Hello,
A friend inadvertently reused (by overwriting) a carnet card on their commute this morning and was caught by a ticket inspector. The details don't matter that much as they believe they are entirely at fault - they worked out what they had done later but were a bit dumbfounded at the time. They can only put it down to stupidity, laziness, and a bleary eyed early morning commute after a late flight last night - not that any of that excuses it; they entirely accept their guilt in the matter.
They didn't admit to anything at the time, saying that they believed their ticket to be valid; they were still trying to work out what had happened. The inspector confiscated their ticket, gave them an MG11(?) slip and said that they would send them out a letter. Unfortunately the train was FCC which I understand are the worst when it comes to prosecution.
It is a pretty cut and dried case really, and I've been reading through the sob stories here which has given me a rough idea of what they can expect. I was shocked and pretty upset to realise that they could get a criminal conviction for the sake of £5! They desperately want to avoid a criminal conviction as they regularly travel to and through the USA for work and to visit family (amongst other reasons of course).
Anyway, some questions:
- I understand that their only course of action is for them to hope to settle out of court by writing a grovelling letter of apology and offering to pay all costs. Should they wait until they receive a summons, or would there be something to be gained by pre-empting this?
- Will admitting guilt make it more likely that they then be prosecuted instead of settling?
Thanks in advance. I don't expect any sympathy for them as they know it was their own stupid fault. I'm just trying to work out what they can do now, hoping that a moronic lapse won't affect them for the rest of their life
A friend inadvertently reused (by overwriting) a carnet card on their commute this morning and was caught by a ticket inspector. The details don't matter that much as they believe they are entirely at fault - they worked out what they had done later but were a bit dumbfounded at the time. They can only put it down to stupidity, laziness, and a bleary eyed early morning commute after a late flight last night - not that any of that excuses it; they entirely accept their guilt in the matter.
They didn't admit to anything at the time, saying that they believed their ticket to be valid; they were still trying to work out what had happened. The inspector confiscated their ticket, gave them an MG11(?) slip and said that they would send them out a letter. Unfortunately the train was FCC which I understand are the worst when it comes to prosecution.
It is a pretty cut and dried case really, and I've been reading through the sob stories here which has given me a rough idea of what they can expect. I was shocked and pretty upset to realise that they could get a criminal conviction for the sake of £5! They desperately want to avoid a criminal conviction as they regularly travel to and through the USA for work and to visit family (amongst other reasons of course).
Anyway, some questions:
- I understand that their only course of action is for them to hope to settle out of court by writing a grovelling letter of apology and offering to pay all costs. Should they wait until they receive a summons, or would there be something to be gained by pre-empting this?
- Will admitting guilt make it more likely that they then be prosecuted instead of settling?
Thanks in advance. I don't expect any sympathy for them as they know it was their own stupid fault. I'm just trying to work out what they can do now, hoping that a moronic lapse won't affect them for the rest of their life
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