Train companies face major setback as thousands of ticket fines get canceled
Two rail operators brought over 28‚000 wrong prosecutions against passengers for ticket issues. Chief magistrate declared all cases invalid during quick court hearing in London
In a quick two-minute hearing Paul Goldspring‚ the chief magistrate cancelled more than 28‚000 wrong prosecutions against train passengers (which happened between mid-2020 and early-2024)
The main company Northern Rail brought most cases - exactly 28‚631 wrong charges while TransPennine Express added 41 more cases this winter; both rail operators used incorrect legal procedures to charge people for not having right tickets
The single-justice system which started bout 9 years ago lets courts handle small-time cases like:
- No TV license
- Missing car insurance
- Train ticket problems
Since late-2016 train companies got permission to use this system but they made a big mistake - they used an old-fashioned law from 1800s that dont work with modern court rules
A Northern Rail rep said: “We say sorry for these errors“ and added that their courts service will contact affected people but they cant answer questions right now; the company still wants everyone to buy proper tickets tho
The chief magistrate already looked at 6 test-cases few months back and said theyre all invalid - now hes doing the same with thousands more cases that used wrong rules
