"Failed to provide a valid ticket when approached"

[Joao]

I was travelling using Merseyrail to go to work (Bootle New strand to Liverpool Central), I got to the station and there was no one in the ticket office but they didn't have the usual plate saying it was closed so we could use it as proof when arriving at the destination, I waited about 4-5 minutes (until I heard my train coming) and ran to catch it thinking I can just explain my situation and get a ticket in Central. Went up to the officers as soon as I arrived in the area they were explaining and asking to buy a ticket (one of them in the group usually has a little ticket machine) but no, they called my station and they said it was open. (well, it was but there was no one there when I was there) then they gave me a fee for the reason of "not being able to provide a ticket when asked" which never even happened. I tried to appeal online already and got a message back saying it was unsuccessful with no explanation why.

Is there anything I can do to avoid paying this fee? I always buy a ticket and the day they couldn't sell me one I get a fine for not buying one when I was trying to

 

[island]

Do you have verifiable evidence that the booking office was closed/unattended, such as a photograph taken at the time?

If the case goes to court because of non-payment, it will be for you to prove this.

 

[Parham Wood]

Other than taking a video of the ticket office window how else can the OP prove this? In essence it is the OP's word against Merseyrail, how would a court decide who was correct? I suppose if you had a GPS tracker and it showed you stationary in the area of the window this might be of use, but who has one of these. It is a most unfair society if the failure of Merseyrail to provide a service results in a passenger being fined. If there were also ticket machines the OP should have used these.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

If there were also ticket machines the OP should have used these.

Don't believe there are any TVMs at Bootle New Strand. Possibly a Smartcard validator, other than that it's just the ticket office.

 

[AntoniC]

As a regular Merseyrail user I can confirm that there are no TVM`s at Bootle New Strand.
There is an *allegedly* manned ticket office open from start to the close of service.

 

[skyhigh]

I suppose if you had a GPS tracker and it showed you stationary in the area of the window this might be of use, but who has one of these.

It would show nothing at all except you stopped somewhere. For all it shows you could have stopped outside the open ticket office. GPS is also only accurate to around a 3m radius in the very best conditions so wouldn't even prove that you were stopped in the area of the window. It would be of no use at all.