Travelled with expired railcard accidentally

[lemonade105]

Hello,

On the 8th March i travelled from London to Coventry. I thought i had a valid railcard for my journey but it turns out my card had expired - (which is super annoying because I'm sure I checked it was valid before I travelled!)

The ticket inspector on the train took a photo of my phone which showed the expired railcard and said they would be in touch.

I'm really confused about how they will do this. I used a ticket I purchased from trainline but I don't think that has my address.

I made a mistake and I'm happy to pay the fine but I'm really freaking out about this going to court as I've seen in some of the letters posted on this site. This was a genuine mistake and i really don't want this to impact my future because they didn't take my address.

 

[WesternLancer]

Hello,

On the 8th March i travelled from London to Coventry. I thought i had a valid railcard for my journey but it turns out my card had expired - (which is super annoying because I'm sure I checked it was valid before I travelled!)

The ticket inspector on the train took a photo of my phone which showed the expired railcard and said they would be in touch.

I'm really confused about how they will do this. I used a ticket I purchased from trainline but I don't think that has my address.

I made a mistake and I'm happy to pay the fine but I'm really freaking out about this going to court as I've seen in some of the letters posted on this site. This was a genuine mistake and i really don't want this to impact my future because they didn't take my address.

Your on line ticket presumably has a link to your e mail address and purchase account potentially with postal address there.

That will slow them to contact you. Keep an eye on e mail and spam linked to that ticket account. Also if it has a postal address make sure it is up to date.

It’s important you get whatever they send you and respond as that’s the key to avoiding prosecution.

You will get the help you need here.

Which train company stopped you?

 

[lemonade105]

Thanks so much for your response, much appreciated!

It was Avanti West Coast.

I looked at my trainline account and the only details i could see on there was my email address.

Not recieved anything in my inbox just yet but wasn't sure if they would contact by email.

 

[Pushpit]

For a first time offence, it's unlikely to end up with you in court, so long as you are diligent in replying to any emails / letters. Usually one has to give an address for credit card billing purposes. The problem that can sometimes happen is that any address that Avanti does find may be an old address and you may not see any letters - the TOCs don't spend a lot of effort ensuring the right person is at the right address. But if they have your email then they do actually know how to get in touch with you. But I wouldn't worry too much, just keep an eye out over the next few months for anything from Avanti.

 

[lemonade105]

Ok thanks - i just assumed they only get in touch with you via post.

I'll keep an eye on my emails although I did delete a bunch of spam yesterday so hopefully it wasn't in there!

I just got really worried by the ticket inspector but it only occurred to me untill after I got off the train that I had no idea how they would contact me.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

@lemonade105. Must be a possibility that you will now get asked to pay for the cost of an undiscounted Anytime Day Single from London Terminals to Coventry, which is £89.00, with no allowance made for whatever you've paid already for the (previously purchased) inappropriately railcard discounted ticket. You might also get asked for an admin fee on top, which could be three figures, and so bump up the total amount demanded even further. Expensive, yes, but that should then be the end of the matter.

 

[Hadders]

Welcome to the forum!

I would have thought you had to give your address when you purchased your railcard so Avanti will be able to get your address that way. WHen the letter/email arrives upload a redacted copy in this thread along with your draft reply and we can proof read it for you.

I expect they will offer you an out of court settlement but it's worth pointing out that (I think) Avanti use Transport Investigations Limited to deal with cases like this. They usually do settle but it often requires a couple of letters to be sent.