear on things like your credit file or court-available databases and changing one letter of your name is not exactly sophisticated is it?

If your name is John Smith and you called yourself Jon Smit you don't have to be a genius to figure out who the person you want to find is. Especially when you gave your real previous address of which there will be records of a John Smith having lived there!

 

[MarlowDonkey]

I’m worried is there a way they can still track me down and issue me the fine or could I get away with it as they won’t be able to identify me

Did you mean a penalty fare as fines are only issued by courts of law following a successful prosecution?

If you buy tickets on your phone using Trainline or similar, that's fairly easy for them to track down.

Failure to pay the penalty fare can result in prosecution in your absence and a court imposed fine. Court bailiffs may well be expert in tracking people down to get them to pay up.

 

[dxzz]

Did you mean a penalty fare as fines are only issued by courts of law following a successful prosecution?

If you buy tickets on your phone using Trainline or similar, that's fairly easy for them to track down.

Failure to pay the penalty fare can result in prosecution in your absence and a court imposed fine. Court bailiffs may well be expert in tracking people down to get them to pay up.

No I don’t buy tickets on my phone and they didn’t check my ID or anything like that. The inspectors got on I didn’t have a ticket so they asked for my details, like I said I gave my old address and changed my name a bit so it’s not correct but it’s still quite similar to my real name which is why I’m worried. Do you think they will be able to track me down

 

[WesternLancer]

No I don’t buy tickets on my phone and they didn’t check my ID or anything like that. The inspectors got on I didn’t have a ticket so they asked for my details, like I said I gave my old address and changed my name a bit so it’s not correct but it’s still quite similar to my real name which is why I’m worried. Do you think they will be able to track me down

You’ve got the choice of resolving this for £50 now or possibly having court bailiffs find you at some point in future by which time it’s not £50 any more it’s more like £250 or even more as they will add all the costs if finding you on to this.

You can of course take the chance.
My advice would be close this down now by paying it.

Court bailiffs are very good at finding people.

 

[TheJester]

No I don’t buy tickets on my phone and they didn’t check my ID or anything like that. The inspectors got on I didn’t have a ticket so they asked for my details, like I said I gave my old address and changed my name a bit so it’s not correct but it’s still quite similar to my real name which is why I’m worried. Do you think they will be able to track me down

Good chance they’ll be able to track you down. For your peace of mind stop what you’re doing and buy correct tickets in future.
I’d pay the penalty fare before it gets expensive.

 

[6Gman]

No I don’t buy tickets on my phone and they didn’t check my ID or anything like that. The inspectors got on I didn’t have a ticket so they asked for my details, like I said I gave my old address and changed my name a bit so it’s not correct but it’s still quite similar to my real name which is why I’m worried. Do you think they will be able to track me down

Almost certainly, yes.

Just pay what you owe and don't do it again.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

...could I get away with it as they won’t be able to identify me...

You've got to ask yourself one question: "Do I feel lucky?"

 

[AlterEgo]

You’ve got the choice of resolving this for £50 now or possibly having court bailiffs find you at some point in future by which time it’s not £50 any more it’s more like £250

It'll be closer to £1000 if it goes to the magistrates, as it no doubt will if it is unresponded to.

 

[MarlowDonkey]

For your peace of mind stop what you’re doing and buy correct tickets in future.

I think the OP wasn't buying any tickets at all, so would always be caught if there's a ticket inspection. Presumably there were no gates at either end of the journey.