Police caution

Hi all! Can anyone tell me what exactly a police caution is? I have heard this thrown around quite a bit but I am nervous I may have received one while I was in the UK on a Tier 2 visa.

Situation: I was travelling on southwest trains and had with my my old student railcard from my Tier 4 visa. I was unaware that my railcard has expired two months prior to that day (not that it matters I suppose). I was stopped at the gates by a worker in uniform and was asked to see my BRP. He then wrote down my name on his notepad and wrote that I was using an old railcard. After arguing, he asked me to write down my address so they could send me some fines. I told him an address and then I asked if I was in trouble. He spoke to a supervisor and eventually just said "I am taking your railcard, you are free to go but if you do this again, we have you on CCTV". I haven't seen any penalties in the mail that I know of.

When you get a simple caution, do you receive a formal ticket on the spot, or do they mail it to you? I am super nervous I received a caution in the mail that I overlooked!

Hi all! Can anyone tell me what exactly a police caution is? I have heard this thrown around quite a bit but I am nervous I may have received one while I was in the UK on a Tier 2 visa.

Situation: I was travelling on southwest trains and had with my my old student railcard from my Tier 4 visa. I was unaware that my railcard has expired two months prior to that day (not that it matters I suppose). I was stopped at the gates by a worker in uniform and was asked to see my BRP. He then wrote down my name on his notepad and wrote that I was using an old railcard. After arguing, he asked me to write down my address so they could send me some fines. I told him an address and then I asked if I was in trouble. He spoke to a supervisor and eventually just said "I am taking your railcard, you are free to go but if you do this again, we have you on CCTV". I haven't seen any penalties in the mail that I know of.

When you get a simple caution, do you receive a formal ticket on the spot, or do they mail it to you? I am super nervous I received a caution in the mail that I overlooked!

No, you're fine, it doesn't sound as if you had a police caution. Your warning wasn't given to you by a police officer. 

The police or Crown Prosecution Service can give you a caution (warning) or a penalty notice if you commit a minor crime.
Cautions

Cautions are given to anyone aged 10 or over for minor crimes - eg writing graffiti on a bus shelter.

You have to admit an offence and agree to be cautioned. You can be arrested and charged if you don’t agree.

A caution is not a criminal conviction, but it could be used as evidence of bad character if you go to court for another crime.

Cautions can show on standard and enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks. 

https://www.gov.uk/caution-warning-penalty

Thanks. I am more nervous as to if I was given a fine that has been mailed to my old address? I gave him my university address out of a moment of stupidity and I don't have access to that address anymore. Would I solidly know if they were planning on fining me or is it just a surprise?

Thanks. I am more nervous as to if I was given a fine that has been mailed to my old address? I gave him my university address out of a moment of stupidity and I don't have access to that address anymore. Would I solidly know if they were planning on fining me or is it just a surprise?

Looking at the Southwest Trains website it appears that their policy is to make you pay on the spot by means of a penalty fare. He obviously didn't do that, maybe he was just trying to scare you?
If you really want to know for sure, so that this doesn't worry you any more, I would give them a call (the number's in the second link) to find out where you stand but I think you're fine.


 

Revenue Protection Policy: Travelling without a valid train ticket

With the right train ticket, you will avoid being fined or prosecuted; you will be able to travel when it suits you and may save yourself money.

If you do not have a valid ticket and are approached by a revenue protection officer, who is an authorised penalty fare collector, you may be liable to a penalty fare (of £20 or twice the full single fare to the next station at which your train stops - whichever is the greater amount), or you may be reported by an Officer of the Railway under the Regulations of Railways Act 1889; the Railway Byelaws 2005, the Fraud Act 2006 for Prosecution.

If you wish to continue your journey beyond the next station stop you may be required to buy a full fare single or return ticket for the remainder of your journey.

The vast majority of our passengers always buy a ticket before they join a train, but there is a small minority who do not. South West Trains aim to educate those who do not purchase the correct ticket rather than penalise those passengers. However, fare evasion costs all train operators millions of pounds a year; that can be met by fare paying passengers in Government subsidies to all transport companies. This is unacceptable, and Stagecoach South Western Trains Limited, Transport for London and all other Train and Bus Companies will always pursue ticketless travellers, prosecuting when appropriate.

We aim to ensure that every passenger who travels by South West Trains holds a valid ticket for their journey and our strategy for achieving this includes:

    Continually reviewing the availability of ticket purchasing facilities;
    Reviewing the availability of ticket gates at stations; and
    Operating a penalty fares scheme.
    Prosecuting when appropriate

 
Penalty fares scheme leaflet

Download the pdf
We operate a Penalty Fares scheme for three reasons:

    To build upon the public support of the principle of tackling fare evaders;
    To encourage passengers to buy a ticket before their journey, rather than to wait until they have to, or are challenged to do so; and
    To reduce fraudulent travel, i.e. those who do not intend to pay, regardless of the opportunity to buy a ticket.
 

https://www.southwesttrains.co.uk/penaltyfares

https://www.southwesttrains.co.uk/contact--help/contact-us/

thanks

thanks

If you do call, please let us know how it goes.
Good luck. 

Thanks! I have a hard time believing he would not tell me if I were receiving a fine in the mail, but you never know!

You would definitely know if you had a police caution - it cannot be issued without you accepting it.

A police caution can only be issued by a police officer. And it can only be issued after you have admitted to a criminal offence and you have agreed to accept the formal caution.

Cautions are usually only issued at a police station or a court house and not in public, and you must be made aware of your right to legal advice before you can be given a caution.

A caution is only considered issued when you have accepted it and signed the official police caution paperwork.

In your case, I assume you were cautioned by a rail worker, not a police officer. You did not officially accept a caution or sign any paperwork. Therefore you do not have a police caution.

For more information see: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/416068/cautions-guidance-2015.pdf


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thank you Ksand for your information

I am more worried about having a floating outstanding ticket/fine that the Southern Rail employee may have issued me and sent to my old address without my knowledge.

I have a pending settlement visa application for which I hadn't even thought about this encounter, and therefore I have not declared on the application. I am now anxiously worried I will be banned for deception, as extreme as that sounds!

I was just wondering if any members who currently live in the UK have been issued a fine/ticket from Southern or Southwest in the mail. Or if anyone knew who I could contact to see if I was written up. It is unlikely, but I thought I would give it a shot!

I was on a train from London to Essex in April and a guy didn't have a ticket and his cards wouldn't work to pay for one so the conductor got his address and he was going to be mailed a fine.

He verified the address was real though as the guy was trying to give him a fake.

He told him he was getting a fine, where you said the person told you you weren't being fined this time.

If anyone does want to check if they have a police record, including cautions, you can make a subject access request (SAR)
https://www.acro.police.uk/subject_access.aspx