Settlement offer over a year after the incident

[UnhappyCamper]

Hi all,

I have just received a bit of a shock. April 2024, I was unknowingly travelling with an expired railcard. I had done so on five journeys, where my ticket and railcard had been checked each time and the inspectors found no issue with my railcard, so I had assumed it to be fine.

I was finally told that my railcard was expired and the ticket inspector treated me quite poorly. I was very apologetic at first, as the expired railcard was a genuine mistake, but he wasn’t interested and was very sarcastic when writing down my responses to his questions. He also dressed me down in front of all the other passengers and the whole situation was very embarrassing. He said they would be in touch soon and he advised me to pay the fine.

Over a year and a half later, now October 2025, I have received a pre-court settlement offer. They claim they examined my account and I took 5 journeys in the time my railcard had been expired. Despite the fact I took off-peak single journeys they have charged me an anytime fair for each journey, and the offer amounts to £835, which I think is very unreasonable as the original journeys were no more than £15 each.

My question is can they even seek a settlement so long after the original offences? Will the fact that it has been so long give me a better chance when appealing? After a brief look at the terms and services, the way I was treated doesn’t meet my expectations as a customer, is this a viable avenue for appeal?

As a first time poster in this forum, I appreciate any help I can get. I can’t possibly afford £835 and my offences were genuine mistakes.

 

[Ailsa_Craig]

The experts will chip in, but AFAIK the TOC is out of time to prosecute you for this incident, although they could possibly pursue the matter through the civil courts. However, they would only be able to claim for their actual loss.

 

[furlong]

Indeed this sounds rather outrageous but not out of character for the train companies.

You could make a counter-offer based on the amount you calculate they have really lost e.g. the cost of renewing the railcard (if you still qualified) or the total amounts of the discounts.

Which train company (or companies) are involved? If you share details of the correspondence people may be willing to offer more specific advice.

Please read this thread about a similar case involving GWR where an initial demand for over £2700 was brought down to under £300 by firm negotiation.

Expired railcard

I need urgent advice regarding a letter I have received from Revenue Recovery Team at GWR. February 2024, I was stopped by a ticket inspector and presented an expired Railcard. Inspector was rude and towering over me demanding my details. I didn’t have my ID at the time, but gave my details...

www.railforums.co.uk

 

[Watershed]

Welcome to the forum.

I would suggest you have a read of this thread, where someone in a similar situation to yours received correspondence from GWR regarding historical Railcard irregularities.

The good news is that you effectively can't be prosecuted. The usual offences that train companies would prosecute for (a breach of the Railway Byelaws, or of the Regulation of Railways Act 1889) are 'summary only'. This means that they can only be heard in the Magistrates' Court and that a prosecution has to be started within 6 months of the alleged offence - after that it's no longer allowed.

Train companies sometimes argue that using an expired Railcard amounts to fraud, but they would near clear evidence that you did it intentionally, rather than just overlooking its expiry. A fraud prosecution has no time limit as it's a more serious offence - it's 'triable either way' in the legal terminology, i.e. it can also be heard in the Crown Court with a jury, rather than just the Magistrates' Court.

However, I am not aware of any train companies that bring fraud prosecutions themselves - they usually refer such cases to the British Transport Police for investigation. There won't be many circumstances where there is enough evidence to prove fraud, so I don't think it is something you should be particularly concerned about.

That leaves just the 'civil' side, i.e. the ability of the train company to sue you in the County Court. Their claim would likely be under the National Rail Conditions of Travel, specifically condition 9.2.1 which claims they can charge you the undiscounted Anytime single fare if you didn't buy a valid ticket before boarding.

However, as discussed in the thread linked above, it is doubtful whether condition 9.2.1 is enforceable in the way the train companies appear to claim. As you have said, it could leave passengers with huge liability for journeys made years ago, out of all proportion with the loss incurred by the train company or indeed what any reasonable passenger would actually be prepared to pay for that journey.

As the linked thread shows, train companies are generally more willing to back down when challenged and agree a more sensible settlement in cases such as yours, since their only recourse (if you refuse to pay) is to bring a County Court claim, which is not a process they tend to be as keen on. It can't easily be done in bulk in the way that 'summary only' prosecutions can.

It would be useful to see the full correspondence you have had with the train company (with any personal details or reference numbers redacted), so we can give the best advice on how to act now.

 

[Chrius56000]

. . .April 2024 to October 2025 is THREE TIMES the time elapsed that the TOC can legally lay a Magistrates Court charge for this offence, and assuming the discounted journey was £15, the actual loss they could claim in the civil court would be £125 if the worst–case scenario of the original discounted tickets being totally invalid was assumed (five journeys at £25 or £15 × 1.333), if the County Court took the reasonable lay person's view that the true loss to the railway company is the difference between the discounted fare and the standard fare for exactly the same ticket, then they could legitimately claim £50, but I would like to see them try this nonsense in the County Court of trying to claim for the maximum possible Anytime Peak Fare – you would be within your rights to complain of unreasonable behaviour on the part of the T.O.C. and defend it vigorously, and if the County Court Judge forms the opinion that the T.O.C. is trying to pull a fast one, which he/she could well do with that absurd figure, the T.O.C.'s entire claim could be scrubbed off altogether!

 

[Watershed]

. . .April 2024 to October 2025 is THREE TIMES the TOC can legally lay a Magistrates Court charge for this offence, and assuming the discounted journey was £15, the actual loss they could claim in the civil court would be £125 if the worst–case scenario of the original discounted tickets being totally invalid was assumed (five journeys at £25 or £15 × 1.333), if the County Court took the reasonable lay person's view that the true loss to the railway company is the difference between the discounted fare and the standard fare for exactly the same ticket, then they could legitimately claim £50, but I would like to see them try this nonsense in the County Court of trying to claim for the maximum possible Anytime Peak Fare – you would be within your rights to complain of unreasonable behaviour on the part of the T.O.C. and defend it vigorously, and if the County Court Judge forms the opinion that the T.O.C. is trying to pull a fast one, which he/she could well do with that absurd figure, the T.O.C.'s entire claim could be scrubbed off altogether!

A judge wouldn't have grounds to dismiss the entire claim; fundamentally there has been a breach of contract and the train company is clearly entitled to get something back. But yes, I agree that their real loss is either the foregone Railcard revenue (arguably pro-rata for a few months if the OP has since renewed), or if we are being generous to the TOC, the difference in fare.

The NRCoT purport to impose a higher liability than just the difference in fare, but the condition as worded is so onerous that I don't think it can be considered fully enforceable. For one thing, passengers are not necessarily going to be told what the Anytime fare is at the time of buying their ticket, so how can they even know what liability they are taking on?

 

[UnhappyCamper]

Indeed this sounds rather outrageous but not out of character for the train companies.

You could make a counter-offer based on the amount you calculate they have really lost e.g. the cost of renewing the railcard (if you still qualified) or the total amounts of the discounts.

Which train company (or companies) are involved? If you share details of the correspondence people may be willing to offer more specific advice.

Please read this thread about a similar case involving GWR where an initial demand for over £2700 was brought down to under £300 by firm negotiation.

Expired railcard

I need urgent advice regarding a letter I have received from Revenue Recovery Team at GWR. February 2024, I was stopped by a ticket inspector and presented an expired Railcard. Inspector was rude and towering over me demanding my details. I didn’t have my ID at the time, but gave my details...

www.railforums.co.uk

Specifically, I received a pre-court settlement offer, which is attached. The companies involved were GWR, Avanti West Coast and West Midlands railways. Thank you for sharing the similar case, it brings me some hope

 

[Fawkes Cat]

Specifically, I received a pre-court settlement offer, which is attached. The companies involved were GWR, Avanti West Coast and West Midlands railways. Thank you for sharing the similar case, it brings me some hope

Thank s for posting this: you might want to take it back down and hide your name and address.

 

[WesternLancer]

Hi all,

I have just received a bit of a shock. April 2024, I was unknowingly travelling with an expired railcard. I had done so on five journeys, where my ticket and railcard had been checked each time and the inspectors found no issue with my railcard, so I had assumed it to be fine.

I was finally told that my railcard was expired and the ticket inspector treated me quite poorly. I was very apologetic at first, as the expired railcard was a genuine mistake, but he wasn’t interested and was very sarcastic when writing down my responses to his questions. He also dressed me down in front of all the other passengers and the whole situation was very embarrassing. He said they would be in touch soon and he advised me to pay the fine.

Over a year and a half later, now October 2025, I have received a pre-court settlement offer. They claim they examined my account and I took 5 journeys in the time my railcard had been expired. Despite the fact I took off-peak single journeys they have charged me an anytime fair for each journey, and the offer amounts to £835, which I think is very unreasonable as the original journeys were no more than £15 each.

My question is can they even seek a settlement so long after the original offences? Will the fact that it has been so long give me a better chance when appealing? After a brief look at the terms and services, the way I was treated doesn’t meet my expectations as a customer, is this a viable avenue for appeal?

As a first time poster in this forum, I appreciate any help I can get. I can’t possibly afford £835 and my offences were genuine mistakes.

Just to say your ‘customer expectations’ as a passenger are not relevant and no great basis for an appeal. The railway’s expectations are that you pay the correct fare and they aren’t seemingly interested in genuine mistakes like forgetting your Railcard expired. They regard it as your responsibility to check this.

There’s no appeal right in any case, not in the formal sense I suspect you are thinking of. These letters are essentially requests to ‘pay this sum or we will see you in court’ where they would win because travel without a valid ticket is a strict liability offence.

But as others have set out this is all put into a very different light by their failure to have prosecuted you in a timely manner (which is the main lever they have over you to make you pay the sum demanded). Or seemingly even been in touch with you in any way over the intervening period presumably?

Hopefully that other thread gives you some idea how you could push back on this demand. But you will see that it’s likely to involve a fair amount of time and effort on your part to get them to reduce their demand.

But you will get help here if that is what you want to do to progress it which I suspect is worth the effort.

 

[Watershed]

These letters are essentially requests to ‘pay this sum or we will see you in court’ where they would win because travel without a valid ticket is a strict liability offence.

The TOC would likely be awarded something in a civil claim, but there is no guarantee it would be as much as the £825 they are currently demanding.

Given the limited liability for costs in the Small Claims Track of the County Court, there is a fair incentive to defend any claim that is brought - should it prove impossible to negotiate a reasonable settlement in discussions with the TOC.

 

[UnhappyCamper]

Any help in drafting an appeal will be welcomed and appreciated.

I feel that the notice being so far past the original offences, I must have some grounds for a reduction in the charge, since my personal circumstances have changed since that point.

I attempted to submit an appeal through ITAL, but the website would not allow me to. After some back and forth on different help lines I emailed the prosecutions officer who emailed me originally. They just emailed me back and said that I have not been given a penalty fare, but have been reported to their offices for applying railcard discounts to tickets where I did not have a valid railcard and I should communicate with her from now on. I’m not sure if this will mean anything to anyone.

 

[Watershed]

Please can you re-upload the correspondence you've had, with your personal details and any reference numbers redacted? It's been removed from your earlier post for your own privacy.

 

[AlterEgo]

I attempted to submit an appeal through ITAL, but the website would not allow me to. After some back and forth on different help lines I emailed the prosecutions officer who emailed me originally. They just emailed me back and said that I have not been given a penalty fare, but have been reported to their offices for applying railcard discounts to tickets where I did not have a valid railcard and I should communicate with her from now on. I’m not sure if this will mean anything to anyone.

Yes, you've not been penalty fared. You were reported for prosecution. It is now too long for them to bring a prosecution but they retail the ability to claim against you civilly for the breach of contract. That is the short version of what has happened and I defer to @Watershed upthread who has summarised the train company's abilities here succinctly.

You have no right to *appeal* as you would a penalty fare, you are now in the territory of using legal arguments to reduce the claim against you.

 

[John R]

Any help in drafting an appeal will be welcomed and appreciated.

I feel that the notice being so far past the original offences, I must have some grounds for a reduction in the charge, since my personal circumstances have changed since that point.

I attempted to submit an appeal through ITAL, but the website would not allow me to. After some back and forth on different help lines I emailed the prosecutions officer who emailed me originally. They just emailed me back and said that I have not been given a penalty fare, but have been reported to their offices for applying railcard discounts to tickets where I did not have a valid railcard and I should communicate with her from now on. I’m not sure if this will mean anything to anyone.

OK, that's good - you know who you need to have contact with, which is always a good start.

The letter you received explicitly mentions the possibility of a civil claim, so I don't think you can simply go back and say "you're out of time". I would be inclined to offer them 50% of the fares you paid, which represents the amount you saved by applying a discount, together with £50 to cover their costs. Others may of course recommend offering nothing at this stage, but I guess you want the problem to go away as quickly as possible, and offering something might be the way of doing that.

 

[ainsworth74]

I think it's wise to engage with GWR as the passenger did not have a valid railcard so their tickets were invalid. However it seems clear to me that the amount is not that which has been claimed by GWR so far. For one thing they've not actually listed the journeys they believe no valid tickets were held for to enable the OP to make appropriate representations (did they buy the tickets for their own use or someone else for instance?) quite apart from the arguments around what the appropriate fare might be (as @Watershed alluded to it's unlikely that the full undiscounted Anytime Single each way is the appropriate fare).

 

[UnhappyCamper]

Apologies about before, hope this screenshot is sufficient. I am a bit confused why they are bringing a prosecution rather than a penalty fare when they are well beyond the deadline for prosecuting. Unless they wanted to bring it to the criminal court and claim that my use of an expired railcard was fraud, but they wouldn’t be able to prove intent.

Annoyingly, I held the expired card for so long because it had been checked on each of the five journeys they are claiming I travelled on, giving me no reason to believe it was expired and allowing me to incur greater charges.

Under section 10(5) of the penalty fares regulations, collectors can only charge a penalty fare to a person who is actually on the train, so I’m unsure regarding the legality of charging fares in retrospect. Why do they think I was even on the train for the other four occasions?

 

[ainsworth74]

Apologies about before, hope this screenshot is sufficient. I am a bit confused why they are bringing a prosecution rather than a penalty fare when they are well beyond the deadline for prosecuting. Unless they wanted to bring it to the criminal court and claim that my use of an expired railcard was fraud, but they wouldn’t be able to prove intent.

I think there might be a bit of a misunderstanding. They're out of time to bring a criminal prosecution for fare evasion (which would be their usual response) as the time limit is six months from the date of offence. They are not outside of the time limit to bring a criminal fraud prosecution but the odds of that are very very low. They are within the time limit to bring a civil claim via what is usually known as the small claims court that would be the most likely court action that they would take.

A penalty fare would only be issued at the time of travel (i.e. when you were actually speaking to the inspector) so cannot be issued retroactively. Their only choices after the fact are criminal prosecution (out of time now) or a civil claim.

 

[AlterEgo]

Apologies about before, hope this screenshot is sufficient. I am a bit confused why they are bringing a prosecution rather than a penalty fare when they are well beyond the deadline for prosecuting. Unless they wanted to bring it to the criminal court and claim that my use of an expired railcard was fraud, but they wouldn’t be able to prove intent.

It would be very difficult for them to do that, yes.

Under section 10(5) of the penalty fares regulations, collectors can only charge a penalty fare to a person who is actually on the train

Yes, but this isn't relevant.

, so I’m unsure regarding the legality of charging fares in retrospect.

Perfectly legal. You aren't being penalty fared, but instead the company is - like any other business might - asking you to pay for the services rendered. That is entirely legitimate; you do owe them at least the difference in fare wrongly claimed which is the loss they have suffered due to your breach of contract.

Why do they think I was even on the train for the other four occasions?

It's a perfectly reasonable assumption. I mean, you were, right? What is your argument that you weren't, that you will introduce as evidence to a court? A civil court will decide your liability on the balance of probabilities - they do not have to be sure. Unless you introduce good evidence that on XYZ occasion it wasn't you, you will be held liable for them.

 

[John R]

I think one immediate action is to respond politely acknowledging their letter, and ask for a breakdown of the amount claimed in terms of journeys and fares. That can't be construed as an unreasonable response.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 8 Oct 2025 ==

Annoyingly, I held the expired card for so long because it had been checked on each of the five journeys they are claiming I travelled on,

So if it was checked then if any of those journeys were e-tickets then it is likely they were scanned, either at a gateline or on board. So they have proof that the tickets were used by somebody, and you were caught using one subsequently. So unless they were purchased for somebody else who is willing to confirm in court that they used those tickets, it would be reasonable for a court to conclude that you used them.

 

[UnhappyCamper]

My point about them proving I was on the train was that I myself am not even sure if I was on the train for each instance.

When I travelled by train I had my ticket and railcard checked. But I have family in both Liverpool and London. I know that sometimes I have bought a ticket in advance, but then received a lift from family members if they happen to be travelling at the same time.

I’m not sure I have anyway to prove this since this is the first communication I have received, almost two years after the original offence. Therefore, is it their duty to prove that I was on the train, or is it mine to provide evidence that I wasn’t?

 

[Fawkes Cat]

I’m not sure I have anyway to prove this since this is the first communication I have received, almost two years after the original offence. Therefore, is it their duty to prove that I was on the train, or is it mine to provide evidence that I wasn’t?

If it ends up in the civil court, then the judge will decide what happened on the balance of probabilities - this is different from what happens in the criminal court where the prosecution must make their case beyond reasonable doubt.

As things stand, it's known that you bought tickets for those journeys. If that's all that is presented to the judge, then the railway will argue that it is unusual for someone to buy a ticket but neither use nor refund it - so on the balance of probabilities you must have used the tickets, and so be liable to pay <whatever is appropriate>*.

So it seems to me that you need to present some evidence to show that you didn't make the journeys. A start would be your family members confirming that

sometimes I have bought a ticket in advance, but then received a lift from family members if they happen to be travelling at the same time.

And it would be better if they can confirm that this happens on specific occasions. Or (accepting that a couple of years have passed so this will be difficult) if you could evidence that you were somewhere else when the railway say you were on the train, that would speak towards you being elsewhere.

In short, you can't just rely on the railway not producing evidence. If it comes to it, you need to demonstrate your side of the story.

* 'whatever is appropriate' is a whole different question, that I'm not getting into here.

 

[WesternLancer]

Any help in drafting an appeal will be welcomed and appreciated.

I feel that the notice being so far past the original offences, I must have some grounds for a reduction in the charge, since my personal circumstances have changed since that point.

I attempted to submit an appeal through ITAL, but the website would not allow me to. After some back and forth on different help lines I emailed the prosecutions officer who emailed me originally. They just emailed me back and said that I have not been given a penalty fare, but have been reported to their offices for applying railcard discounts to tickets where I did not have a valid railcard and I should communicate with her from now on. I’m not sure if this will mean anything to anyone.

Reading your posts (and I don't blame you for this - it's not an experience that many people find themselves in) but I fear you are not really understanding the situation you are in. They will not be interested in your personal circumstances, or that other staff failed to notice your Railcard was expired etc

Have a read of the other thread linked - carefully read it - and have a look at some other threads too perhaps - that thread will give you an idea of the sort of letter you need to draft in response to them and you can essentially copy the jist of that - but before you reply you should get a draft response checked here.

But in the first instance do this as per post #19

I think one immediate action is to respond politely acknowledging their letter, and ask for a breakdown of the amount claimed in terms of journeys and fares. That can't be construed as an unreasonable response.

But before you send it - get tour wording checked here - keep the message simple, just asking them to list the travel they believe you undertook with those ticket so you can establish a breakdown of the sum they are asking for (people often do this following advice from here they will not think it an unreasonable request) - you have time on your side because they have already missed their chance to prosecute you for travel without a valid ticket.

If this is GWR (who will be acting on behalf of any other train company in respect of the other fares they believe you also bought without a valid railcard) I would also suggest you read their Revenue Protection Policy for useful background too - the pdf version

https://www.gwr.com/-/media/gwr-sc-website/files/revenue-protection-policy/GWR-Revenue-Protection-Policy-January-2023.pdf

 

[UnhappyCamper]

Reading your posts (and I don't blame you for this - it's not an experience that many people find themselves in) but I fear you are not really understanding the situation you are in. They will not be interested in your personal circumstances, or that other staff failed to notice your Railcard was expired etc

Have a read of the other thread linked - carefully read it - and have a look at some other threads too perhaps - that thread will give you an idea of the sort of letter you need to draft in response to them and you can essentially copy the jist of that - but before you reply you should get a draft response checked here.

But in the first instance do this as per post #19



But before you send it - get tour wording checked here - keep the message simple, just asking them to list the travel they believe you undertook with those ticket so you can establish a breakdown of the sum they are asking for (people often do this following advice from here they will not think it an unreasonable request) - you have time on your side because they have already missed their chance to prosecute you for travel without a valid ticket.

If this is GWR (who will be acting on behalf of any other train company in respect of the other fares they believe you also bought without a valid railcard) I would also suggest you read their Revenue Protection Policy for useful background too - the pdf version

https://www.gwr.com/-/media/gwr-sc-website/files/revenue-protection-policy/GWR-Revenue-Protection-Policy-January-2023.pdf

Sorry, I will try to only include relevant information. As far as a breakdown I have been given a spreadsheet which I will attach, or are you referring to a more detailed breakdown of the costs? I will attach a screenshot of a portion of the spreadsheet here.

 

[John R]

That’s exactly what we were looking for. So you don’t need to ask for anything else in that respect.

 

[WesternLancer]

Sorry, I will try to only include relevant information. As far as a breakdown I have been given a spreadsheet which I will attach, or are you referring to a more detailed breakdown of the costs? I will attach a screenshot of a portion of the spreadsheet here.

That should do it. People here will know correct fares for any travel. You presumably know what you did pay by looking at your online ticket buying account.

Are any of these journeys you are confident you did not make by train and in some way evidence that you did not make?

Think about this question (did you make these train journeys? ) in the worst case scenario circumstances which i suspect is being asked it in court under oath.

 

[Trainbike46]

That should do it. People here will know correct fares for any travel. You presumably know what you did pay by looking at your online ticket buying account.

Are any of these journeys you are confident you did not make by train and in some way evidence that you did not make?

Think about this question (did you make these train journeys? ) in the worst case scenario circumstances which i suspect is being asked it in court under oath.

The fare already paid is listed on the spreadsheet as well

 

[ainsworth74]

Sorry, I will try to only include relevant information. As far as a breakdown I have been given a spreadsheet which I will attach, or are you referring to a more detailed breakdown of the costs? I will attach a screenshot of a portion of the spreadsheet here.

Are you able to provide any evidence of any sort that would suggest you didn't travel on the train indicated? For GWR to bring a successful civil claim against you for the outstanding fares all they have to do is persuade a judge that on the balance of probability (that is to say a 50+1% likelihood) you were travelling. It is a much lower bar than the criminal burden of beyond a reasonable doubt that is to say that they must persuade someone that they are sure of guilt. GWR only have to string together an argument that leads to a conclusion that you were more like than not travelling. Which is probably not very hard to do really as you've not offered anything here beyond "Maybe a got a lift?". I'm not trying to be nasty but simply poking at the sorts of things that GWR would poke at.

I really think you need to stop focusing on whether GWR can do anything at all about this (they can even though it was a long time ago) and more on trying to negotiate them down from trying to get you to pay for the full undiscounted Anytime Single for every journey.

 

[John R]

Let’s be honest, the “maybe had a lift” thing is a red herring. You would know immediately if you had been given a lift from Liverpool to London - not “maybe”.

So I would focus on what actually happened. You travelled with invalid tickets, and now need to concentrate on minimising the amount GWR claims back from you. I’ve suggested earlier a possible strategy in terms of an offer you could make to avoid them taking you to court, but other options are available.

 

[Watershed]

OK, so the arguments you'd use in your defence would be largely the same as those that were suggested in the other GWR thread - see in particular my post #111.

There is one discrepancy in the fares GWR have asked for. They are asking for the £171.30 'Any Permitted' Anytime Single from London to Liverpool on 24 March 2024 - however your Advance ticket shows you travelled with West Midlands Trains. WMT have a cheaper 'WMR & LNR only' Anytime Single costing £77.20, which is the most you could be charged even if you were to accept NRCoT condition 9.2.1 at face value. So that should take at least £94.10 off GWR's claim.

The remaining arguments are then about:
1) The lack of a legal basis for GWR to recover a made-up 'administration charge'
2) The lack of a legal basis for GWR recover fares for journeys purely involving other operators
3) The non-applicability of NRCoT condition 9.2.1
4) The non-enforceability of NRCoT condition 9.2.1

Each of which I explained in more detail in post #111 linked above, with a suggested letter whjich the poster in that case sent to GWR. After some back-and-forth correspondence, GWR did agree to waive the administration charge, and ultimately also agreed to leave out the journeys on other operators.

Of course the latter part wouldn't necessarily be the end of the matter, as the other train operators (Avanti and WMT) could still contact you later to pursue the fares for their journeys. However it is a point worth pressing here, I feel, since it is clear that GWR don't view their position as being too strong - and the fares for travel on Avanti & WMT make up a large proportion of the amount GWR are asking for in your case.

 

[UnhappyCamper]

After reviewing the spreadsheet I can already identify a glaring error. On the 11/04/2024 I was allegedly travelling from London to Liverpool, however on the 12/04/2024, one day later, I was stopped travelling from London to Taunton. Therefore, I think I have reasonable grounds to claim that I wasn't on that train, especially since tickets are non-refundable.

Also, I am not trying to claim I maybe got a lift. I frequently would buy tickets in advance and then get lifts if they were available closer to the date. I fully intend to back up my claim with photos and bank statements from the time period. Its just a struggle to find bank statements from so long ago.