Merseyrail Penalty Fare Notice Appeal

[DisgruntledMan]

Me and my partner both travelled on Merseyrail trains today from Cressington station in Liverpool to Green Lane in the Wirral. We changed trains at Liverpool James Street on the way there and Liverpool Central on the way back.

We have both been issued Penalty Fare Notices at Hamilton Square station on the way back because the inspectors said that our tickets only covered zone C. We simply asked the man in the ticket office for a ‘day saver ticket’, and he didn’t ask which zones we needed or anything. We literally didn’t know that the zones existed until today and thought that a day ticket would suffice for all Merseyrail trains (now know that a ‘all zones day saver’ is required).

I suspect that we don’t have grounds for an appeal based on us making a genuine mistake?

One thing that I think might be noteworthy is that the Penalty Fares we have been issued with have different issue reasons listed. On my receipt it says ‘00 No Ticket’ and my partner’s says ‘03 Travel Beyond Validity’. Have they possibly made a technical error by saying ‘No Ticket’ on mine? We both still have our tickets to hand for what it’s worth.

 

[signed]

I will let appeal advice to other forum members

based on us making a genuine mistake?

That is the exact goal of a PF, a higher fare to correct genuine mistakes

 

[voyagerdude220]

Simply because noone else has commented yet, I suspect that the penalty fare issued with the reasoning for it's issue stating "no ticket" can be challenged because you had tickets.

The one which states travelled beyond valid area looks correctly issued- but hopefully more knowledgeable members will comment soon to confirm/deny what I've said.

 

[M28361M]

We changed trains at Liverpool James Street on the way there

Minor point but do you mean Moorfields? James Street isn’t an interchange station for changing from Northern to Wirral lines.

I know it seems very unfair - the ticket clerk at Cressington should have checked what zones you need. But we’re in the realm of “the person at the station said this“ and you won’t successfully appeal on that basis, sadly.

For what it’s worth a standard day return from Cressington to Green Lane is £5.50 which is cheaper than the all zones day saver, so that would have been the best ticket, if that was the only journey you were making that day.

 

[AlterEgo]

Simply because noone else has commented yet, I suspect that the penalty fare issued with the reasoning for it's issue stating "no ticket" can be challenged because you had tickets.

The one which states travelled beyond valid area looks correctly issued- but hopefully more knowledgeable members will comment soon to confirm/deny what I've said.

It’s worth a shot, but since the NRCoT treats people travelling beyond validity as having no ticket, I suspect the appeal would fail on this basis. I mean if I proffer a ticket today dated for June 2021, I have no ticket in the practical sense.