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South Western Railway Launches Crackdown on Ticket Scam
Early data shows one-third of flagged passengers now buy the correct ticket as SWR says the trial protected £45,000 in four weeks.
- South Western Railway launched a targeted enforcement trial on the Vauxhall-to-London Waterloo route in June to curb 'short-faring,' where passengers deliberately purchase cheaper tickets for only a small portion of their journey.
- This practice exploits barcode tickets displayed on mobile phones to open station barriers, allowing passengers to bypass full-fare payment. SWR estimates up to 95 per cent of barcode tickets purchased for the four-minute trip are used fraudulently, putting £31 million of revenue at risk.
- Since June, the trial identified 153 short-faring offences, compared with seven during the same period last year, while protecting an estimated £45,000 in four weeks. One-third of previously flagged passengers now purchase the correct fare.
- Passengers caught short-faring face a £100 penalty fare, reduced by half if paid within 21 days, plus the cost of a full ticket. Repeat offenders can face prosecution, with some individuals owing more than £11,000 in evaded fares.
- Matthew Winnie, SWR and Network Rail Wessex chief customer and commercial officer, stated, "We're also tackling the less visible forms of fare fraud." The industry estimates fare evasion costs British railways at least £350 million annually.
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