Today I got witness statement in the govia Thameslink in Gatwick airport. Actually I take physical ticket in Croydon Nd after that I missed the ticket somewhere and booked online ticket in the train after that in train officer asked me to show ticket nd I showed he said you book ticket in the train and asked me to give details I refused and someone come to check my details nd take the id of me give to the office in Gatwick airport. So they give witnesses statement. I don't have any intention to fare envision. And need to mention before I have 2 fare envision last year and went to court both times. When will I receive letter and what should I do it?
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Witness statement
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Yes. In last year. But today I have showed the ticket when they ask. But I said the ticket is booked in the train
If you bought your ticket after you boarded the train then you committed a criminal offence and can be prosecuted for it. You need to have a valid ticket before you board a train, because buying a ticket on the train looks like you are trying to evade paying until you see a ticket inspector.
On the face of it, how do you prove otherwise? They usually agree to settle out of court if they believe you won’t do it again, but if this is your third time, why should they now believe you?
We don’t judge people here, so we’re open to discuss this, but we need to ask the difficult questions that otherwise GTR (presumably) will ask you anyway. I don’t support comments here like hoping you will be prosecuted harshly, but if we are to help you we need to be frank with you.
On the face of it, how do you prove otherwise? They usually agree to settle out of court if they believe you won’t do it again, but if this is your third time, why should they now believe you?
We don’t judge people here, so we’re open to discuss this, but we need to ask the difficult questions that otherwise GTR (presumably) will ask you anyway. I don’t support comments here like hoping you will be prosecuted harshly, but if we are to help you we need to be frank with you.
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Ok I understand. You can ask any question I will be Frank with you. I need to solve the issue
When you get the letter, please post it here and we can discuss with you.
Think about it now.
How will you convince them you won’t do it again if - as I understand it - you have been caught evading fares twice before? What behaviour will you change in future? No need to answer now, but when they write to you, come back and update this thread, and it may be weeks or months before they do.
When you say you went to court two times, what were you charged with and what was the outcome?
Think about it now.
How will you convince them you won’t do it again if - as I understand it - you have been caught evading fares twice before? What behaviour will you change in future? No need to answer now, but when they write to you, come back and update this thread, and it may be weeks or months before they do.
When you say you went to court two times, what were you charged with and what was the outcome?
Today only I caught by officer in Gatwick airport. Before 2 times I went to court and payed 340 around for both fines
GTR will see the previous two convictions and come to the conclusion that if those weren’t enough to stop you there’s no reason they should let you off easy with an out of court settlement this time. You are going to need to put together a really good letter to convince them that you will not do this again.
Think about how you can demonstrate this. Is there a railcard that you’re entitled to, or would a season ticket make sense for your travel habits? Both of those, particularly a season ticket, would be a really good thing to be able to show to GTR to demonstrate that you intend to play by the rules from now on.
Other than that, as long as you gave your correct details there’s nothing to do but wait for the letter or email, which will probably arrive in the next few months but could take as long as 6 months.
When the letter arrives, do not respond to it on your own, come here for advice. GTR are one of the easiest companies to deal with but this case requires some care to avoid another prosecution.
Slightly unusual that they took you to court for a first offence - I wonder whether you didn't engage with them at the time to seek an out of court settlement?
But having ben prosecuted twice already it's going to be tough to persuade them that you're not an habitual offender.
Why did you buy the ticket on the train? You mention "taking a physical ticket in Croydon" - how did you buy that? Which station in Croydon?
WesternLancer
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Can you give us any reason or explanation as to why having been prosecuted in court not just once but twice you still ended up doing something thing that means you could be prosecuted again?
This is a genuine question.
Most people who come here for help want to avoid even one prosecution!
Do you not understand the basic rule that you need a ticket for your journey before you start your journey?
Or do you regularly travel without a ticket and hope you don’t get caught but accept every now and again you will get caught and just have to pay a few hundred pounds?
Egg Centric
Established Member
There is also an ancilliary question - how much do you care about another bylaw conviction? Most of the people here who ask for advice are petrified (usually unduly imo) about the impact of a criminal conviction upon them. At first glance their reasons may not apply to you and depending upon how much you've been fare evading you might even be best off taking this to court as it may be cheaper!
This is a good question but I’d suggest two convictions very close to each other don’t look anywhere near as bad to a potential employer as two very close to each other followed by another the next year. Only relevant for roles not subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act of course, which is not most jobs.
This is called purchase after departure this usually happens when an inspector asks for a ticket and the passenger buys a ticket on their phone once the inspector scans the ticket it tells him it was purchased after the train departed the exact time the ticket was purchased and the transaction details so my question would be did you purchase the ticket when the ticket inspector asked for your ticket if so it’s best to write back and be honest and they may show leniency as they will know exactly when you purchased it.
I purchased the ticket after train departure but I purchased before train inspector ask me to show the ticket and I purchased ticket 5 mins before office arrival.
This unfortunately doesn’t make any difference, a ticket bought after departure is not a valid ticket.
Good evening to all. Already we speak about this. Today I got the letter from GTR like we are intention to take it to the court before they asking about what happens on they day the outcome will be honestly. Can you help me guys for this. Because I said already I have 2 offences I went to the court both time. Thank you.
WesternLancer
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You need to write a reply that basically includes the following content::
- That you are sorry for what has happened
- What you have learned from the incident and will not do this again (despite the fact that you seem to have done it before so you really need to stop doing this!)
- 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
You'll find lots of example letters you can use in this section of the forum that you can pretty much copy
Before you post it to GTR put a draft of your reply here so people can help you get it as good as it can be as I am thinking perhaps English is not your first language so you might want help getting it as good as it can be.
You need to know that it is criminal offence to book your ticket after you have got on the train - there will be lots of signs telling you this so you need to obey them - NEVER get on a train and buy your ticket after getting on. Their ticket check systems are set up to detect people at ticket checks when they do this - which is presumably why you keep getting caught. It is what people who do not want to pay their full fare do - they only buy when they see staff checking tickets - which is what they will suspect you have been doing as result of buying your tickets on board.
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Sun Chariot
Established Member
To build on Western Lancer's good advice to you, @gopi - back in December, I don't think you answered AlterEgo's question to you (linked) about your saying you bought a physical ticket but "...missed [mislaid?] it somewhere".
www.railforums.co.uk
If you did buy a physical train ticket before travel, did you pay for it with a debit / credit card?
If yes then your ticket payment transaction is evidence that you had, in fact, bought the ticket before travel.
Your payment info will only show the cost, not your [mislaid] ticket's From and To stations; however it will be possible for you to show your 2025 ticket price matched - or is very close to - the joirney cost in 2026.
Witness statement
Today I got witness statement in the govia Thameslink in Gatwick airport. Actually I take physical ticket in Croydon Nd after that I missed the ticket somewhere and booked online ticket in the train after that in train officer asked me to show ticket nd I showed he said you book ticket in the...
www.railforums.co.uk
If yes then your ticket payment transaction is evidence that you had, in fact, bought the ticket before travel.
Your payment info will only show the cost, not your [mislaid] ticket's From and To stations; however it will be possible for you to show your 2025 ticket price matched - or is very close to - the joirney cost in 2026.
But I already did 2 times . I need to mention about this.and be frank I don't have have amount at the time my financial support is very low and I am not going any job till September. So thats the reason. And I made surgery for me on September after that I am not going any job till now.searching for the job. Should I mention about this all in the letter.To build on Western Lancer's good advice to you, @gopi - back in December, I don't think you answered AlterEgo's question to you (linked) about your saying you bought a physical ticket but "...missed [mislaid?] it somewhere".
If you did buy a physical train ticket before travel, did you pay for it with a debit / credit card?Witness statement
Today I got witness statement in the govia Thameslink in Gatwick airport. Actually I take physical ticket in Croydon Nd after that I missed the ticket somewhere and booked online ticket in the train after that in train officer asked me to show ticket nd I showed he said you book ticket in the...
If yes then your ticket payment transaction is evidence that you had, in fact, bought the ticket before travel.
Your payment info will only show the cost, not your [mislaid] ticket's From and To stations; however it will be possible for you to show your 2025 ticket price matched - or is very close
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WesternLancer
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They won’t be interested in any of that. There is no reason to mention it at this stage in my view.
But it’s up to you what you want to tell them, but it does not really strengthen your case. There are lots of people who don’t dodge the fare but who have low incomes.
Whatever you do, get on with drafting your reply.
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Whatever I wrote to the GTR. Their intention is taking to the court.they will not convince about this issue bcz I made two times fare envision before. So give me strong context or quotes to convince him I will not do anymore after this.
Fawkes Cat
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Please show us the letter you have got (but hide your name and address and so on!). It might be that GTR have decided to take you to court, but from what you say it sounds just like their usual letter that they send to everyone they catch. But if you let us see it, we will be able to check this.
Haywain
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This is your third time being caught, which suggests it is by no means only the third time you've done this, so why should anyone be convinced you will stop? It's clear that prosecution hasn't discouraged you, so a settlement isn't likely to, is it?
You don’t know this and may as well try. However it’s not on us to fix this for you, you need to write something and we can look it over and suggest improvements.
You need to apologise properly and convince them you won’t do it again despite having done it before and continued, and you need to ask, or even beg given your circumstances, to settle out of court. If that’s the outcome you want of course.
No actually its normal letter which I received yesterday.
Fawkes Cat
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Ok. If it's the same letter that other people have posted, that says that GTR are only looking at this one time. So they might be prepared to settle out of court.
Have a go at writing a letter to send to them, and post it here before you send it to the railway. Post #18 tells you the sort of things you will need to say. When we have had a look at it, we can suggest ways to make it even better.
I made the letter. Can everyone check this one made correction for final proceedings. Thank you.
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am writing regarding the recent incident involving an unpaid fare. I would like to sincerely apologise for what has happened.
I fully acknowledge my mistake and take responsibility for my actions. I understand the importance of purchasing the correct ticket before travelling and complying with railway regulations. This situation has made me reflect seriously, and I recognise that this is not acceptable—particularly as I understand that similar issues may have arisen before. I want to assure you that I have learned from this and will take all necessary steps to ensure it does not happen again.
I would also like to explain my personal circumstances at the time. I underwent stomach surgery last September, and since then I have not been able to work. From September until now, I have had no employment and have been actively looking for a job but have not yet been successful. My financial situation has been extremely difficult, and I have been struggling to manage basic living expenses. At the time of travelling, I did not have enough money to purchase a ticket. I do have evidence to support my medical condition and financial situation if required.
I sincerely apologise again for my mistake and take full responsibility. I give my assurance that this will not happen again in the future. I understand the seriousness of this matter, and if anything like this were to happen again, I accept that you may proceed directly with court action.
I am very keen to resolve this matter promptly and amicably, without the need for court proceedings. I am willing to pay the outstanding fare in full, along with any reasonable administrative costs incurred by your company in handling this matter.
Thank you for your understanding and for taking the time to consider my response. I would be grateful for the opportunity to settle this issue directly.
Fawkes Cat
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From what you have told us, you have received the standard letter that only talks about the time you were stopped. So you should only talk about the time you were stopped. And by putting forward your lack of money, you are admitting that you knew what you were doing when you fare dodged. So the railway will know that you did it on purpose, and they might think that you need to be taken to court to make sure you don't do it again.
Because of that, I would suggest that you say a bit less. Something like:
Click on where it says 'click to expand' to see what I suggest you miss out (I've put a line through the bits that should go).
I agree; I’m sorry about your personal circumstances but they won’t be interested, and they don’t help change the outcome which will be that you will settle. Keep it short because anyone reading your letter will groan if it’s long.
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