Letter from Greater Anglia regarding ticket left at work

[nameuser]

Hello

This is my first post on this forum which I found while trying to seek some advice regarding a letter I received from Greater Anglia. The letter is regarding me being questioned by a member of rail staff about the payment of a rail fare.

The incident this letter is referring to is when I was approached on a train by a ticket inspector, I look in my bag for my fleece (which had my ticket it) but it was not there, I had left it at my office.

Now I am under the assumption in the eyes of Greater Anglia I have committed an offence by boarding the train without a valid ticket, even though I had purchased one. Now I was wondering how I would go about replying to this letter, as I have retrieved the ticket from my place of work. By sending them the ticket will it stop them considering legal action as the letter they sent states, leaving me with admin fees to pay or a penalty fare?

Any and all help greatly appreciated.

 

[island]

Failing to present a ticket for inspection by an authorised officer is a criminal offence, and you seem to have committed this (in reality, rather than in anyone's eyes). Therefore, you need to take steps to convince Greater Anglia not to prosecute you, which may involve paying administrative fees. Sending the ticket in doesn't really prove anything as it could, as far as the neutral observer is concerned, have been used but not inspected on the way.

A fine can only be imposed by a court.

 

[nameuser]

Thank you for your swift reply.

So in reality yes I did commit the offence but I unknowingly boarded the train without my ticket. I know this is down to me and I am not expecting to be let off without some kind of payment to Greater Anglia, however it is not in my interest to get a criminal record.

What advice could you give on convincing Greater Anglia not to progress with legal proceedings?

This is the first time I have ever not been able to produce a valid ticket for inspection, will this mitigating factor help me in any way?

 

[telstarbox]

Was it a season ticket or a single/return? Did you use the ticket on the same day that you purchased it?

 

[furlong]

Perhaps mention you had paid for the journey you made, saying when and where you bought the ticket and how (e.g. credit card) and then explain how you had not intended to travel without it but how you mislaid it and then found it again later and promise to be more careful in future. Do enclose the ticket/receipt (but keep a photocopy of both sides of the ticket) to back up what you write and don't exaggerate or make up any part of what you write: keep it short and concise and remain polite and apologetic. If you're a regular/loyal traveller who has never done this before, indicate that.

 

[island]

To furlong's advice I would suggest appending that you are willing to meet Greater Anglia's administrative costs in dealing with this matter and request that they indicate the amount concerned.

To put your mind at rest, a criminal record is unlikely to be at issue here as the offence of failing to hand over a ticket for inspection is what used to be called non-recordable. The proper name for it escapes me.