Man saved £1.90 on train tickets but could be fined hundreds of pounds instead

Sam Williamson fears he could be fined hundreds of pounds after an 'innocent' mistake

A train passenger worries he could be faced with a criminal record after he made an 'innocent' rail travel mistake.

Sam Williamson said he is being prosecuted by Government-owned operator Northern after using a railcard at the wrong time. He claimed the ticket he purchased - from Broadbottom to central Manchester - only saved him £1.90, reports MEN.

Writing on X, Mr Williamson said he used the app to buy the ticket in September. But at 'nowhere did it made explicit' that his railcard would not be valid.

The ticket is named Anytime – meaning there are no restrictions on when the holder can travel - but he bought it using a railcard discount for passengers aged 16-25. Mr Williamson wrote: "Once on the train, the conductor tells me my ticket is invalid due to Railcard restrictions.

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"I immediately offer to pay for a new ticket, or even take a fixed penalty fare if needs be. He says I can’t do either; he must report it and Northern may prosecute me"

The Anytime ticket can be used outside public holidays in July or August before 10am, when the minimum fare is £12. Mr Williamson claimed that this was 'not made explicit' on the Northern app.

On Tuesday he was sent 'a lovely letter from Northern Trains telling me about how they wanted to prosecute me', he wrote. He added: "I’ve emailed the revenue protection team with all the info I can, so I hope this will work out OK.

"However, I’m understandably worried that an innocent mistake over a confusing and opaque rule – that only saved me £1.90! – will lead to a punishment of £100s and a criminal record."

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A Northern spokesman said it would not be appropriate to publicly comment on the case. The spokesperson said: "As with all train operators across the UK, everyone has a duty to buy a valid ticket or obtain a promise to pay voucher before they board the train and be able to present it to the conductor or revenue protection officer during a ticket inspection.

"The overwhelming majority of our customers – upwards of 96 per cent– do just that.”

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