Excessive Admin Charges
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johnsta99
Posts: 1 Newbie
Any comments?
My son travels to school on the local train two stops £1.50.
He buys his weekly ticket at the destination station - I warned him he might get into trouble but he insisted that he couldnt get a weekly ticket on the app or from the machine and the ticket collectors are mobbed at that time of the morning.
He got to the school station and was in the queue telling the ticket seller who knew him as a regular what he wanted when another Northern rail Employee pulled him to one side and gave him a penalty far for twenty quid! - oh dear - we told him to pay-up and be more careful.
He appealed which was rejected then he faffed around as teens do and has now received a bill for £35 pounds admin on top of the £20.
I think it was harsh to stop him buying his ticket when the ticket officer recognised him but that's life. However, the fact that the admin fee is more than the fine seems really excessive.
I thought there were rules about excessive charges being levied in this way?
My son travels to school on the local train two stops £1.50.
He buys his weekly ticket at the destination station - I warned him he might get into trouble but he insisted that he couldnt get a weekly ticket on the app or from the machine and the ticket collectors are mobbed at that time of the morning.
He got to the school station and was in the queue telling the ticket seller who knew him as a regular what he wanted when another Northern rail Employee pulled him to one side and gave him a penalty far for twenty quid! - oh dear - we told him to pay-up and be more careful.
He appealed which was rejected then he faffed around as teens do and has now received a bill for £35 pounds admin on top of the £20.
I think it was harsh to stop him buying his ticket when the ticket officer recognised him but that's life. However, the fact that the admin fee is more than the fine seems really excessive.
I thought there were rules about excessive charges being levied in this way?
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Comments
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Any comments?
My son travels to school on the local train two stops £1.50.
He buys his weekly ticket at the destination station - I warned him he might get into trouble but he insisted that he couldnt get a weekly ticket on the app or from the machine and the ticket collectors are mobbed at that time of the morning.
He got to the school station and was in the queue telling the ticket seller who knew him as a regular what he wanted when another Northern rail Employee pulled him to one side and gave him a penalty far for twenty quid! - oh dear - we told him to pay-up and be more careful.
He appealed which was rejected then he faffed around as teens do and has now received a bill for £35 pounds admin on top of the £20.
I think it was harsh to stop him buying his ticket when the ticket officer recognised him but that's life. However, the fact that the admin fee is more than the fine seems really excessive.
I thought there were rules about excessive charges being levied in this way?
In way way is £35 admin excessive? A person had to go through the database, write the letter, print the letter, put it in an envelope, frank it etc...
Admin fees are not comparable to the actual fine. An admin fee could be £35 whether the fine was £20 or £200.
Edit: it was £35 not £20, but still not excessive.Should've = Should HAVE (not 'of')
Would've = Would HAVE (not 'of')
No, I am not perfect, but yes I do judge people on their use of basic English language. If you didn't know the above, then learn it! (If English is your second language, then you are forgiven!)0 -
I think £35 is quite lenient, https://www.railforums.co.uk often report fees approaching £100 to avoid court proceedings.
Wouldn't it be more money-saving to buy single tickets? Many apps sell those0 -
The admin fee was £35 not £20.0
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Aren't there notices that say you should have a valid ticket for your journey?
Which your son doesn't.
And it's not harsh.
And it's really his fault that the amount due has increased.
Have you checked that it's not possible to buy a weekly ticket on the app or from the machine?0 -
Does that include a late payment charge due to his "faffing around"?0
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Get him to buy his weekly ticket on his last homeward bound journey of the week then this won't happen again.0
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He broke the law when he got on the train without a ticket at a station where he had an opportunity to buy one.
The inspector gave him the benefit of the doubt and didn't report him for prosecution. All he had to do was pay up.
When he didn't bother Northern could have cancelled the penalty fare and reported him for prosecution. But no, somebody reviewed his case and offered him a second chance.
So who should pay for that employee's time, and all the other associated costs?
1. Your son?
2. Everybody else?
Tell him to pay up and take responsibility for his own actions.0 -
You need to have a valid ticket before you get on the train, not after you alight. It!!!8217;s obviously to stop people who get on the train and travel for free until they get caught and make up some story about some random ticket machine being broken.
If you do not have a valid ticket, do not get on the train. Whilst frustrating it!!!8217;s not difficult to understand.
I have on a couple of occasions been told I had to get off the bus when trying to buy a £3 ticket with a £10 note.
Frustrating certainly, but I accepted that since I hadn!!!8217;t paid, I have no right to demand they carry me to my destination.0 -
Your son can simply pay the fare from all the savings he made from his fare dodging, and he'll probably still come out ahead. I don't believe for a second that, having travelled unchallenged, he then proceeded to buy a ticket for the journey he had just taken every time. Even if he did buy his ticket every time on arrival at the destination station, he still didn't have a ticket for the journey TO the station - since his ticket will only be valid from the time he bought it.
He chanced his arm, he got caught, he got off VERY lightly, he tried to ignore it, the price went up, but is still very reasonable. This is a learning opportunity - he can either learn some honesty and the ability to take some responsibility for his actions, or he can learn that his mum will always take his side regardless and try to help him shirk his responsibilities. It's your choice.0 -
In way way is £35 admin excessive? A person had to go through the database, write the letter, print the letter, put it in an envelope, frank it etc...
Admin fees are not comparable to the actual fine. An admin fee could be £35 whether the fine was £20 or £200.
Edit: it was £35 not £20, but still not excessive.
That is only true if the train company took on an employee specifically to deal with this one complaint.
Fact is, an admin bod on a permanent contract would have done this so the (minimum wage) admin bod would get paid whether there are fines to issue or not.
All this 'A person had to go through the database, write the letter, print the letter, put it in an envelope, frank it, electricity costs, heating costs, wear and tear on the chair wheels, cost of a teabag etc...' is just a falsehood and no way justifies a £35 'admin' fee.0
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