"Altering a ticket with intent" = criminal record?

[InsertUsername]

Hi everyone, I hope you can help. My ticket was checked by an FCC ticket inspector travelling from Kings Cross to Hitchin, and he formed the opinion that the date on the ticket had been altered and therefore it was no longer valid. I showed him the other blank, unused carnet tickets in my wallet and offered to use one of those for the journey instead but he rejected this offer. He would not let me pay a penalty fare and instead cautioned me and informed me I would receive a prosecution letter.

The prosecution letter arrived today, and unfortunately it is a little vague. It lists two offences, but does not state under which law/byelaw I am to be prosecuted. For details of offence it says

"entering a train for the purpose of travelling without a ticket entitling travel."

and

"Altering a ticket with intent"

From reading other posts here, I am happy to follow the path of least resistance with FCC, and will offer to pay any amount they feel necessary up to the maximum fine of £1000. However, I am the only wage-earner for my family (me, partner plus young child) and if I receive a criminal record it will result in my immediate dismissal, and expulsion from my industry. As well as being devastating to my family and I, this will mean that FCC no longer receives the ~£300 a month I currently pay in rail fares!

I would welcome any advice about the details of the law under which I am being prosecuted, likely outcomes, and how best to avoid receiving a criminal record.
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Just thinking further about this, would it be advisable say something like "I understand travelling without a ticket is a strict liability offence, and iof your inspector believed it to be invalid I am happy to settle this matter with a payment of £XXXX plus any admin charges. However, I strongly deny altering a ticket with intent". My reasoning being that (I think) one is a non-recordable offence, and the latter results in a criminal record.

 

[Mike395]

Welcome to the forum!

To accurately give advice, I just need to clarify a couple of things:

1. What type of pen did you use to mark the ticket with?

2. Did you (deliberately or otherwise) make a mistake with the date and try to correct it on the same ticket?

 

[Mojo]

"with intent" indicates to me that it is not strict liability.

 

[InsertUsername]

Thanks for the replies folks. The ticket inspector took the ticket with him so I can't check it. It was just written with a regular black biro I think, I explained to him that I had gone over the ticket several times to get a clear marking (specifically to avoid any issues like this) but his opinion was that the date had been changed. Surely they can check it electronically to see that it's only been used once?

Mojo: I was hoping I could admit to the first offence (travelling without a valid ticket) as I think it is a strict liability offence and the ticket inspectors opinion is final. That way they get their pound of flesh, no criminal record is involved, and all this stress goes away. However, if a charge of "Altering a ticket with intent" will lead to a criminal record, I have to fight it as hard as I possibly can due to the massive consequences (which seem far, far in excess of the alleged offence).

 

[DaveNewcastle]

The prosecution letter arrived today, and unfortunately it is a little vague. It lists two offences, but does not state under which law/byelaw I am to be prosecuted. For details of offence it says

"entering a train for the purpose of travelling without a ticket entitling travel."

and

"Altering a ticket with intent"

. . .
I would welcome any advice about the details of the law under which I am being prosecuted . . .

The first of these is a Railway Byelaw offence, either under Byelaw 17 or 18 and if prosecuted sucessfully should not result in a Criminal Record.

18. Ticketless travel in non-compulsory ticket areas
(1) In any area not designated as a compulsory ticket area, no person shall enter any train for the purpose of travelling on the railway unless he has with him a valid ticket entitling him to travel.

[Byelaw 17 is much the same wording, but for 'compulsory ticket areas']
Whether the ticket is deemed to have been altered by the Company or not (and assuming that there is no credible Evidence to the contrary) then this is likely to suceeed as it simply has to be demonstrated that the carnet was not valid for that specific journey on that date.

The second of these is more complex. It could be investigated as an offence under Railway Byelaw 20 and agin, if successfully prosecuted, should not result in a Criminal Record.

20. Altering tickets and use of altered tickets
(1) No person shall alter any ticket in any way with the intent that an Operator shall be defrauded or prejudiced.
(2) No person shall knowingly use any ticket which has been altered in any way in breach of Byelaw 20(1).

This Offence sets a slightly higher standard of Evidence for the Company as they would need to demonstrate both that the ticket really had been 'altered' (where the Evidence could be tested rigourously under cross-examination) as well as your 'intent' when using it (which will probably simply follow from the fact of you using the ticket).

But, if the Company is confident that the Evidence demonstrating alteration is robust enought, and particularly if there is any reason to demonstrate that this has been a recurring practice, then some Prosecutors are inclined to consider a Prosecution under the Fraud Act, and as you might expect, if this was successful, then it would result a more serious fine and in a recordable entry in the Police National Computer.
Companies try to recover the full value of historic travel which they suspect might have been lost to them when Fraud is suspected.
Forensic techniques are used to scrutinise altered tickets and only you will know whether the evidence is likely to show such a history or not (and there is no need to announce that publically either way on here).

 

[Monty]

"with intent" indicates to me that it is not strict liability.

Indeed, with intent leads me to believe that it will be a RoRA prosecution and a criminal record if convicted. I would like to know if the passenger did or did not tamper with the ticket? As they have been rather vague on what exactly has happened.

I'm at work at the moment, so I'll wait until I get home to make further comment.

Edit - the OP has said they went over the date to get to make a 'clear imprint'.

 

[tony6499]

Thanks for the replies folks. The ticket inspector took the ticket with him so I can't check it. It was just written with a regular black biro I think, I explained to him that I had gone over the ticket several times to get a clear marking (specifically to avoid any issues like this) but his opinion was that the date had been changed. Surely they can check it electronically to see that it's only been used once?
).

I can imagine what the inspector thought and can't see why you would need to go over it several times for a clear marking

 

[maniacmartin]

I can imagine what the inspector thought and can't see why you would need to go over it several times for a clear marking

If you've ever used a carnet ticket, your opinion might change. Using a normal biro, it won't write properly on the new glossy ticket stock. The only way I've never been able to write on them with a normal biro is to scratch the gloss off with the pen so that the ink will flow, which may be what the OP did. A thin permanent marker may be a lot better.

This is the reason I no longer buy carnets - the risk of being accused of fare evasion is just too high to be worth the savings in my opinion. If I ever do use a carnet again, I'll be asking station staff to write the date on.

 

[323235]

I can imagine what the inspector thought and can't see why you would need to go over it several times for a clear marking

Well if you've ever tried to write on ticketing stock with a biro you will know that it is incredibly hard sometimes and i've had rover date boxes where I've had to go over the number more than once to make it clear what it is. Writing your signature on ticketing stock for a card payment isn't easy with a biro either.

 

[wintonian]

If you've ever used a carnet ticket, your opinion might change. Using a normal biro, it won't write properly on the new glossy ticket stock. The only way I've never been able to write on them with a normal biro is to scratch the gloss off with the pen so that the ink will flow, which may be what the OP did. A thin permanent marker may be a lot better.

I'm sure there must be a defence here to do with evidence of or validation of the contract, but i can't think of what it might be.

 

[InsertUsername]

My partner wrote my inbound and return carnets for me that morning. Before using the return ticket I noticed part of it had got smudged in my wallet, so I thought I was doing the right thing by writing over it again to make it clearer. If either of us had known how "difficult" FCC are about carnet use, or the potential penalties for alleged misuse, we would never have bought them! In fact, I refuse to use any more of my unwritten carnets and have been buying day returns since being stopped.

Thanks for all of your responses, I am disappointed that there appears to be no clear answer as to what form the prosecution may take (although I recognise this is due to the vagaries of the system rather than the vagaries of the people posting!). I can understand a train operator laying a fraud charge against someone who has printed their own season ticket to save thousands of pounds, but surely this is ridiculous for a £20 carnet with a biro smudge on it???

I am not rich by any means, but a criminal record would be utterly devastating for my family and I. I would rather pay the £1000 maximum fine voluntarily than risk that; would a train company really be vindictive enough to prosecute despite being offered the "easy money"? (Easy for them, anyway . . . )

 

[tony6499]

So if the ticket had been smudged and then you wrote over it then you can understand how an inspector would have been suspicious ?

It wouldn't take someone a minute in an office to check by a magnifying glass or such to see if it had been altered.

 

[W230]

I am not rich by any means, but a criminal record would be utterly devastating for my family and I. I would rather pay the £1000 maximum fine voluntarily than risk that; would a train company really be vindictive enough to prosecute despite being offered the "easy money"? (Easy for them, anyway . . . )

Why would FCC prosecuting you if you offered the maximum fine be a case of them being vindictive? If an offence has been committed then surely they should be able to prosecute if they see fit.

Obviously this is not a serious criminal offence by any stretch of the imagination, but would you see it fit for people to look up the maximum possible fine for say a more serious criminal offence and then offer to pay the money to the court to avoid being prosecuted?! That's not how it works - otherwise people with money would be buying their immunity! The deterent of committing any offence is that criminal record and/or whatever comes with it! Lots of people could probably afford £60 fines for driving offences but couldn't afford the disqualification that would eventually come with it.

An extreme example but imagine what the dear old Daily Mail would print if the police rang up and said "Hello your burglar's offered to pay the court £X so we've decide to drop the case and not bother prosecuting. We don't want to be seen as vindictive"

But considering that you didn't write the wrong date on the ticket I find it all rather strange that you would rather give FCC £1000 for an easy life!

 

[GadgetMan]

My partner wrote my inbound and return carnets for me that morning. Before using the return ticket I noticed part of it had got smudged in my wallet, so I thought I was doing the right thing by writing over it again to make it clearer.

This is what must have aroused suspicion, slightly different handwriting and possibly different pens.

Without seeing the actual ticket it is hard to advise on what you should do. I'd be tempted to say you should reply saying exactly what you have on this thread assuming it is the truth and that the ticket had not been used repeatedly and that the date had not been altered for different days.

Have you still got any previous days used Carnets to show you date them properly for each day of use? Does your journey involve going through automatic barriers as these will have left a date stamp on the magnetic strip which will confirm the previously dated carnets are genuine and have not been filled in after being stopped by the RPI.

I don't think you should offer to cover costs at this stage as it may give the impression that you have a guilty conscience. However as I said above, it is very hard to make a judgement without seeing the actual ticket.

 

[DaveNewcastle]

. . . . I can understand a train operator laying a fraud charge against someone who has printed their own season ticket to save thousands of pounds, but surely this is ridiculous for a £20 carnet with a biro smudge on it???

Perhaps my post wasn't as clear as it could have been. I was offering the framework within which these matters are assessed, and which I understood to go someway towards answering your initial questions.

What I'd hoped you would have gleaned from my lost is that a mere 'smudge' will be recognised as such and will NOT attract a large penalty not a Criminal Record. In contrast, repeated abuse will also be recognised as such, and probably WILL attract an accusation of Fraud.
Its not for me to guess which circumstance applies in your case. But you will know already and so can draw the correct conclusion.

 

[InsertUsername]

The reason I am so intent on giving FCC a grand to "make this go away" is because I am, quite frankly, terrified. If the ticket inspector believed that the ticket was altered, a magistrate may form the same opinion. I admitted overwriting the ticket, so it has been technically "altered". If convicted, I will be unemployable by my current firm, or anyone else in my industry. My family will lose their house. We will lose EVERYTHING.

I accept that "the criminal record is a deterrent for the crime", but the same argument might hold that hanging is a good deterrent against spitting in the street. I'm not some poisonous scroat trying to save money to spend on his next fix, I'm a normal taxpaying working person who thought they could save a fiver a week by buying some carnet tickets.

If I'd known that a simple handwriting slip on a stupid piece of shiny cardboard could possibly lead to all this, I would never have bought the bloody things. I am distraught.

 

[Fred26]

For what it's worth, FCC now give passengers proper ticket pens, if they're buying a carnet ticket, at the ticket office.

 

[bb21]

The reason I am so intent on giving FCC a grand to "make this go away" is because I am, quite frankly, terrified. If the ticket inspector believed that the ticket was altered, a magistrate may form the same opinion. I admitted overwriting the ticket, so it has been technically "altered". If convicted, I will be unemployable by my current firm, or anyone else in my industry. My family will lose their house. We will lose EVERYTHING.

I accept that "the criminal record is a deterrent for the crime", but the same argument might hold that hanging is a good deterrent against spitting in the street. I'm not some poisonous scroat trying to save money to spend on his next fix, I'm a normal taxpaying working person who thought they could save a fiver a week by buying some carnet tickets.

If I'd known that a simple handwriting slip on a stupid piece of shiny cardboard could possibly lead to all this, I would never have bought the bloody things. I am distraught.

FWIW, unless you are a repeat offender, it will be highly unlikely for you to receive a fine anywhere near the maximum scale even if it went to court, and there is a pretty good chance that FCC will settle out of court for a first offence for a moderate sum.

What you need to do for now is calm down, and be honest in your reply (and concise). Come back here once finished so that you can get it proof-read (if you ask nicely) so that you don't inadvertently incriminate yourself more.

Do you remember exactly how the conversation went on the day? I assume you were cautioned? Do you remember exactly what you said?

Did your offending ticket go through any automatic gates on the day?

As for offering FCC £1000? There is simply no need. There is also no need to shy away from the remaining carnets. Why waste all that money? All you need to do is go and pick up a good permanent marker (fine-liner) which dries out quickly and you will be fine.

 

[Panda]

I showed him the other blank, unused carnet tickets in my wallet and offered to use one of those for the journey instead but he rejected this offer.

Why would you do that if you were sure that your current carnet was for the current day? If someone stopped me on my way out of Tesco and accuses me of not paying for my groceries, I'm not going to offer to pay for it, unless I know that I didn't pay in the first place. (That's what I would do, so I'm not trying to be the judge of whether the OP is innocent or guilty here).

Incidentally, I take interest in this because I know of people who actually use carnets on this very route, because they think they are being smart by using the tickets once, twice or more...(I have pointed out the fact that in my mind this is the same as shoplifting, but I'm done trying to convince them of that!).

Forgot to add: How would the inspector realistically know the difference between someone abusing a carnet by changing digits or adding extra digits in the same handwriting, versus someone who has a smudged ticket and then has the date overwritten in a different handwriting and probably a different pen too. It's a stupid system in my mind...