Dowager wrote:
Hi all, hope someone can answer this definitively.

Yesterday morning, my girlfriend took the train from East Dulwich to London
Bridge. Because the train was pulling in to the station, she hopped on with
the intention of getting a ticket at the destination. However, while queuing
up at the 'Customers with fares to pay' kiosk, she was challenged by a
revenue protection functionary (or whatever they're called) demanding to
know why she didn't have a valid ticket etc.

After a prolonged debate, he did sell her a single, BUT also took down her
name and address saying she would be receiving a penalty fare demand in the
post.

Question: Surely you can't be sold a valid ticket (whether pre- or post-
journey) AND also be issued with a PF for that same journey? Was he just
trying it on to 'scare' her?


I would think that you can, because you can only be issued with a
penalty fare if you aren't suspected of fare-evasion (if you were,
steps should be taken towards possible prosecution).

A penalty fare, officially, is not a punishment (or a penalty), but the
standard fare which you have to pay if you don't get a ticket in
advance of getting on the train (or crossing a red line or whatever).
Your girlfriend was in that position.

Of course, in practice this is nonsense and penalty fares are issued
incorrectly as fines, even though the fine for fare-evasion must be
£1000 or more.

Also, TOCs put up posters referring to penalty fares deterring
fare-evasion, even though according to the rules they shouldn't be
issued to suspected fare-evaders.

It's much easier to screw extra cash out of honest travellers trying to
buy tickets at the end of their journey than it is to get any cash out
of the determined fare-evaders which the railway authorities are less
keen to confront.


I'm aware that this took place within a compulsory ticket zone etc., but
both her and I have bought post-journey tickets (including Travelcards) at
LBridge dozens of times before without hassle, even on the relatively rare
occasions when both the ticket office and machine are functional at E
Dulwich. In any case, LBridge is a barrier controlled station for God's
sake! What were they expecting her to do? Vault the gates?

To add insult to (potential financial) injury, the ticket inspector was
apparently pretty damned rude and intransigent, and wouldn't listen to any
sort of reasoned argument. Bloody jobsworths...

Ta,
Dowager.