Help with a dispute

[Pucela74]

Hello,
My son has a 16+oyster card and was travelling by train from Putney to Twickenham this morning on South Western Railway.
He tapped in at Putney station and when arriving at Twickenham he tried to tap out. There he got the message 'Seek Assistance'. The person at the station allowed him to leave through the big gate, but once out, an officer stopped him and asked him for his oyster or valid ticket.
The inspector checked his oyster and said that he failed to tap in at Putney, therefore he didn't have a valid ticket. He was issued a Penalty Fare Notice for £105 but £55 if paid within 21 days with reason: No ticket.
I have to add that he holds a monthly travelcard for zones 3-6 so he was covered by this being Putney in zones 2/3 and Twickenham in zone 5.
I would like to know if it's worth disputing, as there must be a way to check the CCTV cameras at Putney to see the footage of him entering the station? Or is this wishfull thinking?
This is the first time I'm disputing a penalty, so any help/insight would be great!
Thanks,
Elena

 

[Hadders]

Welcome to the forum!

It's worth checking your son's TfL account to see if the touch in at Putney was recorded.

Is the travelcard on the Oyster card that your son used to touch in at Putney and touch out at Twickenham? If so you should appeal on the basis that a valid ticket was held for the journey.

 

[island]

Does the passenger have a negative balance on his Oyster card?

 

[Pucela74]

Thank you for your replies.
Tried to check on the tfl account online but does not show that information on these types of cards (16+), which is a shame.
No, it had a positive balance of about £20 on top of the monthly travelcard.

 

[fandroid]

Is the travelcard on the Oyster card that your son used to touch in at Putney and touch out at Twickenham? If so you should appeal on the basis that a valid ticket was held for the journey.

If this is the case then it seems odd that the inspector couldn't see the Travelcard on the Oyster.