criminal-law england-and-wales civil-law consumer-protection travel
Sitting in first class with a standard class ticket
<p>Sitting in first class with a standard class ticket</p>
<p>Meet Bob. Bob purchased a ticket from Bristol to Exeter on a standard class seat. However, upon boarding the train he conveniently finds that the whole first class cabin is empty and helps himself to one of the plusher seats. What legal offence (s) has Bob committed, and why should he be forced to go back to the standard cabins?</p>
<p>Is there any criminal offence?</p>
<p>If the criminal offence is reliant on a civil wrong like breach of contract or such, must that in itself come with proof of actual damage or loss resulting from the breach?</p>
<p>And if it is rooted in a civil contract term, then could those terms not be seen to be unfair and unenforceable as unduly benefiting the merchant with no discernible benefit at all to the consumer?</p>
<p>Another line of thinking is that if Bob possesses some protected characteristic, the most obvious one being disability, less straightforward possibilities perhaps including race or others that are &quot;disproportionately correlated&quot; with having less money then perhaps the facts can be crammed into a frame in which the operator must prove that enforcing the wastage of these seats is a proportional means of achieving a reasonable aim (which cannot simply be limited to profit making).</p>

<p>This would be an offence under section 5(3)(a) of the <a href="https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Vict/52-53/57/section/5" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Regulation of Railways Act 1889</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>(3) If any person—</p>
<ul>
<li>(a) Travels or attempts to travel on a railway without having previously paid his fare, and with intent to avoid payment thereof;</li>
<li>...</li>
</ul>
<p>he shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine ...</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The Crown Prosecution Service has <a href="https://www.cps.gov.uk/legal-guidance/transport-offences" rel="nofollow noreferrer">a summary of transport offences</a>, which says of the above offence:</p>
<blockquote>
<p><em>&quot;Intent to avoid payment&quot;</em> does not require a dishonest intent, just an intent to avoid payment of the sum actually due: <em>Browning v Floyd</em> [1946] 2 All E.R. 367: where a man used the return portion of a non-transferable ticket given to him by his wife who had not used it, he was guilty of the offence and she was guilty of aiding and abetting him.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>In the case of travelling in first class on a standard ticket, you would be avoiding payment of the &quot;sum actually due&quot;, since a first class ticket is more expensive.</p>

<p>Bob has breached regulation 4 of <a href="https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2018/366/contents/made" rel="nofollow noreferrer">The Railways (Penalty Fares) Regulations 2018</a> and may be liable, under regulations 5 and 9, to pay a penalty fare:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>4(1) A person travelling by, present on, or leaving a train must, if required to do so by or on behalf of an operator, produce <strong>a valid travel ticket.</strong></p>
<p>[...]</p>
<p>5(1) Subject to regulations 6, 7 and 10, if a person fails to produce a platform ticket or <strong>a valid travel ticket in accordance with regulation 4, a collector may charge that person a penalty fare.</strong></p>
<p>[...]</p>
<p>9(1) Where a penalty fare is charged under regulation 5(1) to a person travelling by, present on, or leaving a train, the amount of that penalty fare is <strong>£20 or twice the full single fare applicable, whichever is greater.</strong></p>
</blockquote>
<p>However:</p>
<p>One of the train operating companies on Bob's route, GWR, may - or may not - apply their <a href="https://www.gwr.com/help-and-support/penalties-and-enforcements" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Revenue Protection Policy</a> instead:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>We have staff specially trained to deal with fare evasion and revenue protection and fraud. Some of them can conduct interviews under caution and report people to our Prosecutions department.</p>
<p>If you did not buy a ticket when you had the chance, what happens next will depend on which member of staff asks to see your ticket.</p>
<p><strong>If you are stopped by an inspector, they may</strong>:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Charge you a full price Anytime ticket for your journey (with no discount).</p>
</li>
<li><p>Report you to our Prosecutions department – which could mean you have to go to court.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>If you are stopped by a train manager or conductor, they may</strong>:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Charge you a full price Anytime ticket for your journey (with no discount).</p>
</li>
<li><p>Give you an Unpaid Fare Notice.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>We also have Ticket Examiners who can issue Unpaid Fare / Penalty Fare Notices, as well as charge full price Anytime ticket for your journey (with no discount).</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Note: This policy does not specifically mention being found in First Class with a Standard Class ticket, and the use of <em>may</em> throughout, suggests that the inspector etc may have some discretion as to whether to apply the policy or to issue a penalty fare under the Regulations - presumably depending on the particular circumstances.</p>
