Request ID: FOI-2895-2122 Date published: 11 April 2022
You asked
Hello
Further to my initial request, in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and TFL Information Access Policy, may i request the following information.
1- Number of prosecutions of fare evaders between January 2020 - January 2022, alongside the number of successful prosecutions.
2- Number of first time fare evasion offenders being issued with a warning only.
3- Number of first time fare evasion offenders being issued with an on spot fine
4- How is TFL planning to cut fare evasion other than deterring people with large fines and prosecutions?
Finally, I would like to request CCTV footage of my past 6 months travel journeys, if available, of the time I have used the Freedom pass. This can be matched with my travel journey and footage can be obtained.
Thank you for your assistance
We answered
TfL Ref: FOI-2895-2122
Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 14th March 2022 asking for information about fare evasion.
Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy.
Specifically you asked to know:
“1- Number of prosecutions of fare evaders between January 2020 - January 2022, alongside the number of successful prosecutions. 2- Number of first time fare evasion offenders being issued with a warning only. 3- Number of first time fare evasion offenders being issued with an on spot fine 4- How is TFL planning to cut fare evasion other than deterring people with large fines and prosecutions?”
I can confirm that we hold some of the information you require. However, to provide it in the exact form requested would exceed the costs limit for responding to cases as set out under section 12 of the Freedom of Information Act. Under section 12, TfL is not obliged to provide information if it would cost more than £450 to determine if that information is held, and to then locate, retrieve or extract it from elsewhere. This is calculated at a rate of £25 per hour, equivalent to 18 hours work. The exemption applies because:
In relation to question 1 our reporting is done by financial year (i.e, from 1st April to 31st March). To re-cast it by calendar year, as requested, would require us to review individual records at disproportionate cost. However, that said, we can provide you with the following data by financial year:
In 2020/21 (1st April 2020 to 31st March 2021) there were 5,421 cases that resulted in Court, resulting in 5,212 convictions
In 2021/22 (1st April 2021 to date) there have been 1,343 cases that resulted in Court, resulting in 1,232 convictions (data correct as of 5th March 2022)
In relation to questions 2 and 3 we have no simple way of extracting first time offenders in our reporting systems. While in theory this might be achieved by reviewing and comparing individual records, this would involve thousands of such records and could only be achieved in excess of the costs limit.
We can, however, provide you with data on the number of warnings and Penalty Fares issued as follows. Note that warnings given by Revenue Protection Officers on patrol is not captured in this data - however, we do send warnings in many cases where the passenger is reported and TfL subsequently decides not to prosecute. Note also that many first time offenders are issued with Penalty Fares of £80 (or £40 if paid early), and according to TfL’s Revenue Enforcement Policy, any subsequent offence may be investigated. Finally, it is also worth noting that ridership on TfL services was heavily reduced during much of the course of the Coronavirus pandemic and the lockdowns in place, which coincides with much of this period:
In 2020/21 there were 943 warnings issued.
In 2021/22 there have been 652 such warnings issued to date
In 2020/21 there were 2,711 Penalty Fares issued
In 2021/22 there have been 23,552 Penalty Fares issued to date
In answer to question 4, TfL has a Revenue Protection Programme which focusses on reducing fare evasion through a number of initiatives from tackling counterfeit tickets to investing in technology which will improve how we target fare evaders. In addition to working in partnership with the police, we have a team of over 400 revenue protection staff who safeguard our revenue by checking customer tickets and act as a deterrent to fare evaders. We will continue to push for the toughest penalties for anyone caught fare evading on our services.
Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal as well as information on copyright and what to do if you would like to re-use any of the information we have disclosed.
Yours sincerely,
David Wells FOI Case Officer FOI Case Management Team General Counsel Transport for London
