What could I possibly say to incriminate myself?
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Gave false details and unsure what to do. Need help!!
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Well don't proactively offer up information about having been short faring unless they ask about short faring. Don't offer up information about applying for refunds if you weren't entitled to them, unless you're asked about applying for refunds when you weren't entitled to them. That sort of thing.
Your best bet is to post the correspondence here when you receive it, seek advice with the responses you plan on giving, and go from there.
But yes you'll need to be honest because if they find out you're lying about something they'll be far less likely to settle this out of court.
WesternLancer
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I think we might have seen the occasional case with WMR where if settlement offers are high they have agreed some sort of payment plan. So it might help to be aware of that though it seems unusual.
Yes they are usually amenable to short payment plans.
WesternLancer
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Thanks. This maybe helpful for the op to know.
Haven’t heard anything yet do you know on average how long it takes them to respond? Will they respond to my email or send a letter to my updated and correct address
It can take up to 6 months. Usually a lot quicker of course.
WesternLancer
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Hard to know to be honest - did you get any auto reply to your e-mails about your correct address?
Your case may only be loaded on to systems in the next few days as a starter - you will be one of hundreds of people caught that day I suspect. It may be the letter to your correct address in some weeks might be the first you hear of it.
Yes I got an auto reply hopefully it isn’t up to 6 months like styles said because I thought the quicker I reach out since the incident happened the more likely they’ll cooperate with me
It doesn't work that way. Only once they reach out to you do they care if you're cooperative or not.
You email will be sat in a long list of correspondence that they need to work through, same as loading your case onto the system.
Good morning,
Thank you for your email. I have passed this to the digital fraud team who are currently investigating your case.
Kindest Regards,
Becky
I received this email this morning
We have recently been handed a file relating to an incident on 3rd July 2025 when you were approached by staff carrying out their revenue duties, you were asked to show your valid ticket you offered a ticket that was not valid for the journey you had completed, possibly committing short journey fraud.
You were interviewed under caution.
Further investigations into this matter have been carried out, including a review of the ticket records. It would appear, at this stage, that this may be a case of fraud. West Midlands Trains take travel fraud extremely seriously and is committed to prosecuting all cases of fare evasion to the full extent of the law. Travelling on the railway with the intent to avoid paying the full fare is an offence under the Regulation of Railways Act 1889. Such an offence carries a maximum fine of £1,000 and/or three months’ imprisonment and, in either case, a criminal record. It must also be considered whether this matter amounts to a much more serious offence under the Fraud Act 2006.
At this stage we would be grateful if you would provide any evidence to support the claim that none of the above legislation has been contravened to prevent further action being contemplated.
Please respond within 7 days from the date of this email so that we can determine next steps.
We look forward to hearing from you.
Hi everyone I’ve received this email today. Any recommendations on what I reply back?
You were interviewed under caution.
Further investigations into this matter have been carried out, including a review of the ticket records. It would appear, at this stage, that this may be a case of fraud. West Midlands Trains take travel fraud extremely seriously and is committed to prosecuting all cases of fare evasion to the full extent of the law. Travelling on the railway with the intent to avoid paying the full fare is an offence under the Regulation of Railways Act 1889. Such an offence carries a maximum fine of £1,000 and/or three months’ imprisonment and, in either case, a criminal record. It must also be considered whether this matter amounts to a much more serious offence under the Fraud Act 2006.
At this stage we would be grateful if you would provide any evidence to support the claim that none of the above legislation has been contravened to prevent further action being contemplated.
Please respond within 7 days from the date of this email so that we can determine next steps.
We look forward to hearing from you.
Hi everyone I’ve received this email today. Any recommendations on what I reply back?
The good thing is they've updated the contact details.
The email says they've checked historical ticket records so they're going to factor other journeys into the settlement cost. I suggest a short, concise reply that mentions:
- That you are sorry for what has happened
- What you have learned from the incident
- That you are keen to settle the matter without the need for court action
- Offer to pay the outstanding fare and the train company's administrative costs in dealing with the matter
You might want to carry out your own checks on your Trainline account to see how many times you have evaed the correct fare. This is best done on the website rather than the app. You could say something like 'I've checked my ticket purchase history and between xx/xx/xx and yy/yy/yy I belueve I haven't paid the correct fare on zz occasions'.
If you post a draft reply in this thread forum members will proof read it for you.
The email says they've checked historical ticket records so they're going to factor other journeys into the settlement cost. I suggest a short, concise reply that mentions:
- That you are sorry for what has happened
- What you have learned from the incident
- That you are keen to settle the matter without the need for court action
- Offer to pay the outstanding fare and the train company's administrative costs in dealing with the matter
You might want to carry out your own checks on your Trainline account to see how many times you have evaed the correct fare. This is best done on the website rather than the app. You could say something like 'I've checked my ticket purchase history and between xx/xx/xx and yy/yy/yy I belueve I haven't paid the correct fare on zz occasions'.
If you post a draft reply in this thread forum members will proof read it for you.
Today I just bought a railcard when I write a letter to them do I mention that?
It won't hurt to mention that. It helps to demonstrate that you will not do this again.
Ok I’m going to write a draft letter shortly and will post it back in here once I’m finished.
== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: ==
Dear West Midlands Railway,
I am writing to you to offer my apologies for not showing a valid ticket on the 3rd July 2025. I am very sorry for what I did and I can assure you it won’t happen again. My actions were completely wrong and now I understand the importance of following the railway rules.
To prevent any future issues, I’ve now purchased a railcard to reduce my travel expenses legally and to guarantee I’ll always have a valid ticket.
My intentions are to settle this matter out of court and prevent any legal action. I accept to pay any fares and administrative fees related to this issue.
Please accept my sincere apologies for the inconvenience caused. I hope we can sort this matter out smoothly. Thank you for your understanding.
Is that ok?
== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: ==
Recently I’ve also just become a father do you think if I mention balancing work, being a father dealing with emotional, mental and financial pressures will help?
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i don't think this is relevant. They've heard every sob story. What they want to hear is that you are a reformed character which the rest of your letter conveys.
Do you think I should send the original letter or add any adjustments?
WesternLancer
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This bit needs changing - it may well be that this is your intention - but it's their intention that matters!:
My intentions are to settle this matter out of court and prevent any legal action. I accept to pay any fares and administrative fees related to this issue.
I suggest instead
'I would be grateful if you could consider allowing me to settle this matter out of court without the need for legal action I accept the need to pay any fare owed and administrative fees related to this issue'.
Thank you that does make a lot sense. Updated version: what do you guys think?
Dear West Midlands Railway,
Thank you for reaching out and allowing me the opportunity to respond.
I want to start by offering my apologies for not showing a valid ticket on the 3rd July 2025. I am very sorry for what I did and I can assure you it won’t happen again. My actions were completely wrong and now I fully understand the seriousness of this matter now and regret it deeply.
To prevent any future issues, I’ve now purchased a railcard to reduce my travel expenses legally and to guarantee I’ll always have a valid ticket.
I would be grateful if you could consider allowing me to settle this matter out of court without the need for legal action. I accept the need to pay any fare owed and administrative fees related to this issue.
Please accept my sincere apologies for the inconvenience caused. I hope we can sort this matter out smoothly. This experience has already been a wake up call, and I can assure you of my full cooperation and commitment to doing better going forward. Thank you for considering my explanation.
A couple of points.
1. Please quote any reference numbers relating to the case - it enables them to match your reply with their case.
2. I'm not sure about "I hope we can sort this matter out smoothly" I understand your intentions, but your previous paragraph effectively makes the same point.
Also, purchasing a railcard is good, but please carry it with you at all times, and make sure you buy matching rail tickets - '16-17' can easily be confused for '16-25'. Also, make a note in your calendar to renew before it expires - no-one else will remind you.
Thank you I’ve removed the “I hope we can sort this out smoothly” is everything else ok to send off?
== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: ==
Dear West Midlands Railway,
Thank you for reaching out and allowing me the opportunity to respond.
I want to start by offering my apologies for not showing a valid ticket on the 3rd July 2025. I am very sorry for what I did and can assure you it won't happen again. My actions were completely wrong and now I fully understand the seriousness of this matter and regret it deeply.
To prevent any future issues, I've now purchased a railcard to reduce my travel expenses legally and to guarantee I'll always have a valid ticket from now on.
I would be grateful if you could consider allowing me to settle this matter out of court without the need of legal action. I accept the need to pay any fare owed and administrative fees related to this issue.
Please accept my sincere apologies for the inconvenience caused. This experience has already been a wakeup call and I can assure you of my full cooperation and commitment to doing better going forward.
Thank you for considering my explanation.
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WesternLancer
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Hi - remove those actual ref numbers from what you are showing here with the edit function. You do not need to state them here for people to see and it's best you don't - you just need to include them in what you actually send in your reply
Rest of draft looks OK to me
Thank you shall I send it over then?
== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: ==
== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: ==
Thank you shall I send it over then?
WesternLancer
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If you are not hard up on the deadline to return it then you could wait and see if other people have suggestions before you send it (eg send it tomorrow perhaps) but if you need to send it urgently it's up to you.
Haywain
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What? Try a more formal “Thank you for your letter dated xx xxxxxxx 2025”.
I’ve already replied now will keep you guys updated for when they reply to me!
== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: ==
Thank you for your response and honesty.
As part of the Digital Fraud Team, we investigate all historic purchases made on your account. This is from the ticket that has been reported to us for fraudulently used on the day of investigation.
Upon our investigation to your account, we can see there have been 154 transactions we are currently investigating for potential fraud.
Please can you provide the following evidence to support your transactions.
Date of birth.
Home address via photographic evidence.
16-17 railcard dated in August 2024.
Once all has been verified, we will be able to proceed with your case.
Please respond within 7 days from the date of this email to avoid further escalation.
What do I say?
== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: ==
I’ve counted the transactions on my trainline app and I know there is 103 transactions that have been short fared. Im unsure about some of the others as they were so long ago do I mention this to them?
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Have then given a breakdown or just a summary?
If you are looking to come to an agreement with them then you can engage with them, asking for a full breakdown for you to look through.
As ever, post a draft of any reply you wish to send on here before doing so. You may need to be careful how you word your response.
If you are looking to come to an agreement with them then you can engage with them, asking for a full breakdown for you to look through.
As ever, post a draft of any reply you wish to send on here before doing so. You may need to be careful how you word your response.
They just said there’s 154 transactions they are currently investigating. Honestly at this point, it’s causing me so much stress. I’m just gonna say to them I’ll pay for all the 154 and transactions you’ve investigated and resolved this matter immediately. Do you think they’ll set up a payment plan?
If you haven't commited them all then don't offer to pay for them all. 2 wrongs don't make a right.
Respond asking for a breakdown so you can check what journeys are being investigated - you could even say you have checked your Trainline account and can only find 100 such transactions and wish to see what journeys you're missing from your records.
Depending on total value, WMT are sometimes amenable to payment plans, but be aware that they will want either a decent amount upfront or a short term (3 monthly payments etc) agreement. You will certainly be able to offer and discuss a plan with them, should they seem you as being engaged with the process and low risk.
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