Witness statement- fair evasion and wrong details

I took a train to Kings Cross without tapping in , when I got to King’s Cross my phone died and I asked the train staff to let me out as my phone died and told them I tapped in at my departure station - they called an inspector that took my details and gave me a witness statement receipt ( I gave wrong name - correct DOB and an address I can have access to )

Reading on this forum I’ve seen that it is advised to email them with the correct details before it escalates to a court prosecution for fraud - and I was thinking to hire a solicitor to write my letter before the 14 days pass and I receive a letter in the post from them . Is it advised to wait for the letter or would it be too late to settle out of court then ? If I write the letter myself instead of a solicitor what are the chances of them giving me an out of court settlement ? It is my first time ever getting stopped by thameslink and I panicked - but I also read that if I ignore it then they might not be able to find me but I’m on CCTV , and at the station I came from I tapped out on that same day to get to work so they can find me on their cameras

Please advise
Thank you

Hi, do you know which train operating company you got stopped by? It should likely be written on the witness statement receipt

You do not need a solicitor at this stage (if indeed at all).

However you should write to them at the address on the witness statement receipt stating that you wish to correct the contact details.

Give the correct details.

Do not state anything else.

Send it by “signed for delivery” so that there is proof of delivery. Keep screen shots of the tracking data proving delivery.

This is not a case of fraud as there is a very high standard of proof required for a charge of fraud which certainly does not exist in this case.

In all probability you will be able to resolve this with the train operating company out of court through paying the correct full fare and an administration charge.

You can do no more apart from correcting the contact details until you receive a letter from them.

If you search this forum you will find countless examples of the response you will need to submit once the time comes.

You are highly likely to be able to secure an out of court settlement without the involvement of a solicitor.

The first contact is likely to be a Notice of Intention to Prosecute - you can search the forum for this.

walkingsophie said:

Hi, do you know which train operating company you got stopped by? It should likely be written on the witness statement receipt

Click to expand...

Yes it’s Thameslink

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 28 Jul 2026 ==

Titfield said:

You do not need a solicitor at this stage (if indeed at all).

However you should write to them at the address on the witness statement receipt stating that you wish to correct the contact details.

Give the correct details.

Do not state anything else.

Send it by “signed for delivery” so that there is proof of delivery. Keep screen shots of the tracking data proving delivery.

This is not a case of fraud as there is a very high standard of proof required for a charge of fraud which certainly does not exist in this case.

In all probability you will be able to resolve this with the train operating company out of court through paying the correct full fare and an administration charge.

You can do no more apart from correcting the contact details until you receive a letter from them.

If you search this forum you will find countless examples of the response you will need to submit once the time comes.

Click to expand...

Thank you for your reply it’s really helpful
I’m confused on how this is not a case of fraud since I gave incorrect details ?
So I should send a letter instead of an email ?

SECR 65 said:

You are highly likely to be able to secure an out of court settlement without the involvement of a solicitor.

The first contact is likely to be a Notice of Intention to Prosecute - you can search the forum for this.

Click to expand...

Is it best to send them a letter or email them before their letter arrives ?

katie123 said:

I’ve seen that it is advised to email them with the correct details

Click to expand...

That is advisable; the email address is gtr.prosecutions@gtrailway.com

katie123 said:

If I write the letter myself instead of a solicitor what are the chances of them giving me an out of court settlement ?

Click to expand...

The chances are very good. GTR settle out of court on a very regular basis and all a solicitor can do for you is make the process much more exepensive.

katie123 said:

Is it best to send them a letter or email them before their letter arrives ?

Click to expand...

Yes to correct incorrect details, but not to say anything else. Settling with GTR is a really straightforward exercise and we have no reason to believe that contacting them first is helpful. Have a look at other GTR threads if you don't want to just take my word for it.

katie123 said:

I’m confused on how this is not a case of fraud since I gave incorrect details ?

Click to expand...

Maybe it is fraud - I'm not a legal expert so don't have a clue - but when they persue it they will charge you for fare evasion, not fraud.

katie123 said:

So I should send a letter instead of an email ?

Click to expand...

You might as well send both - just make it clear in the email that it duplicates a letter.

Titfield said:

You do not need a solicitor at this stage (if indeed at all).

However you should write to them at the address on the witness statement receipt stating that you wish to correct the contact details.

Give the correct details.

Do not state anything else.

Send it by “signed for delivery” so that there is proof of delivery. Keep screen shots of the tracking data proving delivery.

This is not a case of fraud as there is a very high standard of proof required for a charge of fraud which certainly does not exist in this case.

In all probability you will be able to resolve this with the train operating company out of court through paying the correct full fare and an administration charge.

You can do no more apart from correcting the contact details until you receive a letter from them.

If you search this forum you will find countless examples of the response you will need to submit once the time comes.

Click to expand...

Is it okay if I state that I gave incorrect details to them and apologise for it or should I just state that I wish to correct the details ? I’ll be writing an email also and send a letter at the same time

I’m genuinely confused on what to do and what to say in this email / letter and I’ve looked at the threads on here but what exactly should I write to them that usually works ?

SECR 65 said:

Yes to correct incorrect details, but not to say anything else. Settling with GTR is a really straightforward exercise and we have no reason to believe that contacting them first is helpful. Have a look at other GTR threads if you don't want to just take my word for it.

Maybe it is fraud - I'm not a legal expert so don't have a clue - but when they persue it they will charge you for fare evasion, not fraud.

You might as well send both - just make it clear in the email that it duplicates a letter.

Click to expand...

So should I apologise for giving false details or simply correct them? I’m not sure what the usual way to do this would be
Thank you for your help really

katie123 said:

So should I apologise for giving false details or simply correct them? I’m not sure what the usual way to do this would be
Thank you for your help really

Click to expand...

A simple apology and correction should be sufficient. Along the lines of, 'I regret that I did not give the correct details at the time, my name and address are ...'.