Didn’t get a penalty fine

[Brissle Girl]

One other point - you say the gates closed on you but you must have gone through them.

This is key to whether it was accidental or deliberate. Forcing your way through closing barriers so close to the person in front is a sure sign of fare evasion.

So I think the chances of TfL (through the person that stopped you) believing it was an accident are very low.

 

[smithjackson]

This is key to whether it was accidental or deliberate. Forcing your way through closing barriers so close to the person in front is a sure sign of fare evasion.

So I think the chances of TfL (through the person that stopped you) believing it was an accident are very low.

This makes sense, i understand where you guys are coming from.

as i mentioned i was in a rush. it was a silly thing i should've just waited a little longer, a few extra seconds could of avoided this whole matter but in the mist of things i wasn't thinking straight, it was the fear of being late and possibly losing my job. the line was busy, i thought i just tap my card and the gates open back up after closing quickly but that wasnt the case, the gates have to close first before opening up again.

how can i express this, does it make sense?

MY UPDATED RESPONSE.
This letter is regarding the incident that occurred on 25 April. I was running late for work and was in a rush- it was busy at the Hayes and Harlington station that day, people where queueing up.

I was pacing around the station and wanted to catch the train as soon as possible, I recently found out there are 10 trains an hour, so this isn’t an excuse but in the mist of things I was more concerned about being late and losing my job. I tapped my card on the reader and proceeded to pace through. The gates closed on me last second because my card didn’t register properly. I thought it will open back up because I had tapped my card but clearly this wasn’t the case.

I attempted to rectify the situation by paying again at the exit a couple minutes later, but staff advised me it wouldn’t make a difference.

A staff told me to come to the side asking for ID, in which he took down my details.

We had a friendly encounter; I was compliant and didn’t make his job difficult.

I like to sincerely apologise to the anyone in the TFL team which I have caused an inconvenience too, it was never my intention to fare evade. I understand the severity of the offence and would take full accountability and responsibility for what I have done, I am aware I have tailgated, and fare evaded however it was never my intention, I was truly uneducated on how the system works, thinking if I tap my card, it will stay open.

This is a really embarrassing matter, and I’m truly disappointed in my actions, I went back to the same station a couple days later asking for information on why my card didn’t go through and how the barriers work.

I now know I must hold it for 3 seconds and must wait for the gates to be closed fully. it will not open back up halfway through closing. Going forward, I am now aware of what needs to be done- I will wait for the gates to fully close and hold my card for 3 seconds.

I understand this process costs the TFL, hence why I am offering to pay the outstanding fare and TfL's administrative costs in dealing with the matter and would be keen to settle the matter without the need for court action.

I would like to conclude by saying I’m sorry for what I have done and for what im making the team go through, I take full accountability for what has happened and can ensure you this will never happen again. I understand my mistake and going forward I will make sure the gates are fully closed and hold my card for a minimum of 3 seconds.

 

[Brissle Girl]

You say you were “pacing round the station”. Again this is inconsistent with your story both that the station was very busy and you were in a rush. You’d immediately join a queue for one of the gatelines. Pacing round actually suggests waiting for an opportunity to tailgate someone.

And if you are a regular (or even occasional) user you would know that Hayes has a very frequent service.

As noted by others, TfL usually prosecute, and will have the witness statement of the person who stopped you, and I am sceptical that any explanation given will cut any ice I’m afraid.

 

[smithjackson]

You say you were “pacing round the station”. Again this is inconsistent with your story both that the station was very busy and you were in a rush. You’d immediately join a queue for one of the gatelines. Pacing round actually suggests waiting for an opportunity to tailgate someone.

And if you are a regular (or even occasional) user you would know that Hayes has a very frequent service.

As noted by others, TfL usually prosecute, and will have the witness statement of the person who stopped you, and I am sceptical that any explanation given will cut any ice I’m afraid.

i appreciate you giving me feedback, what do you mean at the end? any explanation given will cut any ice?

 

[Brissle Girl]

i appreciate you giving me feedback, what do you mean at the end? any explanation given will cut any ice?

I mean I’m sceptical it will have any effect, because they won’t believe your story.

Only you know if it was deliberate, and you don’t have to say so here, but if it was then it will have been obvious to the gateline staff. If it was then you are better off just apologising than trying to convince rhem that it wasn’t.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

i appreciate you giving me feedback, what do you mean at the end? any explanation given will cut any ice?

"Cuts no ice" generally means something that makes no impression or has no effect. For example, an excuse.

Was originally coined in the days before refrigerators when ice was hacked off a large block. If the tool used was ineffective in doing this, it was said to "cut no ice".

 

[Titfield]

I am not sure we can give the OP any more advice.

It is up to the OP whether they follow the advice or not. It is their choice and theirs alone.

However the experience of this forum is that TfL rarely give warnings (ie let people off) unless they TfL have erred or there are extremely compelling reasons for them not to take the alleged fare evader to court.

The very detailed explanation that the OP gives - which varies on each retelling - does not seem to alter the basic fact they did not pay the fare when they were required to do so. There is nothing compelling about it.

When a member of staff reads this explanation then imho there is a very high probability they will simply conclude that the OP didnt pay their fare. They will then proceed to take them to court.

 

[smithjackson]

I mean I’m sceptical it will have any effect, because they won’t believe your story.

Only you know if it was deliberate, and you don’t have to say so here, but if it was then it will have been obvious to the gateline staff. If it was then you are better off just apologising than trying to convince rhem that it wasn’t.

tbh it wasn’t deliberate the person went through i tapped the card while walking. now i see where tailgating comes in the picture and because my card didn’t go through it just makes matters worse.

end of the the day i did tailgate and fare evade, what’s my best option here on because of they weren’t certain i was tailgating i would’ve received a prosecution notice letter

 

[Brissle Girl]

I used my phone to tap but it didn’t go through and looked as if i was tailgating.

tbh it wasn’t deliberate the person went through i tapped the card while walking. now i see where tailgating comes in the picture and because my card didn’t go through it just makes matters worse.

end of the the day i did tailgate and fare evade,

So yet again there are inconsistencies with your very first post. You said you tapped your phone, now it’s a card.

And you acknowledged it looked like tailgating even before we used the term, and yet in your last post you say you now see where tailgating comes into the picture.

Our recommendation is always to be truthful, and given you say yourself that you tailgated and evaded the correct fare (evasion implies a deliberate attempt to avoid), I would repeat that you should be truthful and not waste their time with explanations that they won’t believe.

 

[antharro]

A few suggestions, mostly on the letter rather than its contents.

1) The way your letter is structured is somewhat jumbled. Start with the introduction. "This letter is regarding...". New paragraph - move on to the actual events of the day. New paragraph - what you've learned, assurances it won't happen again, what you've done to make sure it won't happen again. New paragraph - what you're offering TfL to keep this out of court.

2) Offering to pay the fare and TfL's costs is ok, but you're not in a position to tell them what you're willing and not willing to pay. I would change that to state that you would will be willing to pay whatever TfL considers reasonable to resolve the situation.

3) Check your letter for spelling, grammar and correct usage of words. No one here or at TfL will expect your letter to be written absolutely perfectly, but it wouldn't hurt to make sure it's laid out correctly and that you're using the correct words. For instance, in each draft you have stated that "people where queueing up". Incorrect - should be "people were queueing up".

4) As Brissle Girl has quite correctly said, you need to get your facts straight. If what you're saying conflicts with what the TfL inspector has said, or even conflicts with what you're writing in the same letter, TfL won't give you the time of day and will just pass you on to the courts to deal with. You have to present yourself, and your story in the best possible way to persuade them to NOT do that.


Lastly... as a sidenote - while waiting for the gate to close before tapping your card is a surefire way to make sure your card is read by the gate, it's also a way of slowing down traffic. I very rarely if ever wait for the gate to close. I watch the coloured indicator on the reader. If it's orange then even if the gate is open, I'll tap my card while watching the indicator. If it beeps and goes green, I walk through, usually quickly noting my balance on the screen. If it beeps and goes red then I don't go through (the gates will be closed/closing at this point anyway). I step back, wait a moment and try again.

 

[smithjackson]

thanks for this i’m definitely gonna rewrite this. yeh i don’t want to conflict with what’s being said i don’t have a problem being honest. what should i say, i tapped my card (contactless phone) and tailgated and my card didn’t go through. i just thought i could rush through but it’s not a problem because my card has been tapped .

 

[island]

thanks for this i’m definitely gonna rewrite this. yeh i don’t want to conflict with what’s being said i don’t have a problem being honest. what should i say, i tapped my card (contactless phone) and tailgated and my card didn’t go through. i just thought i could rush through but it’s not a problem because my card has been tapped .

I think you need to read the advice you've already been given, settle on a story, and reply accordingly.

We are not here for you to test out different versions of your story to see what sounds best.