Chiltern intent to prosecute

[coolgirl]

Hi,

Just a quick question, I have received one of those standard Chiltern intent to prosecute letters for failure to show a valid ticket from Bicester to Gerrard Cross. But I did have a ticket from Bicester to H&T but my ticket from H&T to Gerrard Cross didn't go through so it wasn't in my app when I was stopped.

So my question is - along with my apologetic reply should I also attach the receipt of the BV to H&T ticket I did purchase? Note I use Virgin ticketing (so not sure if Chiltern can see that history).

Much appreciated,
S

 

[Hadders]

Welcome to the forum!

Why didn't you just purchase a ticket from Bicester Village to Gerrards Cross? It sounds as though you were deliberately short faring buying a ticket to the next station to get through the barriers at Bicester Village so I don't recommend going out of your way to draw attention to it. If CHiltern offer you an out of court settlement then they will charge you the cost of the Anytime fare from Bicester Village to Gerrards Cross anyway, with no credit given for the invalid ticket you did purchase.

Chiltern will be able to audit your Virgin ticket purchasing history.

 

[John R]

Chiltern will be able to audit your Virgin ticket purchasing history.

And indeed it is quite likely that they will do so. If they find other instances of tickets purchased from Bicester to Haddenham then they are likely to conclude that there has been a track record of “short ticketing” and may ask you about that at some point.

 

[CyrusWuff]

Welcome to the forum!

Why didn't you just purchase a ticket from Bicester Village to Gerrards Cross?

I'd suggest it's likely to be because splitting is significantly cheaper.

A Single from Bicester to Gerrards Cross is £24.90. Bicester to Haddenham is £4.30 and Haddenham to Gerrards is £14.70 for a total of £19.30

That said, with the changes that came in last December, a split at High Wycombe is cheaper still. Bicester to Wycombe is £9.40 and Wycombe to Gerrards is £5.40 Off-Peak (after 09:30 Mondays to Fridays, any time at weekends and bank holidays) for a total of £14.80. At peak time, Wycombe to Gerrards is £7.10, for a total of £16.50, so still cheaper than a Haddenham split.

 

[coolgirl]

Welcome to the forum!

Why didn't you just purchase a ticket from Bicester Village to Gerrards Cross? It sounds as though you were deliberately short faring buying a ticket to the next station to get through the barriers at Bicester Village so I don't recommend going out of your way to draw attention to it. If CHiltern offer you an out of court settlement then they will charge you the cost of the Anytime fare from Bicester Village to Gerrards Cross anyway, with no credit given for the invalid ticket you did purchase.

Chiltern will be able to audit your Virgin ticket purchasing history.

Thank you for the quick response! In this instance, I was meeting someone at H&T who didn't show up so went on to GC but didn't realise the transaction for the additional ticket didn't go through.

Probably not even worth explaining that correct?

Also they would have to know what your intended trip was....

Thanks

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 27 Aug 2024 ==

I'd suggest it's likely to be because splitting is significantly cheaper.

A Single from Bicester to Gerrards Cross is £24.90. Bicester to Haddenham is £4.30 and Haddenham to Gerrards is £14.70 for a total of £19.30

That said, with the changes that came in last December, a split at High Wycombe is cheaper still. Bicester to Wycombe is £9.40 and Wycombe to Gerrards is £5.40 Off-Peak (after 09:30 Mondays to Fridays, any time at weekends and bank holidays) for a total of £14.80. At peak time, Wycombe to Gerrards is £7.10, for a total of £16.50, so still cheaper than a Haddenham split.

Thanks understood!

 

[coolgirl]

Thank you for the quick response! In this instance, I was meeting someone at H&T who didn't show up so went on to GC but didn't realise the transaction for the additional ticket didn't go through.

Probably not even worth explaining that correct?

Also they would have to know what your intended trip was....

Thanks

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 27 Aug 2024 ==


Thanks understood!

Resolved. £196.90. Thanks

 

[30907]

Resolved. £196.90. Thanks

Thanks for the update. That appears to be an admin charge of £175 which for a straightforward case is decidedly high.

 

[Hadders]

Thanks for letting us know the outcome. I'm reliably informed that West Midlands Trains typically charge an admin fee of £175 so I'm not surprised if Chiltern are doing this as well.