Gwr accusing me

[naheelnadeem14]

Looking for advice regarding an incident with Great Western Railway today.

I took the 16:47 train from Reading to Slough and paid for my ticket as normal. When I arrived, I scanned my ticket at the exit around 17:07–17:09 and left the station. I then realised I had exited from the wrong side, so I went back to use the correct exit.

A revenue protection officer then approached me, scanned my ticket, and told me it had apparently already been used one hour earlier, which makes no sense because I had only just completed my journey and had scanned it correctly.

I also have a previous settled matter with GWR from the past, so I’m worried this could be used against me even though I genuinely paid and travelled correctly this time.

The officer also asked personal questions like what I was doing in Reading and where I work, which I felt were unrelated.

I’ve asked GWR to preserve CCTV and gate scan records from Reading station.

Has anyone experienced something similar with ticket systems or revenue investigations? Any advice on what I should do next, especially if their fraud team contacts me?

 

[The exile]

What exactly are you being accused of?

 

[naheelnadeem14]

What exactly are you being accused of?

They told me I made an exit 1h ago and was already scanned Which is not true because I was work at the time

 

[John R]

In terms of thinking what evidence you might have to support your position, what time did you buy your ticket?

 

[naheelnadeem14]

In terms of thinking what evidence you might have to support your position, what time did you buy your ticket?

Return ticket bought in the morning

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 18 May 2026 ==

In terms of thinking what evidence you might have to support your position, what time did you buy your ticket?

At the time 16:06 I was at work

 

[John R]

Return ticket bought in the morning

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 18 May 2026 ==


At the time 16:06 I was at work

Ah, no help then!

 

[naheelnadeem14]

Ah, no help then!

I request cctv (data subject request ).

 

[Acathater]

So where were you stopped? Was it when you tried to re-enter the station? Or was it on a second attempt at leaving having re-entered?
What made them check your ticket?

 

[AlterEgo]

I think it's important to know where you were stopped. Were you outside the barriers or inside them?

 

[Fawkes Cat]

They told me I made an exit 1h ago and was already scanned Which is not true because I was work at the time

The thing is, you seem to have
- bought a return in the morning from Slough to Reading
- travelled in the morning from Slough to Reading
- travelled in the evening from Reading to Slough, and left the station
- then tried to reenter the station using the expired ticket.

I can see why someone might want to do this without any intention of getting on a train - if you're by the bus garage and want to be near Tesco (or the other way round) it's much quicker to go through the station than to go up to Stoke Road railway bridge and back down the other side. But what the railway will see is someone using an expired ticket to get into the station, and so potentially getting a free ride on the train.

So the details of what the railway staff said don't really matter. What matters is that you were trying to use an expired ticket to go through a barrier.

 

[naheelnadeem14]

So where were you stopped? Was it when you tried to re-enter the station? Or was it on a second attempt at leaving having re-entered?
What made them check your ticket?

I arrived station at 17:08 Slough station platform 5. I scanned my ticket and left the station . After I realised I choose wrong exit . I made my return to the station (barriers was open ) . I went platform 1 . I scanned the ticket but of course won’t work because I already scanned and revenue agent told me I already left the station 1h ago (which is not true )I explain the situation and told me we will an investigation.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 18 May 2026 ==

The thing is, you seem to have
- bought a return in the morning from Slough to Reading
- travelled in the morning from Slough to Reading
- travelled in the evening from Reading to Slough, and left the station
- then tried to reenter the station using the expired ticket.

I can see why someone might want to do this without any intention of getting on a train - if you're by the bus garage and want to be near Tesco (or the other way round) it's much quicker to go through the station than to go up to Stoke Road railway bridge and back down the other side. But what the railway will see is someone using an expired ticket to get into the station, and so potentially getting a free ride on the train.

So the details of what the railway staff said don't really matter. What matters is that you were trying to use an expired ticket to go through a barrier.

He was concerned that I left the station one hour ago rather than go back to the station and use another exit

 

[James H]

Sounds like a GMT vs BST issue with the barriers recording the scan time an hour out

 

[Titfield]

Have you actually been issued with any paperwork for this incident?

 

[naheelnadeem14]

Sounds like a GMT vs BST issue with the barriers recording the scan time an hour out

This what i thought. Because the revenue officer said exact 1h ago .

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 18 May 2026 ==

Have you actually been issued with any paperwork for this incident?

No . I did not gave any details and I left . He just told me fraud team will double check

 

[Titfield]

This what i thought. Because the revenue officer said exact 1h ago .

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 18 May 2026 ==


No . I did not gave any details and I left . He just told me fraud team will double check

Apart from requesting the footage (which may not assist) - and you state you have done this - you will have to wait for the letter to arrive if indeed they decide there is an issue to be resolved.

 

[WesternLancer]

Apart from requesting the footage (which may not assist) - and you state you have done this - you will have to wait for the letter to arrive if indeed they decide there is an issue to be resolved.

Yes,
in the mean time @naheelnadeem14 should make a note of the timeline everything happened, what was said etc, whilst still fresh in memory - as per their posts here really - so they have a clear note as to what happened for their records

That note can include that CCTV has been requested.

They would be able to call this a 'contemporaneous note of the incident' if the railway company contact them about this.

Keep a copy oof everything including a copy of the request for the CCTV,
also screen shot the tickets out and back and save those too (assuming they were not printed out and used that way, but used on phone etc)

Just in case any of this needed to support the argument that they were not intending to travel the second time the ticket was presented at the barrier to change their station exit intention.

 

[naheelnadeem14]

Yes,
in the mean time @naheelnadeem14 should make a note of the timeline everything happened, what was said etc, whilst still fresh in memory - as per their posts here really - so they have a clear note as to what happened for their records

That note can include that CCTV has been requested.

They would be able to call this a 'contemporaneous note of the incident' if the railway company contact them about this.

Keep a copy oof everything including a copy of the request for the CCTV,
also screen shot the tickets out and back and save those too (assuming they were not printed out and used that way, but used on phone etc)

Just in case any of this needed to support the argument that they were not intending to travel the second time the ticket was presented at the barrier to change their station exit intention.

Thank you appreciate your advice. I’m surprise they did not gave me any paperwork

 

[SuspectUsual]

@naheelnadeem14 did you scan your ticket to open a gate when you got to Reading station after work?

 

[naheelnadeem14]

@naheelnadeem14 did you scan your ticket to open a gate when you got to Reading station after work?

Yes I did

 

[SuspectUsual]

Yes I did

That's good, because it should show them, on their own systems, when you were in Reading, and that you couldn't have been in Slough "an hour earlier", unless it is a GMT vs BST issue as mentioned in post #12 and that issue is network wide rather than just at Slough

 

[Haywain]

if you're by the bus garage and want to be near Tesco (or the other way round) it's much quicker to go through the station than to go up to Stoke Road railway bridge and back down the other side.

It might be quicker but I think at that point you have to accept that you’ve made a mistake and accept the consequence of the quick route no longer being available.