GTR awaiting notification?

[jhg457]

Hi All,

Over 4 weeks ago I was given an orange slip by train officer but I haven’t received any notification from govia thameslink railway, how long should this take?
I was travelling with an invalid ticket (short faring) from flitwick to Farringdon but I instead paid for a ticket from flitwick to St Albans. I am really worried as it’s been over 4 weeks - I am 20 and have never been through this before. I deeply regret my actions & feel very ashamed. Could someone advise on what happens next?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Hadders]

GTR has quite a large backlog at the moment and there are reports of initial letters taking several weeks to be sent.

As long as you gave the inspector your correct contact details then just sit tight - they will write to you at some point. In the meantime there are lots of threads oin this section incolving GTR that you might want to take a look at. As long as you co-operate with them they do settle out of court in almost all cases.

 

[jhg457]

GTR has quite a large backlog at the moment and there are reports of initial letters taking several weeks to be sent.

As long as you gave the inspector your correct contact details then just sit tight - they will write to you at some point. In the meantime there are lots of threads oin this section incolving GTR that you might want to take a look at. As long as you co-operate with them they do settle out of court in almost all cases.

Hi Hadders, thanks for the quick response. Ok I’ll sit tight and wait. I head back to university in September, meaning my address will change. I should receive something before then? What should I do as I’m currently living at home? Thanks!

 

[Hadders]

Hi Hadders, thanks for the quick response. Ok I’ll sit tight and wait. I head back to university in September, meaning my address will change. I should receive something before then? What should I do as I’m currently living at home? Thanks!

You should get something before you go to university.

If you're currently living at home I assume your parents will still be there after you move out? If so, I would getthem to forwaard any post that gets sent to that address - this is useful for any post you might get, related to this incident or otherwise!

 

[jhg457]

You should get something before you go to university.

If you're currently living at home I assume your parents will still be there after you move out? If so, I would getthem to forwaard any post that gets sent to that address - this is useful for any post you might get, related to this incident or otherwise!

Hi Hadders,
Thanks for all your help with this. I am currently emailing GTR regarding my upcoming address change.
I still haven’t received a letter - is there a time frame whereby they must notify me?
Thanks!

 

[WesternLancer]

Hi Hadders,
Thanks for all your help with this. I am currently emailing GTR regarding my upcoming address change.
I still haven’t received a letter - is there a time frame whereby they must notify me?
Thanks!

They would want to notify you within 6 months as that forms a deadline after which they can’t easily take you to court for the offence which is the sanction they have over you really.

You should certainly e mail them your change of address but I would also consider setting up a Royal Mail postal redirect too. See Royal Mail website for that. Unless family still at the address to monitor post of course.

 

[Hadders]

Most train companies have some big backlogs of cases at the moment so letters are often taking longer than usual to be sent.

 

[jhg457]

Hi All.
I received my intent to prosecute notification today. Please may I have some help with this?
I am a university student that has just started my 3rd and final year. This issue happened during my placement year when I was commuting to work. I avoided paying the full fare on a handful of occasions (I was short faring). I should have known better and completely regret my actions. I cannot afford any further action so how can I avoid this?

I wasn’t asked to submit a picture of my railcard or ticket so I do not need to do this - correct?

I am planning to respond handwritten with the below. Please advise if this is correct and if this will help to avoid any further action.
Thank you!!!




Dear Sir/Madam,

I am writing in response to your letter regarding the incident that took place on 15 May 2025 at London St Pancras International station - Reference XXXX

I want to begin by taking full responsibility for my actions. I deeply regret to inform you that I have travelled on multiple occasions without a valid ticket. This was a serious lapse in judgment on my part, and I understand the importance of paying the correct fare and following the rules.

At the time of the incident, I was commuting to my university placement. I am currently a third-year university student and was under a lot of stress managing both my studies and placement commitments. While this does not excuse my actions, I hope it provides some context.

I acknowledge that when your staff member stopped and asked me about my ticket throughout the trip, I made a grave mistake in judgement being unable to provide a valid ticket.

As a student, I try to work hard to maintain my academic and professional reputation, and the thought that this incident could negatively impact this is extremely distressing. I feel a great deal of shame for allowing this mistake to happen, and I am genuinely sorry for the inconvenience I have caused. This experience has been a wake-up call for me, and I am committed to making sure nothing like this ever occurs again.

I assure you that this is not typical behaviour for myself, and I have never previously been involved in any fare evasion or similar incidents. I fully appreciate the impact fare evasion has on the railway system and other passengers, and I sincerely regret contributing to that problem.

Thank you for taking the time to read my response. I am willing to cooperate with your investigation so please contact me if any further information is needed.

Sincerely,
XXX

 

[WesternLancer]

Hi All.
I received my intent to prosecute notification today. Please may I have some help with this?
I am a university student that has just started my 3rd and final year. This issue happened during my placement year when I was commuting to work. I avoided paying the full fare on a handful of occasions (I was short faring). I should have known better and completely regret my actions. I cannot afford any further action so how can I avoid this?

I wasn’t asked to submit a picture of my railcard or ticket so I do not need to do this - correct?

I am planning to respond handwritten with the below. Please advise if this is correct and if this will help to avoid any further action.
Thank you!!!




Dear Sir/Madam,

I am writing in response to your letter regarding the incident that took place on 15 May 2025 at London St Pancras International station - Reference XXXX

I want to begin by taking full responsibility for my actions. I deeply regret to inform you that I have travelled on multiple occasions without a valid ticket. This was a serious lapse in judgment on my part, and I understand the importance of paying the correct fare and following the rules.

At the time of the incident, I was commuting to my university placement. I am currently a third-year university student and was under a lot of stress managing both my studies and placement commitments. While this does not excuse my actions, I hope it provides some context.

I acknowledge that when your staff member stopped and asked me about my ticket throughout the trip, I made a grave mistake in judgement being unable to provide a valid ticket.

As a student, I try to work hard to maintain my academic and professional reputation, and the thought that this incident could negatively impact this is extremely distressing. I feel a great deal of shame for allowing this mistake to happen, and I am genuinely sorry for the inconvenience I have caused. This experience has been a wake-up call for me, and I am committed to making sure nothing like this ever occurs again.

I assure you that this is not typical behaviour for myself, and I have never previously been involved in any fare evasion or similar incidents. I fully appreciate the impact fare evasion has on the railway system and other passengers, and I sincerely regret contributing to that problem.

Thank you for taking the time to read my response. I am willing to cooperate with your investigation so please contact me if any further information is needed.

Sincerely,
XXX

welcome

This jumps out at me -
"I have never previously been involved in any fare evasion or similar incident"

The implication of this is that you have never short fared on any other occasion apart from the time they stopped you (but I suspect in reality you have never been caught before.... of course I apologise if that is not correct).
Was that really the first time you have not paid the correct fare? It's statistically unlikely and they know that - do not say it if it is not true - as you will see from other threads they can (and almost certainly will) check all on line ticket purchasing for anything else that is suspicious.

I'm not saying tell them more than you need to - but do not include things that might not be true.

also - your letter should end with a clear 'ask': which is that you would appreciate it if they would consider settling this without court action, and say that you are happy to pay any fare owed along with the costs that they have incurred investigating this.

 

[30907]

I want to begin by taking full responsibility for my actions. I deeply regret to inform you that I have travelled on multiple occasions without a valid ticket. This was a serious lapse in judgment on my part, and I understand the importance of paying the correct fare and following the rules.....
I assure you that this is not typical behaviour for myself, and I have never previously been involved in any fare evasion or similar incidents. I fully appreciate the impact fare evasion has on the railway system and other passengers, and I sincerely regret contributing to that problem.

Contradicting yourself isn't a good start

Our general advice is, in any case, not to incriminate yourself - and address the incident you are being asked about. As you do in the next paragraph....

AAs a student, I try to work hard to maintain my academic and professional reputation, and the thought that this incident could negatively impact this is extremely distressing. I feel a great deal of shame for allowing this mistake to happen, and I am genuinely sorry for the inconvenience I have caused. This experience has been a wake-up call for me, and I am committed to making sure nothing like this ever occurs again.

It wasn't a mistake, and you haven't inconvenienced people, you've caused financial loss by your cheating.

 

[jhg457]

welcome

This jumps out at me -
"I have never previously been involved in any fare evasion or similar incident"

The implication of this is that you have never short fared on any other occasion apart from the time they stopped you (but I suspect in reality you have never been caught before.... of course I apologise if that is not correct).
Was that really the first time you have not paid the correct fare? It's statistically unlikely and they know that - do not say it if it is not true - as you will see from other threads they can (and almost certainly will) check all on line ticket purchasing for anything else that is suspicious.

I'm not saying tell them more than you need to - but do not include things that might not be true.

also - your letter should end with a clear 'ask': which is that you would appreciate it if they would consider settling this without court action, and say that you are happy to pay any fare owed along with the costs that they have incurred investigating this.

Hi! Thank you for responding.

Yes that's right, i'll remove that line as I just hadn't been caught before. So I shouldn't mention any other matter than the one they have contacted me about?

How does this sound - "I kindly ask for your understanding and respectfully request that you consider allowing to settle this matter without further proceedings to court. I am happy to happy to pay any fare owed along with the costs incurred investigating this"

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 2 Oct 2025 ==

Contradicting yourself isn't a good start

Our general advice is, in any case, not to incriminate yourself - and address the incident you are being asked about. As you do in the next paragraph....

It wasn't a mistake, and you haven't inconvenienced people, you've caused financial loss by your cheating.

ah yes ok... thanks for the heads up! any other advice?

 

[SussexMan]

I am planning to respond handwritten with the below.

Something printed out is much easier to read unless you have very neat handwriting and you keep it very short. Make sure you quote any references and staple it to the letter.

 

[WesternLancer]

Hi! Thank you for responding.

Yes that's right, i'll remove that line as I just hadn't been caught before. So I shouldn't mention any other matter than the one they have contacted me about?

How does this sound - "I kindly ask for your understanding and respectfully request that you consider allowing to settle this matter without further proceedings to court. I am happy to happy to pay any fare owed along with the costs incurred investigating this"

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 2 Oct 2025 ==

That wording looks ok though you repeat a word by mistake.

ah yes ok... thanks for the heads up! any other advice?

Yes don’t mention other stuff than what they are asking about. Even though they may ask more later wait to see if they do.

If you revise your draft and repost it people will no doubt check it again if you would find that helpful.

 

[jhg457]

Hi!
Please see my revised letter and let me know if this is acceptable. Any corrections or advice would be appreciated to ensure I avoid further action.
Is it best that I send this with tracked Royal Mail?
Thanks.



Dear Sir/Madam,

I am writing in response to your letter regarding the incident that took place on 15 May 2025 at London St Pancras International station - Reference XXXX

I want to begin by taking full responsibility for my actions. I did not hold a valid ticket for my journey. This was a serious lapse in judgment on my part, and I understand the importance of paying the correct fare and following the rules.

At the time of the incident, I was commuting to my university placement. I am currently a third-year full time university student and was under a lot of stress managing both my studies and placement commitments. While this does not excuse my actions, I hope it provides some context.

I acknowledge that when your staff member stopped and asked me about my ticket throughout the trip, I made a grave mistake in judgement being unable to provide a valid ticket.

As a student, I try to work hard to maintain my academic and professional reputation, and the thought that this incident could negatively impact this is extremely distressing. I feel a great deal of shame for allowing this to happen. This experience has been a wake-up call for me, and I am committed to making sure nothing like this ever occurs again.

I assure you that this is not typical behaviour for myself. I fully appreciate the impact fare evasion has on the railway system and other passengers, and I sincerely regret contributing to that problem.

I kindly ask for your understanding and respectfully request that you consider allowing to settle this matter without further proceedings to court. I am happy to pay any fare owed along with the costs incurred investigating this.

Thank you for taking the time to read my response. I am willing to cooperate with your investigation so please contact me if any further information is needed.

Sincerely,
XXX

 

[Fawkes Cat]

Hi!
Please see my revised letter and let me know if this is acceptable. Any corrections or advice would be appreciated to ensure I avoid further action.
Is it best that I send this with tracked Royal Mail?
Thanks.



Dear Sir/Madam,

I am writing in response to your letter regarding the incident that took place on 15 May 2025 at London St Pancras International station - Reference XXXX

I want to begin by taking full responsibility for my actions. I did not hold a valid ticket for my journey. This was a serious lapse in judgment on my part, and I understand the importance of paying the correct fare and following the rules.

At the time of the incident, I was commuting to my university placement. I am currently a third-year full time university student and was under a lot of stress managing both my studies and placement commitments. While this does not excuse my actions, I hope it provides some context.

I acknowledge that when your staff member stopped and asked me about my ticket throughout the trip, I made a grave mistake in judgement being unable to provide a valid ticket.

As a student, I try to work hard to maintain my academic and professional reputation, and the thought that this incident could negatively impact this is extremely distressing. I feel a great deal of shame for allowing this to happen. This experience has been a wake-up call for me, and I am committed to making sure nothing like this ever occurs again.

I assure you that this is not typical behaviour for myself. I fully appreciate the impact fare evasion has on the railway system and other passengers, and I sincerely regret contributing to that problem.

I kindly ask for your understanding and respectfully request that you consider allowing to settle this matter without further proceedings to court. I am happy to pay any fare owed along with the costs incurred investigating this.

Thank you for taking the time to read my response. I am willing to cooperate with your investigation so please contact me if any further information is needed.

Sincerely,
XXX

I think that's fine. It's not beyond criticism (it could be a lot shorter, and the railway won't be interested in your university placement: I would lay good money that thousands of other students manage to get to their placement without fare dodging) but the tone is OK. It's good enough and in my experience trying to rewrite it won't make it hugely better. So get it in the post to the railway and see what they have to say

 

[WesternLancer]

When sending make sure you keep a copy of everything, ensure your ref number and name and address are on every page and if enclosing the response write ‘please see attached response’ on their form.

Send it tracked postage so you know it has been delivered if you ever need to prove that, from a post office.