Accidentally Used my Daughters Oyster Card then showed the Ticket man Basically turning myself In

bobo ononanann · 8 Jul 2026

Hey
The other day I was taking my daughter to the BTS concert by train i’m not aware of the routes or anything as I don’t travel a lot by train maybe once a month so I tapped my own bank Card and she tapped her oyster we went to the tottenham court station where we thought the concert was turns out it was in tottenham hotspot station like i said i’m not familiar with the routes or anything so we got kinda lost for a bit and very confused finally reached the stadium i took all her belongings like oyster card wallet and the back pack she was carrying as it wasn’t allowed into the stadium and i didn’t want her losing anything this is the first time i’ve left my daughter alone especially for a concert so on the way back i got lost again trying to find my way to a station and get back home it was also rush hour and there was a lot of people so finally after 20-30 mins i found a station and I was already worried about my daughter and then as I was trying to get onto the next train instead of getting my bank card out of my bag I’m accidentally grabbed for my daughters oyster the train had arrived so i quickly ran to catch it and only didn’t realise then when i looked down that it was her oyster in my hand I got to barking station which is the second closest to me i’m normally closer to ilford and that’s where we left from so getting home was a long journey so i got to the station and there was a line at the stairs and there was an inspector checking tickets when it was my turn i showed him my daughters card and tried to explain but they wouldn’t listen i even offered to show them my bank statements on the app showing them i always pay for my own fares ive never done this before ive never had history with the tfl nothing this is the first time this happened and i practically turned myself in there was like three police officers around me and two tfl people i was cornered i told them that i would cooperate with everything they wanted and tried explaining that it was a mistake but they just asked for my details and told me that i’ll get a letter i’m now traumatized and anxiously waiting for my letter i don’t know how long it will take but everytime i see tfl train or bus i freeze i was all alone at this time i thought they would let me explain but nothing now im not sure what to do im waiting for the letter they barely said anything at the station i will pay any fine i just dont want to go to court i keep wishing i didnt take the train and drove there can anyone give me any advice help or anything or what they think might happen?? It really was an honest mistake and i can show them my bank and how ive had many transactions with tfl myself i can show them the concert tickets that she did in fact go for that and there is proof i tapped in with my own card i always have bus train everything im really scared and this event just keeps repeating in my head i cant sleep eat drink nothing properly

RailUK Forums

1dohg · 8 Jul 2026

This is a gigantic wall of text. Perhaps you could edit it with paragraphs to help people more easily read it?

I'll be the bearer of bad news and say that TfL don't settle out of court and will prosecute the vast majority of cases, especially those involving the use of passes you aren't entitled to use.

It has been known for TfL to issue final warning letters, though this is usually achieved by engaging a solicitor and having them send correspondence on your behalf. This can be expensive (think just under £1000) and is not guaranteed to succeed.

Thebaz · 8 Jul 2026

Hello, and welcome to the forum.

First things first - please try not to panic, what's done is done and it's out of your hands until you receive the letter. When the letter arrives come back to the forum and upload a redacted version of the letter so our experts can see exactly what happened. Unfortunately if this is TFL they almost always prosecute, but it is possible to be let off with a warning by using a specialist solicitor to handle your case. Many people recommend the use of Manak solictors, but there are also other options. But don't worry, even if convicted you will not go to prison and your life will not be ruined. A conviction for fare evasion is a relatively minor criminal record which will be 'spent' after a year. As I said, hang tight for now and wait for the letter. You will get through this.

bobo ononanann · 8 Jul 2026

Thank you so so much I'll wait and keep you updated. Thank you

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 8 Jul 2026 ==

1dohg said:
This is a gigantic wall of text. Perhaps you could edit it with paragraphs to help people more easily read it?

I'll be the bearer of bad news and say that TfL don't settle out of court and will prosecute the vast majority of cases, especially those involving the use of passes you aren't entitled to use.

It has been known for TfL to issue final warning letters, though this is usually achieved by engaging a solicitor and having them send correspondence on your behalf. This can be expensive (think just under £1000) and is not guaranteed to succeed.

When do you think I should contact a solicitor?

SECR 65 · 8 Jul 2026

Hi there,

As alluded to above, TfL do prosecute in a lot of fare evasion cases. However, that's not the end of the world. Recently, we've seen a number of cases where the involvement of a specialist fare evasion solicitor has resulted in securing a final warning. I'll paste a list of solictors previously used on the forum before (note that I have no connection with any of the firms). Even being taken to court isn't that scary. There isn't much you can do until the letter arrives, so try not to panic if you can at all help it. I would suggest that you get in contact with one of the firms below - they may be able to offer you a free consultaion. Beyond that, for them to 'deal' with TfL, you could be talking in the region of £500-£1000. The top firm, Manak, has been used most often by members in the past few months, and they also have an account on the forum. This is by no means me endorsing their services. You can read comments from other forum members who have used these firms and spoken favourably about them.

Manak Solicitors

Fare Evasion Solicitors | Kent & London | Manak Solicitors

manaksolicitors.co.uk

Makwanas

Fare Evasion Solicitors London | High Success Rate | TFL Solicitors

www.makwanas.co.uk

http://www.grayhooperholt.co.uk/default.asp?id=30

https://penmansedgwick.com/fare-evasion/

Egg Centric · 9 Jul 2026

bobo ononanann said:
When do you think I should contact a solicitor?

If you are minded to use one, then sooner rather than later, and it should be a specialist. If you are representing yourself to us honestly then based on the successes we've seen you've a better chance with TfL than most high value pass evaders I reckon. Please keep us updated with the final disposal.

NB that a bylaw conviction is unlikely to be the end of the world and using a solicitor will not be cheap. You should assess the impact (or lack thereof) upon you that a conviction would have before choosing to go down that route. Generally only those in regulated professions, with security vetting, or on a visa of some kind need to be even slightly concerned (and usually not even then with the first two, as a matter of forum policy we don't comment on the third one).

6Gman · 9 Jul 2026

bobo ononanann said:
Hey
The other day I was taking my daughter to the BTS concert by train i’m not aware of the routes or anything as I don’t travel a lot by train maybe once a month so I tapped my own bank Card and she tapped her oyster we went to the tottenham court station where we thought the concert was turns out it was in tottenham hotspot station like i said i’m not familiar with the routes or anything so we got kinda lost for a bit and very confused finally reached the stadium i took all her belongings like oyster card wallet and the back pack she was carrying as it wasn’t allowed into the stadium and i didn’t want her losing anything this is the first time i’ve left my daughter alone especially for a concert so on the way back i got lost again trying to find my way to a station and get back home it was also rush hour and there was a lot of people so finally after 20-30 mins i found a station and I was already worried about my daughter and then as I was trying to get onto the next train instead of getting my bank card out of my bag I’m accidentally grabbed for my daughters oyster the train had arrived so i quickly ran to catch it and only didn’t realise then when i looked down that it was her oyster in my hand I got to barking station which is the second closest to me i’m normally closer to ilford and that’s where we left from so getting home was a long journey so i got to the station and there was a line at the stairs and there was an inspector checking tickets when it was my turn i showed him my daughters card and tried to explain but they wouldn’t listen i even offered to show them my bank statements on the app showing them i always pay for my own fares ive never done this before ive never had history with the tfl nothing this is the first time this happened and i practically turned myself in there was like three police officers around me and two tfl people i was cornered i told them that i would cooperate with everything they wanted and tried explaining that it was a mistake but they just asked for my details and told me that i’ll get a letter i’m now traumatized and anxiously waiting for my letter i don’t know how long it will take but everytime i see tfl train or bus i freeze i was all alone at this time i thought they would let me explain but nothing now im not sure what to do im waiting for the letter they barely said anything at the station i will pay any fine i just dont want to go to court i keep wishing i didnt take the train and drove there can anyone give me any advice help or anything or what they think might happen?? It really was an honest mistake and i can show them my bank and how ive had many transactions with tfl myself i can show them the concert tickets that she did in fact go for that and there is proof i tapped in with my own card i always have bus train everything im really scared and this event just keeps repeating in my head i cant sleep eat drink nothing properly

So, to summarise:

You used your daughter's card (which, presumably, meant you paid a lower fare than you should have paid), were stopped, and your details were taken.

The inspectors who stopped you were not interested in listening to your explanation - which is not surprising as, basically, you were travelling on an invalid ticket.

You can now expect a letter from TfL. They tend to be "hard line" in that they don't offer out of court settlements. They generally prosecute but they do, sometimes, issue warning letters - the experience on here is that the chances of a warning letter rather than prosecution are greater if your response is drafted by an experienced solicitor (such as those listed earlier on this thread). However that will cost several hundred pounds and does not guarantee success.

If it does go to a prosecution you will be convicted, because you didn't have a valid ticket. But, generally, a single conviction of this nature shouldn't have serious long-term implications.

Up to you to weigh up your options at this point.

Accidentally Used my Daughters Oyster Card then showed the Ticket man Basically turning myself In

bobo ononanann

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RailUK Forums

1dohg

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Thebaz

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bobo ononanann

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SECR 65

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Egg Centric

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6Gman

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