Help with prosecution and writing a letter

[bl519]

Dear all,
In January I had my ticket checked at cambridge station and found that my railcard had expired in August, which I did not realise, and the officer then took my details and asked me to wait for a letter with further details. This was a big oversight and mistake on my part, as I don't need to take the train often and my trainline app which I booked the ticket on always adds my railcard automatically so I didn't question it. Now I have a letter about intentions to prosecute and I need to provide my case to settle the issue outside of court, which seems to be standard practice based on other posts here. I'm really terrified as this was a complete mistake and I don't want this to affect my future as I'm a student, so I need to get this letter right. If anyone knows the likelihood of them choosing to prosecute (this is great northern rail) that would be really helpful.
My draft of the letter is copied below:

Dear Fare Evasion Officer,
Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to explain what happened on the 15th January at Cambridge Station. I was travelling from Foxton to Cambridge and bought my open return ticket online using the Trainline app beforehand. The app added my 16-25 railcard automatically and I didn't know that my railcard had expired, so I didn't remove it from my purchase. At Cambridge station my ticket was checked, and when bringing up my digital railcard I saw that it had expired in August. I had been at university from September to December, where I don't need to travel by train, and hadn't checked the railcard since returning for the holidays. This was a large oversight that I deeply apologise for and will not repeat again. Based on my trainline app booking history, I would have also travelled with an outdated railcard by mistake on the 10th and 20th of December, but all journeys before then were prior to the expiry date (17th August 2024). I would be really glad to refund the discount of around £6 I received overall from these tickets.
I apologised to the officer and offered to buy a replacement ticket but it was too late to do so, so I gave him my details. On my way back I purchased a single ticket for £5.60 with no railcard to ensure that my journey was now valid. Since the incident, I have also renewed my railcard so that no issues will occur again.
I am very sorry for my mistake and had no intention of defrauding the rail industry. I will always double check my ticket going forward, and have renewed my railcard as well, as I am very ashamed of my error. I would be very grateful if we could settle this outside of court, where I would be willing to pay the outstanding fare alongside your administration costs from dealing with this matter.
Yours faithfully,
_______

I would really appreciate it if anyone could give advice or comments for my letter and the situation.

 

[Pushpit]

I think that wording is fine, perhaps break up the longer slabs of text with a paragraph or two, to make it easier to read. Plus it needs the reference number but I'm sure you know that, along with details of your new railcard, to shore up the argument that there will be no repetition. Maybe say (and action) that you will be including reminders in your diary to ensure timely renewal in the future?

Normally those in this forum would like to see a redacted version of the letter from the train operating company, in part to see if they've made any mistakes, and also to see whether they are asking just about one incident or not. You don't need to incriminate yourself beyond the questions they have asked, whereas here you appear to have done so by referencing those December trips made without a valid railcard.

However the sum of money is small for these additional trips and it may be better and easier just to demonstrate your honesty by including the relatively short trips in your reply. It's not perhaps as small as you think, since the rail company will say you had no ticket at all for these trips, rather than looking at your view of the quantum. I would do the same as you, but strictly speaking you only need to answer the questions asked.

 

[Hadders]

Welcome to the forum!

I think the letter is ok, my suspicious mind wonders whether your actual journey was from Foxton? This is a very minor station one station up the line from Cambridge.

 

[AlterEgo]

Welcome to the forum!

I think the letter is ok, my suspicious mind wonders whether your actual journey was from Foxton? This is a very minor station one station up the line from Cambridge.

The OP should certainly consider whether the company - which has their home address - will believe whether the journey was really from Foxton. It’s a short fare hot spot and has come up here before.

 

[bl519]

Yeah, it is actually the closest station to me, and I'll mention that in the letter

 

[saismee]

Yeah, it is actually the closest station to me, and I'll mention that in the letter

I don't think you should mention it unless they specifically ask. Even if it's a fare evading hotspot, it isn't relevant and your journey is genuine. Maybe you could subtly mention your location like: "as a student travelling from my home in X" instead.

 

[Hadders]

I don't think you should mention it unless they specifically ask. Even if it's a fare evading hotspot, it isn't relevant and your journey is genuine. Maybe you could subtly mention your location like: "as a student travelling from my home in X" instead.

I wouldn't mention it but presumably your reply will state your address on it anyway.