Fare Evasion

[Wayneright54]

Hi all,

I am after a bit of advice.

My sister has been caught by ticket inspectors purchasing a ticket one stop closer to the final destination that he should have.

My sister has been using my Trainline account to purchase her tickets as she hasn’t got the best job and has been in a tough spot this year so I was happy to pay for her travel.

She provided her own details the the ticket inspector but the cautioned her and informed her that they would be checking the Trainline account.

As this account is register to me I am petrified that I will be dragged into all of this.

Does anyone have any advice on whether the Train Company will accept that it was my sister travelling and leave me out of any proceedings?

She was only stopped a week ago so we haven’t received a letter or anything yet but I am worried sick that I will be dragged into all this for trying to do a nice thing.

Many thanks,

 

[Islineclear3_1]

It can take a few weeks for a letter to arrive. But if your sister gave her own details (truthfully) then hopefully, you won't be dragged into her situation - however, if she has short-fared on more than one occasion, then the train company may want to look into her purchasing history

 

[AlterEgo]

Hi all,

I am after a bit of advice.

My sister has been caught by ticket inspectors purchasing a ticket one stop closer to the final destination that he should have.

My sister has been using my Trainline account to purchase her tickets as she hasn’t got the best job and has been in a tough spot this year so I was happy to pay for her travel.

She provided her own details the the ticket inspector but the cautioned her and informed her that they would be checking the Trainline account.

As this account is register to me I am petrified that I will be dragged into all of this.

Does anyone have any advice on whether the Train Company will accept that it was my sister travelling and leave me out of any proceedings?

She was only stopped a week ago so we haven’t received a letter or anything yet but I am worried sick that I will be dragged into all this for trying to do a nice thing.

Many thanks,

The seriousness of this depends on which stations and which train company/ies are involved.

What was the journey being made, and what tickets were being purchased?

Do you know which train company stopped her? Where was she stopped? Did she make any admissions under caution?

We will need to know this to offer realistic advice as to what will happen next.

 

[Wayneright54]

She was stopped at Birmingham Snow Hill by W.M.R at the ticket barriers.

Her whole journey is only 2-3 stops and was only paying for 2 of those stops to save a couple of pound.

She didn’t admit anything to them however has told me that she has been doing this on and off for a while. Although the fares are only small which is why I can’t understand why she did it in the first place.

All of this has been done on my trainline account. She has assured me that she is prepared to take accountability for all of this. I just wanted to know if W.M.R will accept this and keep me out of it all.

 

[Titfield]

Hi all,

I am after a bit of advice.

My sister has been caught by ticket inspectors purchasing a ticket one stop closer to the final destination that he should have.

My sister has been using my Trainline account to purchase her tickets as she hasn’t got the best job and has been in a tough spot this year so I was happy to pay for her travel.

She provided her own details the the ticket inspector but the cautioned her and informed her that they would be checking the Trainline account.

As this account is register to me I am petrified that I will be dragged into all of this.

Does anyone have any advice on whether the Train Company will accept that it was my sister travelling and leave me out of any proceedings?

She was only stopped a week ago so we haven’t received a letter or anything yet but I am worried sick that I will be dragged into all this for trying to do a nice thing.

Many thanks,

I am sorry that this will not be what you wish to hear but your statement does raise some questions which may cause further inquiries to be made.

You state that "I was happy to pay for her travel". Does that mean that you had knowledge of her short faring? Did you check your account to see what she was booking?

I do not think it would be unreasonable for the TOC to conclude that you either had knowledge of what she was doing (by your viewing your account) or should have had the knowledge (by your viewing your account). Their view would be based on the fact that (a) it was your account (b) it was your payment card (based on your statement I was happy to pay for her travel).

I think it unlikely that the TOC would take any action against you but you may find yourself having to answer some questions.

Hopefully this matter can be disposed of by way of an out of court settlement between your sister and the TOC (which would be the fares avoided (not paid) and an administration fee of £100-£200).

At this time all you can do is await for the letter to arrive (make sure your sister does tell you) and then post it on here with all personal details obscured (redacted).

Tailored advice can then be given. It is important that neither you nor your sister ignore any correspondence as this inevitably makes things much worse in the long run as these matters do not go away.,

If you look at the advice given by @Hadders in other posts you will see the type of situation, advice given and final resolutions achieved.

In the meantime do not worry or stress about this. There is usually a resolution to these matters which whilst financially a bit painful do not have any lasting repercussions.

It is only long term persistent fare evaders who find themselves in serious difficulties with lasting effects.

 

[island]

I am afraid if you have been purchasing short tickets for "your sister" then you've both committed a criminal offence for each ticket, "your sister" for evading the fare (section 5 (3) Regulation of Railways Act) and you for buying tickets on behalf of another intending to allow that person to travel without paying the correct fare (Railway Byelaw 22).

So at this point I want to ask – is the person who travelled really "your sister" or is it you? The style of your questions makes me want to double-check. We'll still help you whatever the answer is, but the help we need to give you is quite different in each case. As you personally have committed offences either way, there's no point in maintaining a story about "your sister" if that's not correct.

 

[Deafdoggie]

The story is a little confusing. Why did your sister short fare to save money if she wasn't paying? Either she was paying and it's really you, or you paid for her and it saved her nothing at all. Certainly it's an odd thing to do.

 

[island]

It looks as though the OP is trying to delete their posts so I suspect they haven't got the answer they wanted and won't be back.