Chiltern Railways: Fare Evasion

Expert Legal Representation - Avoid a Prosecution

Chiltern Railways take a proactive approach in catching suspected fare evaders, especially because fare evasion is a major problem on their lines, causing a huge loss of revenue.

They regularly conduct operations at the gates, where tickets are scrutinised. Fraud investigators also occasionally check tickets on trains. If ticket issues are identified, the matters are then passed to their fraud team for further investigation.

You may have received a Notice of Intention to Prosecute letter from Chiltern Railways, which is the initial letter that is sent out to an individual who is accused of fare evasion.

In other cases, Chiltern send out a Single Justice Procedure Court summons, which gives you 21 days to enter your plea. This may be the first correspondence that you have received about the matter. Chiltern sometimes include a letter at the back of the paperwork, requesting a voluntary interview under caution. This indicates that they have investigated your ticket purchase history, and they believe that they have found additional offences. We are normally able to persuade Chiltern to cancel the proposed interview, whilst we liaise with them in seeking an out of court settlement.

Reeds Solicitors specialise in this area and have an excellent track record in securing out of court settlements, avoiding any form of criminal record. Please contact us through our contact page here. Alternatively, you can phone 0333 240 7373, or email us at fareevasion@reeds.co.uk.

You can read our reviews here.

How Can Reeds Solicitors Help Me With Chiltern Railways Prosecutions?

We have a vast amount of experience in a wide range of fare evasion cases. Having worked in this area for years, we also have a good working relationship with Chiltern’s fraud team, which greatly assists in resolving matters promptly.

The starting point would be to arrange a virtual meeting, where we can obtain all of the information and background about the matter. Then we can draft written representations on your behalf, seeking an out of court settlement.

With our careful and considered approach, we are successful in the vast majority of cases.

We offer fixed fees which cover all of the work involved – so you have complete clarity in terms of costs.

Case Studies for Reeds Solicitors

Case Study 1 – Train Ticket Only Covering Part of the Journey

B was caught traveling with a ticket, which only covered part of the journey into London Marylebone. His local station does not have any barriers, so he could board the train without a ticket and then purchase a ticket from Wembley to Marylebone on his trainline account. He had been doing this for over 6 months. He received a Single Justice Procedure Court summons from Chiltern as well as a request for a voluntary interview. Reeds Solicitors obtained disclosure from Chiltern to understand the full allegations and Chiltern agreed to cancel the interview. Following this, we submitted representations to Chiltern, carefully considering how to address the previous journeys and outline the client’s relevant mitigation points. Chiltern agreed to offer an out of court settlement and withdraw the court summons.

Case Study 2 – Chiltern Railways ‘Sandwich Ticketing’ Offence

C purchased two tickets for each journey – one to get through the barrier onto the train and another to get through the barrier on arrival in Marylebone, with the middle part of the journey missing. This is known as ‘sandwich ticketing’. After obtaining C’s ticket history, Chiltern also identified a number of ‘false refunds’ on the account as well as tickets purchased after boarding the train. Reeds Solicitors submitted detailed representations, with various supporting documents. The prosecutor said that they would normally prosecute this type of case but that they were persuaded by the mitigation to offer an out of court settlement on this occasion.

Case Study 3 – Uncooperative Behaviour With a Chiltern Railways Revenue Protection Officer

D was spoken to by a Revenue Protection Officer and the interaction did not go smoothly. His behaviour was deemed uncooperative, and this was an underlying reason why the matter was proceeding to prosecution. Reeds Solicitors intervened, coming up with a plan of action, addressing all the relevant issues. An out of court settlement was reached.

Case Study 4 – Interview Under Caution Request

E received a letter from Chiltern, inviting him for a voluntary interview under caution. He had been buying tickets with a railcard discount misapplied. The interview was due to take place at Marylebone station, with a senior investigator from Chiltern’s fraud team. Reeds Solicitors were instructed to takeover conduct of the matter. We were able to cancel the need for an interview, which saved our client a lot of stress. Ultimately, the matter was settled out of court.

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FAQ

The Notice of Intention to Prosecute letter gives you 14 days to respond.

This is an opportunity to outline any relevant mitigation and address the circumstances of the ticket infraction. The letter may indicate that Chiltern have identified other invalid tickets within your trainline account, so this aspect needs to be carefully considered. If not handled correctly, the matter can escalate into a prosecution.

As part of our service, we would take over conduct of the matter and reply on your behalf to Chiltern Railways, seeking an out of court settlement. We would consider whether any supporting documents could increase your chances of success.

Chiltern Railways prosecute cases under the Single Justice Procedure, which gives you 21 days to enter your plea.

In order to avoid a conviction, we would need to convince Chiltern Railways to withdraw the court summons and offer an out of court settlement instead. This involves outlining relevant mitigation and addressing any issues with the ticket infraction(s). If Chiltern have included a request for a voluntary interview, this needs to be dealt with at the same time. As stated, we are normally able to get the interview cancelled, which can reduce the stress of the process.

Yes. We can reach out to Chiltern Railways proactively on your behalf, even before you have received the initial letter. Sometimes it can take 2-3 months for the initial letter to be sent out, because of the investigations taking place into the ticket history. Many of our clients want to avoid this nervous wait and do not want to rely on the post when the consequences of failing to reply can be so serious.

Chiltern Railways, privately prosecute three main offences, depending on the circumstances:

Railway Byelaw 18(1) & – Entering a Train in a Non-compulsory Ticket Area for the Purpose of Travelling on the Railway Without Having With You a Valid Ticket.

This charge is very easy to prove, because it is committed by simply travelling without a valid ticket. There is no ‘dishonesty’ or ‘intention’ element to prove in court.

S.5(3) of the Regulation of Railways Act 1889 – Intentionally Travelling on the Railway Without Having Paid the Fare.

The allegation is that you have intentionally travelled without paying the correct fare. This is more a serious charge, which has implications for how long it remains on a DBS certificate.

Railway Bylaw 18(2) – Failed to Hand Over a Ticket for Inspection When Asked to Do So by an Authorised Person

Sometimes there is an additional charge within the particulars under bylaw 18(2), which normally indicates that Chiltern allege that there was a lack of cooperation with the inspector.