Legal rights regarding LUAS fine?

R

ryanj8

Guest
Hi,

I was recently on the LUAS and when I failed to produce a ticket in time I was issued a fine. I was told if I found my ticket I could send it to the Veolia transport office and I wouldn't have to pay the fine. I found the ticket (which clearly stated it was valid for the time and date that I was on the LUAS) and appealed the fine. However I got a letter back a month later saying that they had considered my appeal but the fine still stood. Do I have any legal rights regarding this? Can they (or are they legally entitled to) still fine me even though I have a valid ticket for the journey?

Thanks
 
I suspect you are on a looser here. You did not produce a ticket on demand.

Contact a solicitor for further advice.
 
Perhaps the time frame was too big, I mean, you could have easily spent time scouting around trying to find a ticket valid at your travel times.
 
davidoco said:
They know that when you got off you rummaged in the bins near the stop for a used ticked which you then sent in. Oldest trick in the book.
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haha indeed and they also probably have it on CCTV as well...hand in the bin for a couple minutes.
 
i still dont understand why you did not just show the ticket when asked,i travel on the luas i have the ticket in my hand or in my pocket,its not the sort of thing you buy and then throw away before you get on the tram.
 
If you have a season ticket sometimes you may not have quite so readily to hand - I have once gotten as far as the customer service guy having taken all my details before I found mine! I hadn't had to take it out for a while and I had put it somewhere "safe" then forgotten where exactly that was! I found it just as he finished as I decided to have one last rummage for it. :)
 
ryanj8 said:
Hi,

I was recently on the LUAS and when I failed to produce a ticket in time I was issued a fine. I was told if I found my ticket I could send it to the Veolia transport office and I wouldn't have to pay the fine. I found the ticket (which clearly stated it was valid for the time and date that I was on the LUAS) and appealed the fine. However I got a letter back a month later saying that they had considered my appeal but the fine still stood. Do I have any legal rights regarding this? Can they (or are they legally entitled to) still fine me even though I have a valid ticket for the journey?

Thanks
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As the Inspectors regularly explain to people 'if you find your valid ticket simply forward it on with a copy of the ticket and they will cancel the fine' I would write to Veolia and ask them to explain why they have rejected your appeal.
 
Thanks for everyone's helpful advice. I didn't produce it at the time because I'd put it in my bag and it ended up between the pages of a book I was reading. It wasn't until I got off the luas and removed everything from my bag that I found it. Obviously I regret not keeping it in my hand but unfortunately it's too late to think about that. When they check the luas tickets they clip them therefore I couldn't have got it off someone on the same luas as me. If they are not going to except a ticket when you appeal the situation they should stop telling people to forward the ticket onto them and they'll cancel the fine. Clearly they're lying as I've yet to hear of anybody winning an appeal
 
but, for example, if you had found a ticket in the bin when you got off the luas, that wouldn't have been clipped if it had been from the previous train. how many people have you asked who've appealed their fine? i wouldn't go extrapolating from that small sample.
 
I had a similar issue

Had a ticket but it fell out of my purse and ended up in caught in my umbrella so of course when I looked for the ticket I couIdnt find it

Of course didnt find it until the next time it rained, the next day..

Didnt help my appeal though, I didnt even bother exploring other options as given the way the ticket inspectors practially stalk customers I figured I didnt have a leg to stand on!
 
I understand that I could have found the ticket from a journey that wasn't my own and hence not inspected. However as I had a valid ticket and the fine was still upheld I'd like to know under what circumstances an appeal would be successful. Does anyone know of any?
 
I've heard them tell people with annual tickets who have forgotten their tickets that they will issue the fine and that they should just send in a copy of their ticket with the fine and it will be wiped. It would be interesting to see what does actually happen in these cases.

Call the Joe Duffy show and see if they can highlight your case as it does seem unfair.
 
On a side note there was a letter in the Metro a few months ago that said they are only legally allowed to fine people while on the trams. If you get fined after getting off on the platform whey will let you off if you complain.
 
Towger said:
On a side note there was a letter in the Metro a few months ago that said they are only legally allowed to fine people while on the trams. If you get fined after getting off on the platform whey will let you off if you complain.
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I don't think that's true. RPA own almost all the platforms too so you're still on their property when they issue the fine.
 
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