SWR Letter for Prosecution

[dodo07]

Hello everyone,

Thanks in advance for any advice.

On 18 June 2026, I travelled from Clapham Junction to Ascot. I had a Travelcard which covered my journey to Clapham Junction, and I purchased a separate ticket from Sunningdale to Ascot. Sunnigdale Station is just before Ascot Station.
When I arrived at Ascot, I was stopped by a Revenue Protection Officer. They checked my ticket and asked me from where I had actually started my journey. Firstly I got panicked and said I actually started from Sunningdale but when I understood the seriousness I told them honestly that I had travelled from Clapham Junction and had used my Travelcard to get there.
The Revenue Protection Officer issued me with a Travel Irregularity Report, with the reason stated as “short fare (Station block).”
Now Today I received the letter from SWR Prosecution department.
I fully understand the seriousness of the situation and want to deal with this properly. My request would be to resolve the matter by an out-of-court settlement and avoid court proceedings and asking for advice on my response to the letter i received today, which states.

On Thursday, 18 June 2026, a person giving the above name and address was questioned by a member of rail staff about an incident that occurred whilst on South Western Railway Limited property; Did travel on a Railway without having previously paid the fare with intent to avoid payment thereof.
Subsequently the matter has been reported to this office for further investigation.
All the evidence available is being considered as to whether legal proceedings are appropriate. If you consider that there are any mitigating factors or explanations that may influence any decision that may be made about this matter you are invited to respond, in writing or to prosecutions@swrailway.com, within 21 days of the date of this letter.
Please ensure that ALL details below are completed and returned to ensure our records are correct. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PAYMENT
Failure to respond to this letter will lead to the matter being progressed without further notification. If we do write to you again, we may seek a contribution to our costs of recovering the amount owed.

Yours sincerely,

Susan Gray
Debt Recovery and Prosecutions Manager

 

[ikcdab]

I'm not completely clear. Is this a return journey you are talking about? Or a single? Please say exactly what tickets or cards you held for the journeys.

 

[dodo07]

The ticket I bought from Trainpal (Sunnigdale to Ascot) was open return ticket. And the Travel card I used to travel in London zones 2-5 is The Key Card from Southestern.

 

[WesternLancer]

Hello everyone,

Thanks in advance for any advice.

On 18 June 2026, I travelled from Clapham Junction to Ascot. I had a Travelcard which covered my journey to Clapham Junction, and I purchased a separate ticket from Sunningdale to Ascot. Sunnigdale Station is just before Ascot Station.
When I arrived at Ascot, I was stopped by a Revenue Protection Officer. They checked my ticket and asked me from where I had actually started my journey. Firstly I got panicked and said I actually started from Sunningdale but when I understood the seriousness I told them honestly that I had travelled from Clapham Junction and had used my Travelcard to get there.
The Revenue Protection Officer issued me with a Travel Irregularity Report, with the reason stated as “short fare (Station block).”
Now Today I received the letter from SWR Prosecution department.
I fully understand the seriousness of the situation and want to deal with this properly. My request would be to resolve the matter by an out-of-court settlement and avoid court proceedings and asking for advice on my response to the letter i received today, which states.

On Thursday, 18 June 2026, a person giving the above name and address was questioned by a member of rail staff about an incident that occurred whilst on South Western Railway Limited property; Did travel on a Railway without having previously paid the fare with intent to avoid payment thereof.
Subsequently the matter has been reported to this office for further investigation.
All the evidence available is being considered as to whether legal proceedings are appropriate. If you consider that there are any mitigating factors or explanations that may influence any decision that may be made about this matter you are invited to respond, in writing or to prosecutions@swrailway.com, within 21 days of the date of this letter.
Please ensure that ALL details below are completed and returned to ensure our records are correct. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PAYMENT
Failure to respond to this letter will lead to the matter being progressed without further notification. If we do write to you again, we may seek a contribution to our costs of recovering the amount owed.

Yours sincerely,

Susan Gray
Debt Recovery and Prosecutions Manager

Welcome - this thread is one you might as well look over - advice in posts 23 and 24 on that thread sum up what you need to do / reply in response to the letter you have received.

Short fare travel irregularity report

Hello all, This morning, I was travelling from Byfleet and New Haw (BFN) 6.10am~ to Surbiton (SUR) [£6.70], I checked the ticket price around 5.40am and thought it was expensive so I decided to buy a ticket from on the SWR app from Walton on Thames (WAL) to Surbiton instead [£5.05]. I have...

www.railforums.co.uk

If you work on a draft response to their letter and post it here people will check it for you before you send it

Note that they will almost certainly check your ticket buying habits to look for other suspicious tickets that you have bought as part of their investigations.

also see this general advice often given on the forum - obviously you are part way into the process described here:

Firstly, you committed a criminal offence by travelling with an invalid ticket and railway companies are entitled to prosecute you in the Magistrates Court if they want to. The good news is they will normally offer an out of court settlement to people who co-operate with them and who haven't come to their attention before.

Next, what happens is the railway company will write to you. The letter will go to the address that you gave them / on any of your ID they checked so you need to be able to access hard copy post at that address as they often send things that way (but also check e-mail and spam). It is extremely important that you reply, and you'll only have a limited time to do so (often 14 days from the date on their communication).

When you receive the letter post a redacted copy of it in this thread, along with your draft reply and forum members will proof read it for you. You'll find lots of example letters you can use in this section of the forum but the reply basically needs to mention:

- That you are sorry for what has happened
- What you have learned from the incident and will not do this again
- That you are keen to settle the matter without the need for court action
- Offer to pay the outstanding fare and the railway company’s administrative costs in dealing with the matter

The railway will probably offer you an out of court settlement. Expect to have to pay the cost of the fare for the journey you made at the full Anytime rate with no credit given for the invalid ticket you purchased. In addition they will charge an admin fee, typically £150. They will also audit your online ticket purchase history and if this shows you've purchased other tickets that were not valid (eg railcard discounted tickets when you did not have a valid railcard, or tickets for only part of the journey, or tickets bought after boarding the train you travelled on ) they will probably factor the cost of these journeys into the settlement offer. Depending on how many journeys you've made over the period concerned this could end up being expensive.

Settlements usually have to be paid in full within a few days of them being offered so if money is tight you might want to think about how you will raise the sum required at short notice.

 

[dodo07]

My response to this letter is this, please tell me if anything comes of wrong. I have also attached the letter with this, little confused what will be 21st day like on letter the date is 31st july written.

Dear Prosecutions Team,

Reference:
I am writing to respond to your letter dated 31st July 2016 regarding the incident from Sunnigdale to Ascot.

I am truly sorry regarding my decision to purchase a short fare ticket, I acknowledge that I travelled beyond the validity of my ticket and that is unfair to the other train users, and to the revenue lost by the train company.

This will not happen again. I fully understand the importance of holding a valid ticket for the entire journey and since the incident I now make sure to pay the full fare.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to respond. I would like to respectfully ask whether this matter could be resolved without court proceedings. I would be grateful for the opportunity to pay the outstanding fare and any administrative costs required to settle the matter.

Once again I sincerely apologise for the incident.
Yours faithfully,

 

[Trainman40083]

Best change the date to 2026. That said, I don't think I would be surprised if a letter took 10 years to arrive

 

[dodo07]

Best change the date to 2026. That said, I don't think I would be surprised if a letter took 10 years to arrive

Oh wrongly typed, it’s done now.
Other than this mistake does it read ok ?

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 17 Aug 2026 ==

Oh wrongly typed, it’s done now.
Other than this mistake does it read ok ?

And what will be the subject (Heading) in the email

 

[SECR 65]

In my opinion your letter is generally good.

Others may have more detailed feedback; personally there are no specific bits I would change.

 

[dodo07]

My response to this letter is this, please tell me if anything comes of wrong. I have also attached the letter with this, little confused what will be 21st day like on letter the date is 31st july written.

Dear Prosecutions Team,

Reference:
I am writing to respond to your letter dated 31st July 2016 regarding the incident from Sunnigdale to Ascot.

I am truly sorry regarding my decision to purchase a short fare ticket, I acknowledge that I travelled beyond the validity of my ticket and that is unfair to the other train users, and to the revenue lost by the train company.

This will not happen again. I fully understand the importance of holding a valid ticket for the entire journey and since the incident I now make sure to pay the full fare.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to respond. I would like to respectfully ask whether this matter could be resolved without court proceedings. I would be grateful for the opportunity to pay the outstanding fare and any administrative costs required to settle the matter.

Once again I sincerely apologise for the incident.
Yours faithfully,

Just amend a little bit, if you kindly check as I don’t want any legal proceedings I just want to end this matter out of court.

Dear Prosecutions Team,

Reference:

I am writing in response to your letter dated 31 July 2026 regarding the incident on 18 June 2026.

I sincerely apologise for my decision to purchase a short-fare ticket. I acknowledge that I travelled beyond the validity of my ticket, and I fully understand that this was unfair to other passengers who pay the correct fare and resulted in a loss of revenue to the railway company.

I deeply regret my decision and accept responsibility for my actions. I fully understand the importance of holding a valid ticket for the entire journey, and I can assure you that this will not happen again. Since the incident, I have made sure that I pay the correct fare for my journeys.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to respond. I would respectfully ask whether you would consider resolving this matter without court proceedings. I would be very grateful for the opportunity to pay the outstanding fare and any administrative costs required to settle the matter.

Once again, I sincerely apologise for the incident and respectfully ask that you consider my request to resolve this matter without further legal proceedings.

Please find personal details.

Yours faithfully,

 

[WesternLancer]

Just amend a little bit, if you kindly check as I don’t want any legal proceedings I just want to end this matter out of court.

Dear Prosecutions Team,

Reference:

I am writing in response to your letter dated 31 July 2026 regarding the incident on 18 June 2026.

I sincerely apologise for my decision to purchase a short-fare ticket. I acknowledge that I travelled beyond the validity of my ticket, and I fully understand that this was unfair to other passengers who pay the correct fare and resulted in a loss of revenue to the railway company.

I deeply regret my decision and accept responsibility for my actions. I fully understand the importance of holding a valid ticket for the entire journey, and I can assure you that this will not happen again. Since the incident, I have made sure that I pay the correct fare for my journeys.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to respond. I would respectfully ask whether you would consider resolving this matter without court proceedings. I would be very grateful for the opportunity to pay the outstanding fare and any administrative costs required to settle the matter.

Once again, I sincerely apologise for the incident and respectfully ask that you consider my request to resolve this matter without further legal proceedings.

Please find personal details.

Yours faithfully,

This looks OK to send back to the railway company to me - along with the other info they want eg full name and address etc - which of course do not share here.

 

[SECR 65]

Just amend a little bit, if you kindly check as I don’t want any legal proceedings I just want to end this matter out of court.

Dear Prosecutions Team,

Reference:

I am writing in response to your letter dated 31 July 2026 regarding the incident on 18 June 2026.

I sincerely apologise for my decision to purchase a short-fare ticket. I acknowledge that I travelled beyond the validity of my ticket, and I fully understand that this was unfair to other passengers who pay the correct fare and resulted in a loss of revenue to the railway company.

I deeply regret my decision and accept responsibility for my actions. I fully understand the importance of holding a valid ticket for the entire journey, and I can assure you that this will not happen again. Since the incident, I have made sure that I pay the correct fare for my journeys.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to respond. I would respectfully ask whether you would consider resolving this matter without court proceedings. I would be very grateful for the opportunity to pay the outstanding fare and any administrative costs required to settle the matter.

Once again, I sincerely apologise for the incident and respectfully ask that you consider my request to resolve this matter without further legal proceedings.

Please find personal details.

Yours faithfully,

Yea, this amended draft looks good. In my opinion it is a well written letter and reads smoothly.

 

[dodo07]

Just to give an update, I was offered an out-of-court settlement and I paid it immediately. So this matter is finally closed.
Thanks to everyone who gave advice, it helped a lot and was greatly appreciated.

 

[SECR 65]

That's great to hear; thanks for coming back to update us!

Would you be happy to share roughly what you were charged for in the settlement, especially any administration fee? No worries if you'd rather not say.