This morning I was issued with an unjustified fine by London Midland staff. Attached is a letter of complaint I have sent to London Midland to appeal against their jobsworth mentality and absolute lack of any common sense at all.
To whom it may
concern,
On the morning of
Wednesday 22nd August 2012 I was issued with a fine of £20 for not
being able to produce a ticket upon arrival when travelling from Dudley Port
station to Birmingham New Street station.
I wish to appeal against this
Penalty Fare Notice.
My name is Sam Britton;
I live in Dudley and work in Birmingham City Centre so commute to and from New
Street station every weekday.
I arrived at Dudley
Port at 08:20 with plenty of time to spare for the 08:28 train. When I arrived
the ticket booth was open, which if you’re not aware is a rarity. It is more
often than not closed, the self service machine is also vandalised so usually I
have to purchase my ticket at New Street station.
When I approached the
ticket booth it was obvious there was some sort of argument going on between a
passenger and the ticket attendant on duty. This had formed quite a large queue
already which I joined the back of. I waited for several minutes and the queue
did not move, so along with others waiting in the queue I headed to the
platform as the train was due to arrive at any moment. I had the intention of
buying a ticket on board the train or at the station like I usually have to as
you don’t staff the Dudley Port ticket booth often.
Once on board the
train, a ticket inspector was not available to purchase a ticket from at the
back of the train where I usually sit, in case of these situations. I looked down
the carriage to see if an inspector was on board, but given the time of day the
train was heavily loaded and I couldn’t freely move along the carriage to see
if an inspector was available.
When I arrived at New
Street I went straight to the Victoria exit and sought to buy a ticket from the
attendants there. When asked by a London Midland employee if the Dudley Port
ticket office was open I was honest and explained why I was unable to purchase
a ticket. The attendant then looked at me as if I was scum and asked for Liam
(a manager I presume) to decide whether I was to be fined or not, to my utter
surprise.
I explained the
situation to Liam as I had to his colleague and he didn’t seem to care about my
situation or the poor service I had received from London Midland and refused my
payment for the £5.10 return ticket I purchase every weekday.
I asked Liam what my
options were and he stated that I had to give him my details and if I refused
he would pass me on to the police officer on duty. My average morning commute
had ended up with a London Midland employee threatening me with my imminent
arrest!
I feel that if I had
lied and told the ticket attendant the ticket office at Dudley Port was closed
none of this would have happened.
I am an honest
individual who commutes to Birmingham five days a weeks for work. Now I feel as
if I am being treated like some sort of criminal.
I asked both the
ticket attendant and Liam what my other options would have been and they had no
answer for me.
So I’ll ask you the
same – what were my other options?
To wait for the next
train that would have made me at least half an hour late for work at my new job
– hardly the best impression in my first few weeks of working there.
Would you have
explained to them why you as a company had made me late for work?
Would you as a company
reimburse my employers for that lost half an hour?
I am appealing to your
common sense and hope you will repeal the fine.
Yours Sincerely,
Sam Britton
.jpg)
