Wrong rail card used

[wilsonthe]

Hello, around 2 weeks ago i got the train from birmingham new street to london euston. I have a west midlands disabled pass which i thought was the same as the disabled railcard pass you can use when buying tickets online. It gives a slight discount around 15% off. The ticket inspector said its the wrong railcard and gave me a ticket which he said wasnt a fine unless i didnt submit an appeal in 14 days. I have now submitted 2 appeals which have both been rejected and now i am onto my final appeal with the independent appeals panel. Will this appeal be accepted as it was a genuine mistake or will i most likely have to pay the £70 fine?

 

[jfollows]

Welcome to the forum, but please read https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/please-read-before-posting-in-disputes-prosecutions.77759/ because we need to know more before we’re able to advise you properly.
However, if you received a Penalty Fare it’s likely the least worst option for you, rather than being reported for prosecution.
If we can see more details such as what you were given and the details of the train you were on, we should be able to give better advice.
A Penalty Fare is not a “fine” and is not a criminal event, for what it’s worth.

 

[fandroid]

On the face of it, there would be no grounds for a successful appeal. You applied a discount to your fare for a Railcard you don't possess. That makes the ticket invalid.

However, there may be procedural grounds to appeal. To advise on those we need to see the Penalty Fare Notice you were issued with. Cover up any information that could identify you including the reference number.

We also need to know which train you were on and where you were when the notice was issued.

 

[wilsonthe]

Here are the emails ive been sent and the initial notice I recieved on the train. It was a west midlands train and the notice was issued half way through the journey. The inspector said I would be allowed to return that day and wrote on the back of the notice to show any inspectors on the train back.

 

[Haywain]

i got the train from birmingham new street to london euston.

Which specific train were you on? This is very important in the context of the penalty fare.

 

[wilsonthe]

The 11:06am to 1:17pm train from Birmingham New Street to London Euston on Monday 1st December 2025.

 

[z444z]

At 13:07 the next stop was Euston, so the stations on the penalty fare are correct.

The £20.90 fare is the LNWR+WMR only Super Off-Peak Single, which is cheapest walk-up fare available for this train.

I can’t see any technical issues with this penalty fare. There’s not really anything to lose by submitting an appeal on the basis of a “compelling reason” but I wouldn’t expect it to be accepted.

 

[30907]

For future reference, if you travel outside West Mids at all often, you should consider buying a Disabled Person's Railcard (I imagine you will be eligible) which gives you a 1/3 discount on rail fares.

 

[WesternLancer]

For future reference, if you travel outside West Mids at all often, you should consider buying a Disabled Person's Railcard (I imagine you will be eligible) which gives you a 1/3 discount on rail fares.

and also the same discount for an accompanying person that travels with you (not just a designated carer or named person) IIRC - so it's a valuable benefit if you are entitled to one

 

[furlong]

There is a technical argument to be made that the notice does not comply with the regulations because the explanation provided to attempt to comply with 5(2)(b) is gibberish!

What is a "jour entered"? "either" without an "or" etc. There was no Compulsory Ticket Area at the station involved so crucial words after "either" have been omitted and what's left must be part of the "or" that clearly doesn't apply. Something obviously went wrong with the issuing device and the inspector can't have read the nonsense it produced. Had they done so, they should have attempted to reprint it correctly or else write on it by hand to correct it.