Northern rail fine - rail card Issue

[Smokingviper1]

Hi there guys

I don't take trains at all, however my girlfriend booked a Railcard train ticket for me back in April. She is also new to using Railcards. At that point I didn't have a Railcard card of my own and but now do have a HM Forces rail card after the incident.

I wasn't aware at that time the seriousness of the Railcards and believed that my girlfriends Railcard would suffice. Ohh how I was wrong. I told this to the train ticket staff member and he told me the ins and outs of the Railcard. However he had to take a picture of my ID and train ticket.

I have Just got a letter through the post stating I need to write any mitigating circumstances down on this form and if none then pay nearly £200.

I know I was unaware of how serious the Railcards were taken and I'm pretty much brand new to trains, is there ant way around not paying quite a large amount?

Many thanks for reading this

 

[AlterEgo]

Which railcard was used to discount the ticket?

Please upload a copy of the letter with your personal details redacted.

 

[Smokingviper1]

Thank you for replying! My girlfriend booked the ticket using a 26-30 Railcard. I have attached the letter

 

[Mcr Warrior]

@Smokingviper1. Looks like you're dealing with XC, not Northern.

It's not a fine, it's an £90.20 unpaid fare plus an £100 admin fee, maybe a journey with Cross Country from Newcastle to Sheffield?

 

[AlterEgo]

You don't really have any mitigating circumstances I'm afraid. You committed a criminal offence for which the company can prosecute you in the Magistrates' Court. You boarded the train without a valid ticket (a discounted one with no entitlement to the discount is not a valid ticket) and this is an offence under the Railway Bylaws.

So, assuming you travelled to Sheffield, the fare element is correct and you will just have to pay it I'm afraid.

 

[Fawkes Cat]

I'd pay it now rather than go to court.

I've no particular knowledge of how things work in the armed forces, but I would expect that if it went to court you would have to report this to your unit. I doubt if getting a train fare wrong would be career ending but you don't need the hassle.

Check whether you need to report out of court settlements as well.

 

[WesternLancer]

Thank you for replying! My girlfriend booked the ticket using a 26-30 Railcard. I have attached the letter

The bad news is cross country are very difficult to deal with on this stuff (and they pay a contractor to deal with it that plays hard ball). If you don’t pay they will almost certainly prosecute you in the magistrates court and they would win that because it’s a strict liability offence. Ie it’s not up for debate that your ticket wasn’t valid.

Your girlfriend needed to check you had that railcard before travelling when she bought that ticket.

I’m afraid you are going to need to pay this I think and chalk this one up to experience.

Good that you have now got a Forces railcard. Be sure to check that railcard is selected when buying tickets as they can deem it an offence if the wrong railcard discount is applied.
Make a note of the expiry date and be sure to renew it when required too because there’s a good chance no one will remind you.
Lots of problems on this forum with un notice expired railcards.

 

[spyinthesky]

I'd pay it now rather than go to court.

I've no particular knowledge of how things work in the armed forces, but I would expect that if it went to court you would have to report this to your unit. I doubt if getting a train fare wrong would be career ending but you don't need the hassle.

Check whether you need to report out of court settlements as well.

There is no requirement to report an out of court settlement.
A court case is most definitely reportable however not career ending as unlike times gone by where you could also be charged for breaking one of many of the regulations for bringing the Army into disrepute.

 

[Haywain]

The bad news is cross country are very difficult to deal with on this stuff

Every train company would follow this incident up in the same way, and in this case a settlement has been offered at the outset which couldn't make it easier to deal with. The OP just has to pay the amount requested, and not even write a letter asking for that opportunity.

 

[WesternLancer]

Every train company would follow this incident up in the same way, and in this case a settlement has been offered at the outset which couldn't make it easier to deal with. The OP just has to pay the amount requested, and not even write a letter asking for that opportunity.

I agree.
My point was in the context of the op asking if there was a way around paying such a large amount.

 

[Haywain]

My point was in the context of the op asking if there was a way around paying such a large amount.

But we know that the only variable is the admin fee, and £100 for that isn’t unusual.