SWR 26-30 Railcard and Report for Prosecution

[nunya]

I Was provided a letter :


On xx December 2025, you presented ticket number xxxxxxxxx at London Waterloo to a member of Revenue Protection.
Upon questioning, it was established that you did not hold a valid 26-30 Railcard for the discount applied.
You were issued a Report for Prosecution, number xxxxxxxxx.
Further investigation of your online account has highlighted other potential inconsistencies in your ticket purchase history. This suggests that you may not be paying the correct fare for journeys made on the UK rail network.
Given the serious nature of this matter, we have taken this step to contact you and initiate a resolution, prior to escalating the matter to our case management team.
Please respond to this email within 7 days quoting the reference number xxxxxxxx in the subject field.



Frankly speaking, I and my friend share the trainline account used to book the ticket and he has a valid rail card but on this given day, I did not have access to my phone as the charging port wasnt working so I travelled using his and didnt have the rail card just for this trip. please advice me what to do as i dont want a court case and im currently out of work and struggling. Also he travels very frequently.

 

[furlong]

Why do you share the trainline account?

 

[methecooldude]

Why do you share the trainline account?

This indeed. That's just asking for problems

 

[nunya]

So how will you advise i go about this ? cause i saw a simlar problem here https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/expired-railcard-settlement.290243/

 

[WesternLancer]

Maybe ask them for a list of the journeys concerned and then try and work out which were taken by you and which by your friend.
Explain the situation and seeing they believe you.
Offer to pay any incorrect fares you owe and say you want to resolve matters with out court action taken against you.

 

[MotCO]

Does your friend make similar journeys to you, or can you differentiate your journeys from your friend's?

 

[AlterEgo]

So how will you advise i go about this ? cause i saw a simlar problem here https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/expired-railcard-settlement.290243/

Do you pay for your own tickets with your own card?

 

[nunya]

Does your friend make similar journeys to you, or can you differentiate your journeys from your friend's?

Yes he makes similar journies with me. Is it a wrong to share an account from your POV

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 26 Feb 2026 ==

Do you pay for your own tickets with your own card?iTS

It is my card attached to the account sadly

 

[WesternLancer]

Yes he makes similar journies with me. Is it a wrong to share an account from your POV

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 26 Feb 2026 ==


It is my card attached to the account sadly

Well when this sort of thing happens it is certainly not going to help make it easy to resolve….
So from your point of view it’s not great.

 

[nunya]

Does your friend make similar journeys to you, or can you differentiate your journeys from your friend's?

Im unable to as he commute to work alot using the account. He has a digital rail card so i must have forgotten to take out the option

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 26 Feb 2026 ==

Well when this sort of thing happens it is certainly not going to help make it easy to resolve….
So from your point of view it’s not great.

i want this to be my response, what do you think ?

Dear Sir/Madam,


I am writing in response to your letter regarding the above reference.


I would like to sincerely apologise for travelling on xxxxxxxx with a ticket discounted by a 26–30 Railcard when I did not hold a valid Railcard at the time of travel.


On that day, I did not have access to my own phone due to a fault with the charging port, and I used a ticket booked through an account accessible to me. However, I fully understand that regardless of the circumstances, it was my responsibility to ensure that I held a valid Railcard to support the discounted ticket before travelling. I accept that I failed to do so.


I cooperated fully with the Revenue Protection Officer, provided my correct details, and purchased the appropriate full-fare ticket when the issue was identified. I recognise that this does not negate the offence, but I hope it demonstrates that I did not intend to avoid payment.


Over the past year I have experienced significant financial hardship due to illness and a period of being unable to work, which contributed to my overall situation. That said, I fully appreciate that personal circumstances do not excuse travelling without the correct entitlement. I have learned from this incident and can assure you it will not happen again. I will ensure that I only travel with the correct ticket and any required supporting documentation in future.


I respectfully request that you consider allowing me to resolve this matter by way of an out-of-court settlement. I am willing to pay the outstanding fare (if applicable) together with your reasonable administrative costs in order to conclude this matter without court proceedings.


Thank you for taking the time to consider my response. I look forward to hearing from you.

 

[AlterEgo]

So, to be clear, you pay for your own tickets and your friend pays for theirs, separately, using different cards?



Or, are all the bookings made with your card?

 

[nunya]

So, to be clear, you pay for your own tickets and your friend pays for theirs, separately, using different cards?



Or, are all the bookings made with your card?

They all paid with my card

 

[MotCO]

They all paid with my card

And does your friend repay you, and if so, is it by electronic means, or cash? I'm sure you appreciate that, from the TOC's perspective, it does look a bit strange (why doesn't your friend have their own account?), such that they may think that all tickets were for your own use. Unless you can provide evidence to the contrary, you may find it difficult to refute this argument.

With regards to your draft letter, it looks fine, but I'm not sure if the financial hardship sentence adds anything meaningful.

 

[z444z]

If you are not telling us the truth about your friend using your account you should drop the story immediately. The train company could have CCTV evidence and this simple case, easy to settle out of court, could turn into a case of fraud.

Unless you can give any evidence of this friend sharing your account, then even if it’s true I think you’re probably going to need to settle for all of the journeys they highlight.

 

[reb0118]

"Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive." Walter Scott

You may well be telling the truth but you will have a hard time proving it. Would your friend be prepared to supply a letter confirming your story certified in front of a notary or solicitor acting as a commissioner of oaths? Would your friend be willing to stand up in court, if necessary, and back up your story. Can you supply proof of your friends railcard - is it linked to the account on the phone? How many tickets have been purchased without the railcard being added? How many of these tickets, if any, would have been for journeys where the minimum fare would have negated any savings?

You do not have to answer these questions, but rest assured the investigator will be thinking about them.

Step outside this matter, if you are able, and look at it from a dispassionate & disinterested angle. What conclusions would you draw?

 

[AlterEgo]

They all paid with my card

And what about your friend's railcard? Get them to send you a copy of it so SWR can verify it and this may go some way to proving what you say. Because I've got to be honest, your story isn't exactly believable and wasn't from the very first post.

 

[furlong]

Why do you share the trainline account?

This is the question the investigators would be asking themselves.

Why is an account where payments come from your card merely described as "an account accessible to me" when you go on to provide a motive of "significant financial hardship"?

Unless you are prepared to back up your explanation with evidence, I'd suggest you drop what look like implausible excuses.

Also they won't fall for this:

I cooperated fully with the Revenue Protection Officer, provided my correct details, and purchased the appropriate full-fare ticket when the issue was identified. I recognise that this does not negate the offence, but I hope it demonstrates that I did not intend to avoid payment.

In law, an intent to avoid payment can be "momentary". This means that you can be convicted if it can be proved that at any moment you intended to avoid payment, even if there is evidence that at some later moment you intended to pay. So what you write only demonstrates you did not intend to avoid payment after you had been challenged. It says nothing about whether or not you intended to avoid payment at some earlier moment, such as when you bought the ticket or when you passed through the station and boarded the train or when you first showed the ticket.

 

[island]

You may well be telling the truth but you will have a hard time proving it. Would your friend be prepared to supply a letter confirming your story certified in front of a notary or solicitor acting as a commissioner of oaths? Would your friend be willing to stand up in court, if necessary, and back up your story. Can you supply proof of your friends railcard - is it linked to the account on the phone? How many tickets have been purchased without the railcard being added? How many of these tickets, if any, would have been for journeys where the minimum fare would have negated any savings?

This is going to be the core question. If the OP's "friend" cannot do this, the assumption will be made that all the tickets purchased with a discount were used improperly.

 

[nunya]

I Was provided a letter :


On xx December 2025, you presented ticket number xxxxxxxxx at London Waterloo to a member of Revenue Protection.
Upon questioning, it was established that you did not hold a valid 26-30 Railcard for the discount applied.
You were issued a Report for Prosecution, number xxxxxxxxx.
Further investigation of your online account has highlighted other potential inconsistencies in your ticket purchase history. This suggests that you may not be paying the correct fare for journeys made on the UK rail network.
Given the serious nature of this matter, we have taken this step to contact you and initiate a resolution, prior to escalating the matter to our case management team.
Please respond to this email within 7 days quoting the reference number xxxxxxxx in the subject field.



Frankly speaking, I and my friend share the trainline account used to book the ticket and he has a valid rail card but on this given day, I did not have access to my phone as the charging port wasnt working so I travelled using his and didnt have the rail card just for this trip. please advice me what to do as i dont want a court case and im currently out of work and struggling. Also he travels very frequently.

i Feel its best i respond this way and just take the blame alone. What do you think of this response.

Dear Sir/Madam,

I am writing in response to your email regarding the incident on 8 December 2025 at London Waterloo.

I acknowledge that at the time I was unable to present a valid Railcard to support the discounted ticket I had purchased. I understand that it is my responsibility to ensure that any ticket purchased with a Railcard discount is supported by a valid Railcard at the time of travel. I sincerely apologise for this oversight.

I wish to resolve this matter promptly and amicably. I am willing to pay any outstanding fares related to this matter, together with your reasonable administrative costs, so that the matter can be settled without the need for court proceedings.

Thank you for taking the time to consider my response. I would be grateful if you could advise me on how best to proceed with settling this matter.

Yours faithfully,

 

[WesternLancer]

i Feel its best i respond this way and just take the blame alone. What do you think of this response.

Dear Sir/Madam,

I am writing in response to your email regarding the incident on 8 December 2025 at London Waterloo.

I acknowledge that at the time I was unable to present a valid Railcard to support the discounted ticket I had purchased. I understand that it is my responsibility to ensure that any ticket purchased with a Railcard discount is supported by a valid Railcard at the time of travel. I sincerely apologise for this oversight.

I wish to resolve this matter promptly and amicably. I am willing to pay any outstanding fares related to this matter, together with your reasonable administrative costs, so that the matter can be settled without the need for court proceedings.

Thank you for taking the time to consider my response. I would be grateful if you could advise me on how best to proceed with settling this matter.

Yours faithfully,

You could reasonably ask them for the list of tickets they think have not been valid due to the discount to see what that looks like.
You could then consider which of those your friend travelled with and consider asking them if they will remove any such occasions.
Or simply pay it all.

I assume you know they will likely charge for whole new tickets at the expensive Anytime single fare with no allowance for sums already paid. So if there are quite a few journeys booked on behalf of your friend that could add up to a significant sum of money.

 

[AlterEgo]

You could reasonably ask them for the list of tickets they think have not been valid due to the discount to see what that looks like.

Well, all of them, surely. The OP has ceased to entertain their original story and we should too. That's why they want to pay for all the outstanding fares; it's because they owe all of them.

 

[z444z]

I wish to resolve this matter promptly and amicably. I am willing to pay any outstanding fares related to this matter, together with your reasonable administrative costs, so that the matter can be settled without the need for court proceedings.

This bit could be clearer. You should to ask to settle out of court, and then make it clear you’re willing to pay fares and admin costs (it’s safest not to use the word reasonable, but it probably won’t make any difference).

Looks good other than that.

 

[nunya]

This bit could be clearer. You should to ask to settle out of court, and then make it clear you’re willing to pay fares and admin costs (it’s safest not to use the word reasonable, but it probably won’t make any difference).

Looks good other than that.

Is this a good response?


Dear Sir/Madam,

I am writing in response to your email regarding the incident on 8 December 2025 at London Waterloo.

I acknowledge that at the time I was unable to present a valid Railcard to support the discounted ticket I had purchased. I understand that it is my responsibility to ensure that any ticket purchased with a Railcard discount is supported by a valid Railcard at the time of travel. I sincerely apologise for this oversight.

I wish to settle out of court. I am willing to pay any outstanding fares and admin cost, so that the matter can be settled amicably.

Thank you for taking the time to consider my response. I would be grateful if you could advise me on how best to proceed with settling this matter.

Yours faithfully,

 

[MotCO]

Is this a good response?


Dear Sir/Madam,

I am writing in response to your email regarding the incident on 8 December 2025 at London Waterloo.

I acknowledge that at the time I was unable to present a valid Railcard to support the discounted ticket I had purchased. I understand that it is my responsibility to ensure that any ticket purchased with a Railcard discount is supported by a valid Railcard at the time of travel. I sincerely apologise for this oversight.

I wish to settle out of court. I am willing to pay any outstanding fares and admin cost, so that the matter can be settled amicably.

Thank you for taking the time to consider my response. I would be grateful if you could advise me on how best to proceed with settling this matter.

Yours faithfully,

The rail company is keen to look for evidence that you have learnt your lesson and will not reoffend, and I'm not sure that this comes across in your draft. If you have purchased a railcard you can use this as 'evidence', or if not, you need to say something to the effect that you have now realised what you did was wrong and you won't do it again.

 

[Haywain]

I wish to settle out of court. I am willing to pay any outstanding fares and admin cost, so that the matter can be settled amicably.

This is a desire, not a request. All the power is in the hands of the railway company.

 

[nunya]

The rail company is keen to look for evidence that you have learnt your lesson and will not reoffend, and I'm not sure that this comes across in your draft. If you have purchased a railcard you can use this as 'evidence', or if not, you need to say something to the effect that you have now realised what you did was wrong and you won't do it again.

how about now .

I am writing in response to your email regarding the incident on 8 December 2025 at London Waterloo.

I acknowledge that on that date I was unable to present a valid Railcard to support the discounted ticket I had purchased. I fully understand that it is my responsibility to ensure that any discounted ticket is supported by the appropriate Railcard at the time of travel. I sincerely apologise for this lapse in judgement.

I recognise that purchasing a discounted ticket without holding a valid Railcard was wrong, and I take full responsibility for my actions. This experience has made me fully aware of the importance of ensuring that my tickets are valid in every respect before travelling, and I can assure you that this situation will not be repeated.

I would be very grateful if you would consider allowing me to resolve this matter without court proceedings. I am willing to pay any outstanding fares together with your reasonable administrative and investigation costs in order to settle this matter.

Thank you for taking the time to consider my response. I appreciate that this decision rests with you and I respectfully ask for the opportunity to resolve it amicably.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 2 Mar 2026 ==

This is a desire, not a request. All the power is in the hands of the railway company.

How about now.

I am writing in response to your email regarding the incident on 8 December 2025 at London Waterloo.

I acknowledge that on that date I was unable to present a valid Railcard to support the discounted ticket I had purchased. I fully understand that it is my responsibility to ensure that any discounted ticket is supported by the appropriate Railcard at the time of travel. I sincerely apologise for this lapse in judgement.

I recognise that purchasing a discounted ticket without holding a valid Railcard was wrong, and I take full responsibility for my actions. This experience has made me fully aware of the importance of ensuring that my tickets are valid in every respect before travelling, and I can assure you that this situation will not be repeated.

I would be very grateful if you would consider allowing me to resolve this matter without court proceedings. I am willing to pay any outstanding fares together with your reasonable administrative and investigation costs in order to settle this matter.

Thank you for taking the time to consider my response. I appreciate that this decision rests with you and I respectfully ask for the opportunity to resolve it amicably.

 

[Haywain]

How about now.

Better.

 

[MotCO]

Don't forget to include your case reference number (but don't disclose it on this forum).

 

[z444z]

Looks good to me too.

 

[nunya]

Don't forget to include your case reference number (but don't disclose it on this forum).

Thank you very much. Mailing now

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

Looks good to me too.

Superb, mailing now