Railcard App didn't work - Advice needed

[anonymous23r8y]

Two weeks ago I had seven hours of train journeys and had a valid ticket for the entire journey and a valid railcard which I had correctly applied through the TrainPal app which I've used for years with no issue. Halfway through my journey for some reason I was unable to get back into the app (I still have no idea how or why that happened) and emailed the app company asking for help and saying that I was unable to access my railcard (which I can only access on that app). I showed my valid tickets multiple times no issue (including with the railcard before the app stopped working), but on one of the trains after it had stopped working I was issued an MG11. I was able to show the email receipt for the railcard showing that I had purchased it, when it was valid, and my name (which I could verify with my passport), but without the railcard itself the MG11 was still issued. The interaction was so upsetting that I spent the evening crying. The woman kept telling me not to worry because it wasn't a fine but I had literally no clue that this could be a criminal offence (it isn't in any other country!). Amongst other things, she read out my entire physical description for the carriage to hear, including commenting on my marital status ('is it miss or mrs? probably miss'), my hair length (which is 'very long' according to her), and my weight (I'm not sure if she thought calling me 'quite skinny' was supposed to be a compliment?). At the end of the interaction (throughout which I had cooperated fully whilst trying and trying and trying to log back into the app which was telling me I didn't have an account under my email address) she read my rights (the whole 'you have the right to remain silent' thing....which I obviously hadn't been because we'd been talking for ten minutes). She made it sound like it was going to be a massive ordeal, telling me I'd need to compile a huge amount of 'evidence' to show that I'm a trustworthy train user, like years of previous railcards and tickets etc. I can do this, and have been spending a lot of time doing it (I'm honestly surprised that I was able to find years of old physical railcards), but she didn't tell me I could just submit a form showing my valid railcard which took me all of three minutes. The whole thing was recorded on a bodycam, which also felt violating even though I can understand why they're used. That's a good ten minutes of footage of me trying not to burst into tears whilst explaining that I really did have a railcard and trying to prove it. After two weeks, I still haven't heard anything (either about the form I submitted or the MG11) and I'm really stressed about potentially getting a criminal record because I couldn't get into an app (which I can now get back into). I have three questions:

1) When might I hear from them and will they contact me if they decide not to go ahead with this?
2) Is it worth complaining about what happened? As well as being utterly humiliating and potentially giving people a lot of information that they could use to find me (more than I mentioned above which gave away things like my workplace), cautioning someone without telling them they are under investigation and also cautioning someone after collecting information is a violation of PACE regulations that surely isn't good for a train company if they are aiming to prosecute someone?
3) Should I proactively send the company all of this 'evidence' that I've compiled, or do I just have to wait for possibly months for them to contact me?

I've heard nightmare stories of letters being sent to incorrect addresses and criminal records from this sort of thing costing £25,000 to expunge so I'm incredibly stressed. I've never been in trouble for anything in my life.

 

[AlterEgo]

Two weeks ago I had seven hours of train journeys

Firstly, we need to know the train journey and the tickets held. Where were you going from and to, and which train were you on when you were "caught"?

The woman kept telling me not to worry because it wasn't a fine but I had literally no clue that this could be a criminal offence (it isn't in any other country!)

(Irrelevant, but that is wrong - there are other countries which have criminal offences for invalid tickets/fare evasion)

. Amongst other things, she read out my entire physical description for the carriage to hear, including commenting on my marital status ('is it miss or mrs? probably miss'), my hair length (which is 'very long' according to her), and my weight (I'm not sure if she thought calling me 'quite skinny' was supposed to be a compliment?). At the end of the interaction (throughout which I had cooperated fully whilst trying and trying and trying to log back into the app which was telling me I didn't have an account under my email address) she read my rights (the whole 'you have the right to remain silent' thing....which I obviously hadn't been because we'd been talking for ten minutes)

This doesn't sound very professional at all, but keep that to one side for the moment.

1) When might I hear from them and will they contact me if they decide not to go ahead with this?

Depends on which company you're dealing with.

2) Is it worth complaining about what happened? As well as being utterly humiliating and potentially giving people a lot of information that they could use to find me (more than I mentioned above which gave away things like my workplace), cautioning someone without telling them they are under investigation and also cautioning someone after collecting information is a violation of PACE regulations that surely isn't good for a train company if they are aiming to prosecute someone?

It's not worth complaining until after you have dealt with the matter at hand first, but I would be minded to complain about this to be honest.

3) Should I proactively send the company all of this 'evidence' that I've compiled, or do I just have to wait for possibly months for them to contact me?

Just wait. A copy of your current valid railcard is all you will need to make the matter go away. From the railcard terms and conditions FAQ:

What happens if I don't have my Railcard with me and I have to buy a new ticket or pay a Penalty Fare? - 16-25 Railcard

A 16-25 Railcard costs just �30 and it'll save you 1/3 on rail fares throughout Great Britain for a whole year.

www.16-25railcard.co.uk

If you are travelling by train on a ticket with a Railcard discount, you must travel with your valid Railcard. If you forget your Railcard you will either be required to buy a new ticket or you may on certain services be liable for a Penalty Fare. However, a train company will normally allow you to claim back this extra expense on the first occasion in each year where this happens.

Each train company will have their own process for doing this. You will need to provide proof of your Railcard and either the original and additional tickets that you have purchased, or if you have not yet paid, details of the notice to pay or notice of Penalty Fare. Where you have already paid for additional tickets you should contact the relevant train company’s customer services department; in the case of a notice to pay or notice of Penalty Fare, you should follow the instructions included on how to challenge or appeal the charge.

This also applies to prosecution cases. You should not need to send them historic railcards.

 

[Trainman40083]

Have you managed to access said Railcard since the incident?

 

[anonymous23r8y]

Have you managed to access said Railcard since the incident?

Yes! I sent it via the ThamesLink online form almost two weeks ago (the weekend before last) but haven't heard anything back about it yet

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 16 Jul 2026 ==

Firstly, we need to know the train journey and the tickets held. Where were you going from and to, and which train were you on when you were "caught"?


(Irrelevant, but that is wrong - there are other countries which have criminal offences for invalid tickets/fare evasion)


This doesn't sound very professional at all, but keep that to one side for the moment.


Depends on which company you're dealing with.


It's not worth complaining until after you have dealt with the matter at hand first, but I would be minded to complain about this to be honest.


Just wait. A copy of your current valid railcard is all you will need to make the matter go away. From the railcard terms and conditions FAQ:

What happens if I don't have my Railcard with me and I have to buy a new ticket or pay a Penalty Fare? - 16-25 Railcard

A 16-25 Railcard costs just �30 and it'll save you 1/3 on rail fares throughout Great Britain for a whole year.

www.16-25railcard.co.uk

If you are travelling by train on a ticket with a Railcard discount, you must travel with your valid Railcard. If you forget your Railcard you will either be required to buy a new ticket or you may on certain services be liable for a Penalty Fare. However, a train company will normally allow you to claim back this extra expense on the first occasion in each year where this happens.

Each train company will have their own process for doing this. You will need to provide proof of your Railcard and either the original and additional tickets that you have purchased, or if you have not yet paid, details of the notice to pay or notice of Penalty Fare. Where you have already paid for additional tickets you should contact the relevant train company’s customer services department; in the case of a notice to pay or notice of Penalty Fare, you should follow the instructions included on how to challenge or appeal the charge.

This also applies to prosecution cases. You should not need to send them historic railcards.

Thanks for your response!

I don't really want to dox myself by giving the stations, but the entire ticket cost about £28 with the railcard...so the railcard saved me about a tenner. I can't honestly believe the stress that this tenner has been causing me over the last couple of weeks. I'm of a mind to never use a railcard or train again, having loved taking trains my whole life.

Yeah you're right that we're not the only country that has this as a criminal rather than civil offence. Just looked it up... In Germany it's a 1935 (and we all know who was in charge then) law and the vast majority of those imprisoned are marginalised (homeless, unemployed etc) and it is punished more severely than drunk driving, here in the UK it's a law from 1889 (so surely due an update), and basically everywhere else it's a civil case until it becomes a repeat offence. That surely seems more reasonable than criminalising people who made a genuine mistake or (like this) had a tech failure...but yes an aside.

The thing I'm wondering with the complaint is about whether that would mean that they'd save the bodycam footage? Otherwise won't it end up being deleted and become a 'he-said, she-said' situation?

And good to know I won't need loads of extra info or 'evidence,' although I've got it ready just in case anyway. I've already sent the screenshot of my railcard via the online form, but haven't heard anything

 

[signed]

Yes! I sent it via the ThamesLink online form almost two weeks ago (the weekend before last) but haven't heard anything back about it yet

It can take few weeks to a few months to all get processed, harder to do than to say but should just be patient, everything’s going to be alright

 

[anonymous23r8y]

It can take few weeks to a few months to all get processed

Ah goodness, it's so stressful just sitting waiting to hear if I'm going to actually be criminalised for a tech error. This is very painful waiting

 

[30907]

Were you given a reference number to quote when the MG11 was issued? If not, GTR will have no (simple) way of linking your upload to the incident, and you will have to wait until they contact you.

As others have said, producing the railcard should resolve this - even without, GTR almost invariably offer to settle out of court so the chances of a conviction are pretty minimal.

 

[AlterEgo]

Thanks for your response!

I don't really want to dox myself by giving the stations, but the entire ticket cost about £28 with the railcard...so the railcard saved me about a tenner. I can't honestly believe the stress that this tenner has been causing me over the last couple of weeks. I'm of a mind to never use a railcard or train again, having loved taking trains my whole life.

It's really important we know the stations you travelled from and to, and which train you were caught on - as per the sticky post this is essential information. If the train company does decide to take things further - albeit rare this is - these facts will make a material difference to your defence because of how the law works. Each case is handled differently by each train company; some take a very long time to process cases, some don't, and some take a more or less pragmatic line than others.

 

[anonymous23r8y]

Were you given a reference number to quote when the MG11 was issued? If not, GTR will have no (simple) way of linking your upload to the incident, and you will have to wait until they contact you.

As others have said, producing the railcard should resolve this - even without, GTR almost invariably offer to settle out of court so the chances of a conviction are pretty minimal.

Yes I used the reference number when I uploaded the railcard

 

[ianBR]

Just about every app selling railcards doesn’t comply with the policy that railcards must always be available even with no connection.

They have frequently updated themselves requiring you to sign in again.

How about allowing railcards to be added to apple wallets so people would know how to easily find them rather than having to navigate through endless menu options to locate them within the app

 

[chrisjo]

They have frequently updated themselves requiring you to sign in again.

My NR Senior Railcard has never asked me to sign in (except possibly the first time?). Open it before I leave the house, keep it open, always available during journey regardless of signal.

 

[Hadders]

How about allowing railcards to be added to apple wallets so people would know how to easily find them rather than having to navigate through endless menu options to locate them within the app

That would be good but the issue is it could be downloaded multiple times across different devices. There’s also the challenge of photos which I don’t think can be downloaded to a phone wallet.

 

[Mike395]

Just about every app selling railcards doesn’t comply with the policy that railcards must always be available even with no connection.

They have frequently updated themselves requiring you to sign in again.

How about allowing railcards to be added to apple wallets so people would know how to easily find them rather than having to navigate through endless menu options to locate them within the app

'Just about every app' is a bit of an exaggeration. Trainline (for all its faults elsewhere sometimes!), along with TrainSplit both handle it perfectly fine, as two examples (one being very much the market leader!)