Penalty Fare - Appeal based on wrong fare charged

[Momomoj]

Hi everyone, hoping for a bit of help with appealing a Penalty Fare

Journey: Worcester Shrub Hill, 12:56 to Cheltenham Spa, 13:22 (direct) (£9.70 Off-Peak Day Single)

However, the amount I'm being fined is £63.10, which I believe is the fine of £50 plus the £13.10 of the Anytime Day Single which would have been an indirect, later train that leaves from Shrub Hill at 13:12 and has one change.

Would this be enough to appeal the fine?

 

[z444z]

Hi everyone, hoping for a bit of help with appealing a Penalty Fare

Journey: Worcester Shrub Hill, 12:56 to Cheltenham Spa, 13:22 (direct) (£9.70 Off-Peak Day Single)

However, the amount I'm being fined is £63.10, which I believe is the fine of £50 plus the £13.10 of the Anytime Day Single which would have been an indirect, later train that leaves from Shrub Hill at 13:12 and has one change.

Would this be enough to appeal the fine?

Yes. Can help with the actual wording tomorrow.

Additionally the fare charged should have been to the next station which appears to have been Ashchurch for Tewkesbury.

 

[Fawkes Cat]

Yes

This is not a view that the railway shares. So while we may think that being charged anytime rather than off-peak is wrong, it may not be the best advice to give in all cases.

 

[Haywain]

This is not a view that the railway shares. So while we may think that being charged anytime rather than off-peak is wrong, it may not be the best advice to give in all cases.

This isn't about the railway's view, it's about what the Penalty Fare regulations specify.

 

[robbeech]

This isn't about the railway's view, it's about what the Penalty Fare regulations specify.

Agreed, unless the railway’s view is different and the appeal panel don’t know the regulations or have had so little training they just assume the railway is always right in which case it largely doesn’t matter what it’s about.

 

[Momomoj]

Thanks for the quick responses!

I'll write a draft for the appeal and type it up here for review of the wording on the weekend as I've been a bit busy today, but the help is super appreciated.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 9 Feb 2026 ==

Here is my draft,

I'm writing to appeal against the Penalty Fare Notice issued to me on 31st January 2026, for travel from Worcester Shrub Hill to Cheltenham Spa.
I am making this appeal on the grounds that the penalty fare was not charged in accordance with the requirements of the Regulation 16(3)(a) of the Railways (Penalty Fares) Regulations 2018 (as amended by the 2022 Regulations).
According to Regulation 9(6), the full single fare should reflect:
(a)the age of the person in question;
(b)the day and time of the journey that person is making, has made or intends to make, as the case may be; and
(c)the train and route that person is using, has used or intends to use.
The Penalty Fare Notice states the amount owed is £63.10, £50 fine plus £13.10 of an Anytime Day Single ticket for an indirect train to London Paddington, however, the fare I should have been issued was the Off-Peak Day Single for £9.70 as I was travelling on the direct train to Bristol Temple Meads. Based on this, the Penalty Fare should have been £50 plus £9.70, making it £59.70.
As the Penalty Fare has not been issued in line with the Regulations, I request that it accordingly be cancelled.

I did use someone else's draft on this forum as a sort of template since I struggle to write these sort of things, so if it reads as that very obviously, or I've misread what the Regulations I need to cite are, please let me know what I need to change. Thanks a bunch for the Help!