SER fare avoidance penalty

[milanolu]

Got stopped by SER rail officers at London Bridge station this morning for a wrong ticket on my journey.

Was given this receipt.

What should I do? I have been issued a penalty previously on SWR

Is this likely to lead to court or a criminal charge?

I admit I was in the wrong but not sure what to do now?

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 3 Mar 2026 ==

For further details, I boarded the train at Reigate with a ticket for Reigate to Purley. This was checked by a ticket inspector and was fine. I changed train to go to London Bridge and got confronted upon approaching the gates

 

[Haywain]

How were you intending getting through the gates at London Bridge and have you been doing this regularly? That you say you were "confronted upon approaching the gates" suggests, without knowing all the detail, that this was a planned stop and the train company have a lot more information than just this one incident.

 

[milanolu]

Thanks for the response here, I’d bought a ticket from Cannon Street to London Bridge. There were inspectors stationed at all gates checking everyone’s tickets. I’ve not seen that done before. It wasn’t just me who was stopped

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 3 Mar 2026 ==

How were you intending getting through the gates at London Bridge and have you been doing this regularly? That you say you were "confronted upon approaching the gates" suggests, without knowing all the detail, that this was a planned stop and the train company have a lot more information than just this one incident.

However, admittedly I have done this in previous occasions as I said. I’m not saying I’m not at fault but I would like to know what’s likely to occur from this as I’ve never been cautioned in that manner before from a rail officer

 

[Haywain]

In due course (maybe a few weeks) you will receive a letter from Southeastern giving you an opportunity to respond to the threat of prosecution. It is highly likely that you will be able to agree a settlement and avoid court action, although that is probably going to involve paying back the fare avoided that they can identify. When you receive a letter, post it here and we can advise on how to form your reply. Meanwhile, stop the short faring.

 

[milanolu]

In due course (maybe a few weeks) you will receive a letter from Southeastern giving you an opportunity to respond to the threat of prosecution. It is highly likely that you will be able to agree a settlement and avoid court action, although that is probably going to involve paying back the fare avoided that they can identify. When you receive a letter, post it here and we can advise on how to form your reply. Meanwhile, stop the short faring.

Yeah, I’ve certainly learned my lesson. The advice here is greatly appreciated

 

[WesternLancer]

Yeah, I’ve certainly learned my lesson. The advice here is greatly appreciated

The standard advice often given here may help you prepare for what is most likely to happen next - see below:



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.


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.

 

[milanolu]

The standard advice often given here may help you prepare for what is most likely to happen next - see below:



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.


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.

Thanks for the information here, paying the fine shouldn’t be a problem. I was more worried about what could happen beyond that.

 

[WesternLancer]

Thanks for the information here, paying the fine shouldn’t be a problem. I was more worried about what could happen beyond that.

Technically it'll only be a fine if you get taken to court. What you want to pay is an out of court settlement - the money for the fares you have not paid correctly - plus their costs of investigating you - but there is no automatic right to that outcome.

 

[milanolu]

Technically it'll only be a fine if you get taken to court. What you want to pay is an out of court settlement - the money for the fares you have not paid correctly - plus their costs of investigating you - but there is no automatic right to that outcome.

Understood, thank you

 

[Trainman40083]

Part of your problem is that the revenue protection staff can see when you bought the ticket and if it was scanned through the barriers. Back office staff can then check your history. Cannon Street to London Bridge is another journey like Vauxhall to Waterloo. Any ticket bought would be so rare, as most use Oyster/contactless.