I was stopped by GTR not TFL. When stopped previously I was given a penalty fare, I believe it was around £70 and in my name correctly.
@WesternLancer The only reason I’m considering a solicitor is because I wasn’t sure if giving my brothers details complicates things for me and also the officer scanned my ticket for the 1 stop I paid for and then asked to look at my history which has around 11 months of the same fare so it could be a hefty amount.
Do you have a link to any similar threads I can read as there’s many but I find they all have different details.
I would think that when you hear from them (via letter sent to your brother that he will presumably give you as you will have told him) you could correct those details by giving an honest account. They will be used to people lying when caught. Giving false details is a separate offence but I don't think we have ever seen a case on the forum any time recently where action has been taken against anyone for that.
However, Manak have a very good track record on this forum, and for resolving matters quickly - if you search the forum 'manak' I think you will find positive feedback from people who have detailed their experiences here. That's the only source I know about them from. Of course it's up to you if you want to put matters in their hands - but it may be that another option is that you can use your own efforts to seek a settlement and if that was not successful you could then engage a solicitor.
In case you have not seen it elsewhere already - this standard advice will help you know what to expect if you opt to try and resolve it yourself:
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Firstly, you committed a
criminal offence by travelling with an invalid ticket and railway companies are entitled to prosecute you in the Magistrates Court if they want to. The good news is they will normally offer an out of court settlement to people who co-operate with them and who haven't come to their attention before (
by 'not coming to their attention before' I read this to mean someone who has not received a notice of intention to prosecute, agreed an out of court settlement, then been caught again evading).
Next, what happens is the railway company will write to you. The letter will go to the address that you gave them / on any of your ID they checked so you need to be able to access hard copy post at that address as they often send things that way (but also check e-mail and spam). It is
extremely important that you reply, and you'll only have a limited time to do so (often 14 days from the date on their communication).
When you receive the letter post a redacted copy of it in this thread, along with your draft reply and forum members will proof read it for you. You'll find lots of example letters you can use in this section of the forum but the reply basically needs to mention:
- That you are sorry for what has happened
- What you have learned from the incident and will not do this again
- That you are keen to settle the matter without the need for court action
- Offer to pay the outstanding fare and the railway company’s administrative costs in dealing with the matter
The railway will probably offer you an out of court settlement. Expect to have to pay the cost of the fare for the journey you made at the full Anytime rate with no credit given for the invalid ticket you purchased. In addition they will charge an admin fee, typically £150. They will also audit your online ticket purchase history and if this shows you've purchased other tickets that were not valid (eg railcard discounted tickets when you did not have a valid railcard, or tickets for only part of the journey, or tickets bought after boarding the train you travelled on ) they will probably factor the cost of these journeys into the settlement offer. Depending on how many journeys you've made over the period concerned this could end up being expensive.
Settlements usually have to be paid in full within a few days of them being offered so if money is tight you might want to think about how you will raise the sum required at short notice.
