Government to order review of rail fare prosecutions

The government is set to order an independent review of rail fare prosecutions and enforcement by train companies following reports of disproportionate action against passengers by revenue protection teams.

The BBC understands that Transport Secretary Louise Haigh will ask the Office for Rail and Road to look at how fare evasion is dealt with.

Train operators have a number of tools to deal with passengers who have underpaid or not bought a ticket at all.

It is understood that while the government is not seeking to strip firms of powers to prosecute criminals who deliberately avoid paying, there has been growing discomfort at action being taken against people who have made innocent mistakes.

The most serious sanction is prosecution for fare evasion, which can land passengers with a magistrates court appearance and a serious criminal record.

The independent review the government is expected to announce will examine how clear ticketing terms and conditions are and how they are communicated to train users.

A key question for the Office for Rail and Road will be when prosecution is the right step.

Last month, government-owned Northern dropped all action against engineering graduate Sam Williamson, who was reported to the operator's prosecutions and debt recovery department for using his 16-25 railcard for travel on a service to Manchester.

Mr Williamson faced prosecution for paying £1.90 less than he should have done despite admitting his error and offering to pay a fine or a new fare, prompting widespread criticism of Northern.

The Department for Transport instructed the company to review its ticketing policy to ensure it was clear and fair to passengers and asked it to examine details of similar cases.

Northern responded by withdrawing all live prosecutions against those pursued in similar circumstances and promised to review historical cases.

The terms and conditions of Mr Williamson's railcard specified the discount was only valid for on-peak services where the original fare was £12 or more. However, despite the small-print, he was able to buy a ticket that informed him he could travel at "anytime".