Hi all, A bit of an update. My mitigating letter was accepted and I was issued a warning letter with a fine of £951.85 The letter noted that despite strong grounds to prosecute me (multiple offenses, lying to the revenue inspector etc), based on my mitigating circumstances (and by the grace of my Creator) they have decided not to prosecute. The matter is now settled with no further action. It is needless to say how relieved I am and what a nightmare I went through. I wanted to thank the CAG forum and to give back in some way, by sharing the below tips: -Solicitors are truly worthless. They tend to scare you into spending money you'll need later on. Avoid them, read up on CAG -Write your own, heartfelt, and sincere letter. Show genuine remorse. Thank TFL for the opportunity to provide your side of the story -Read the TFL Prosecution Policy thoroughly and draft your letter accordingly. Any prosecution decision will be made following those exact guidelines and Solicitors use that very document to draft your letter (for £250 and upwards) -Buy an annual travel card to prove that there is no intention or opportunity to reoffend and submit that as evidence with your mitigating circumstances letter -If your health has deteriorated or impacted as a result of the stress, submit medical evidence to that effect. -TFL is committed and bound by the Human Rights Act and any conviction decision will need to be fair and proportionate. Those are very important and serious concepts. -Display in your mitigating letter how a conviction decision will be unfair and disproportionate. For example, a criminal conviction will mean limiting future career progression, mortgage applications, travel prospects, personal health, volunteering opportunities etc -Emphasise that you are willing and able to pay any fines and penalties applicable to avoid the inconvenience of TFL taking you to court The mitigating circumstances letter is the make or break of your case. Each situation, level of offense, type of concession card, and personal circumstances are different. You may have a lot of "aggravating factors" (e.g. lies, multiple offenses etc) but remorse and active steps not to reoffend (buy an annual travel card if financial means to do so and offer the penalty payment upfront) goes a long way. Hope the above helps in some ways. I will be regularly visiting the forum to provide my insights if I can. Thank you.

Best of luck with this - hope it works out for you.

hi Khali007, Any updates?

Hi HB, Probably not...

Hi, Rather the very opposite, it may be in the public interest to prosecute me for those very reasons.

Hi HB, Yes cause the fact that I am the sole earner is a strong factor for me as it's true that any loss of income will be devastating for us. The other aspect of prosecuting me being in public interest (high profile role and professional status), how can I argue that it won't be in public interest to prosecute?

Morning, I realised something else. In my letter, when I mention my spouse's unemployed status, it'd contradict the RPI's notes as I lied to her saying that my spouse works in the area I got caught in. How am I going to address this...

Thank you BazzaS and HB. Would it be wise to mention that I will be losing my professional status in the event of a conviction and prosecution? Or is it best not to bring this to their attention?

Thank you BazzaS for putting this in a concise and highly articulate manner. Another query if I may. In my letter, to support the impact a criminal conviction will have on my future livelihood, I would like to state that I have a lot of credit card debt and loss of earnings (due to prosecution) will mean I will not be able to afford the monthly interest payments in the future. Would this be reasonable to include in my letter?

Hi, I am in a similar situation to yours. If I may ask regarding your 94 usages, how long does the date span range? Thanks.

thank you dx. It appears that majority of the offences on the public transport forums related to Freedom Pass abuse. In my case, it was an annual student Oyster card in my spouse's name which I had paid for on their behalf being the sole earner in the household. I have the receipts to display the card used to pay for their Oyster card is mine. Do you think I should mention it in my letter?

ok...thank you. I have read the post (thank you for guiding me to that) and will write in similar thread. My worry is that I lied to the inspector about not having used the card before. I also recall now that he did not ask me to sign the notes he took so I am worried I have no idea what he wrote down. Without my signature on his notes, would this be admissible evidence in court?

Thank you dx. I know I have asked this question already, but is there any merit at all in sending the initial letter through a solicitor? I have read the reviews on some of them and it seems that if the initial letter is sent through a solicitor, things are resolved quicker. Your opinion is much appreciated.

Thank you dx. Regarding losing my job, how would I go proving that as HR won't give me a letter and I'm reluctant to share internal policy information.

Thank you honeybee and dx100uk. When I said post the letter on my own I meant to send it with supporting evidence and the letter via Royal Mail. Also, how would I go about proving that I lose my job if I get a criminal conviction? HR won't give me a letter to say so and I am reluctant to share internal guidances. Also, how would I address the multiple offences issue in my letter?