Thameslink - Single Justice Procedure Notice

[Ritz]

Hi All,

In Sept, I was travelling to Cambridge with a ticket which was bought using railcard via trainline app. Upon inspection, I realised that it had expired a month ago. I asked inspector regarding what I should do next. He told me that I can purchase a new railcard and send it to the provided link within 14 days.

I purchased new railcard before inspector left and showed it to him and also submitted the new railcard on the provided link instantly which is not mentioned in the report sent to me which says I avoided £30

I was abroad for more than a month, therefore, I missed thameslink’s letter for intention to prosecute and have now received notice to reply within 21 days starting with 1st Jan.

Is there still time to write directly to thameslink explaining why I missed the letter and also to show the railcard purchased instantly and acknowledgement email I received after submitting on the mentioned link. I’m happy to pay the administration charges too but would they respond before my 21 days lapse.

Thank you,

 

[tixy]

Welcome to the forum

GTR are usually quite quick to settle but will need an explanation as to why you did not respond to their initial letter.

I would email them at gtr.prosecutions@gtrailway.com.

In your reply, explain that you have been out of the country for the past month and attach proof of this, such as a hotel receipt or flight tickets.

You can structure your reply as advised by our experienced forum member Hadders,

Explain:

- That you are sorry for what has happened
- What you have learned from the incident
- What action you have taken, such as renewing your railcard
- That you are keen to settle the matter without the need for court action
- Offer to pay the outstanding fare and the train company's administrative costs in dealing with the matter

I would also recommend sending a copy of whatever you send to that email to the postal address of the prosecutions department. Because of the time left to deal with the SJPN, I would send this guaranteed next day, to ensure it is received.

Prosecutions Department
Eastside Offices
King’s Cross Railway Station
LONDON
N1C 4AX

Feel free to post your reply and a photo of the SJPN here (redacted) so the members can review and advise on the wording to help get the end result. Be prepared however to pay the settlement amount straight away as it is unlikely they will withdraw until the settlement is recieved in full.

 

[Ritz]

Welcome to the forum

GTR are usually quite quick to settle but will need an explanation as to why you did not respond to their initial letter.

I would email them at gtr.prosecutions@gtrailway.com.

In your reply, explain that you have been out of the country for the past month and attach proof of this, such as a hotel receipt or flight tickets.

You can structure your reply as advised by our experienced forum member Hadders,

Explain:

- That you are sorry for what has happened
- What you have learned from the incident
- What action you have taken, such as renewing your railcard
- That you are keen to settle the matter without the need for court action
- Offer to pay the outstanding fare and the train company's administrative costs in dealing with the matter

I would also recommend sending a copy of whatever you send to that email to the postal address of the prosecutions department. Because of the time left to deal with the SJPN, I would send this guaranteed next day, to ensure it is received.



Feel free to post your reply and a photo of the SJPN here (redacted) so the members can review and advise on the wording to help get the end result. Be prepared however to pay the settlement amount straight away as it is unlikely they will withdraw until the settlement is recieved in full.

Thank you. I’ll email them with all the proofs and sincere apology.

 

[Gloster]

Please post the letter(s) that you have received in this thread. Please obscure your, name address and other identifying details, such as reference numbers.

As your railcard had expired before you boarded the train, it seems that you were travelling without a ticket: a ticket bought with a railcard reduction but without a valid, in-date railcard is legally no ticket at all. Buying a railcard afterwards, even if immediately, does not cancel the offence, but might at least show the railway company your good intentions.

 

[Ritz]

Here is the notice

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 5 Jan 2025 ==

Should I only use reference number in the subject line of my email?

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 6 Jan 2025 ==

Welcome to the forum

GTR are usually quite quick to settle but will need an explanation as to why you did not respond to their initial letter.

I would email them at gtr.prosecutions@gtrailway.com.

In your reply, explain that you have been out of the country for the past month and attach proof of this, such as a hotel receipt or flight tickets.

You can structure your reply as advised by our experienced forum member Hadders,

Explain:

- That you are sorry for what has happened
- What you have learned from the incident
- What action you have taken, such as renewing your railcard
- That you are keen to settle the matter without the need for court action
- Offer to pay the outstanding fare and the train company's administrative costs in dealing with the matter

I would also recommend sending a copy of whatever you send to that email to the postal address of the prosecutions department. Because of the time left to deal with the SJPN, I would send this guaranteed next day, to ensure it is received.



Feel free to post your reply and a photo of the SJPN here (redacted) so the members can review and advise on the wording to help get the end result. Be prepared however to pay the settlement amount straight away as it is unlikely they will withdraw until the settlement is received in full.

Hi,

I sent the email to gtr.prosecutions@gtrailway.com but I received the following -
Could you please guide? I am getting more worried now.

 

[Spaceship323]

Did you also send a copy to them as recommended by @martinchapman8 in post 2 ? You need to contact them ASAP to ask if they will accept your reasons for replying late

 

[Ritz]

Hi,

I was sent a Single Justice Procedure Notice for an expired railcard. I sent an email to gtr.prosecutions@gtrailway.com

I've received the following response -



Is it the normal process or people usually get a settlement on the email?

 

[Ritz]

They have responded to me -



I'll be sending them the letter today itself. Reading other posts, I am wondering that is this the standard procedure or people do get settlements over email?

 

[Spaceship323]

It's good that they're responding to your emails. The experts will need to answer your question though. Have you seen the reply by GTR @Hadders ? (tagged you for info, apologies if you've already seen a reply like this)

 

[Ritz]

It's good that they're responding to your emails. The experts will need to answer your question though. Have you seen the reply by GTR @Hadders (tagged you for info, apologies if you've already seen this)

Hello, thank you for your kind response. No, I haven’t seen this before and unable to find the tag too. Would you be able to screenshot the information here?

thank you,

 

[30907]

Hello, thank you for your kind response. No, I haven’t seen this before and unable to find the tag too. Would you be able to screenshot the information here?

The tag is addressed to an expert forum member, who will certainly reply when able to. The outline suggested upthread comes originally from him - if you wish, post a draft of your reply here and someone will comment.

(BTW both responses from GTR look pretty standard to me, and you may yet hear from them before they receive your letter)

 

[Hadders]

It is unusual for GTR to go straight to court, my very strong suspicion is their initial letter has inadvertently ignored or lost.

You should write a short, concise letter that mentions:

- That the SJPN is the first correspondance you have received from GTR about the case
- That you are sorry for what has happened
- What you have learned from the incident
- Ask if they will consider offering a to settlement to keep the matter out of court
- Offer to pay the outstanding fare and the train company's administrative costs in dealing with the matter

As time is of the essence I would send it by Royal Mail Special Delivery to guarantee next day delivery.

You've got 21-days from the 31st December to reply to the SJPN, hopefully GTR will reply before the 21-days are up, offer you a settlement and withdraw the case. If you don't hear from them before the 21-days are up I would plead not guilty. This is because if you plead guilty then that's the end of the case. Pleading not guilty would buy some more time for GTR to respond.

 

[furlong]

Once you have posted your letter, you can also send them a photo of it as an email attachment, saying it's a copy of what you posted (and include proof of posting e.g. certificate of posting or tracking receipt). This may speed things up.

 

[Ritz]

Hi All,

Thank you so much for your kind advice.

I sent my letter, travel tickets, proof of railcard purchase, and the acknowledgment email for the railcard submission to the postal address on Monday, 6th January, using guaranteed next-day delivery. The prosecution team received my post the following day at around 11 AM.

This morning, I received a settlement letter for £180 (£150 admin fees + £30 outstanding charges), which I paid immediately to resolve the case.

For anyone seeking guidance with a similar issue, I initially emailed gtr.prosecutions@gtrailway.com on Monday and received a response within half an hour advising me to send a letter. As I am based in London, I suspect the prompt response via post was partly due to my location.

Good luck to anyone facing a similar issue. It is very stressful, but as others have mentioned in various threads, you will most likely receive a settlement.

 

[notmyrealname]

Thank you for update, that's great news for you. Your information will help other people who come here for advice.

 

[Hadders]

Thanks for updating us. It is rerally helpful to know the outcome.