A persistent fare dodger was caught red-handed at a northeast London station after racking up almost £4,000 worth of unpaid trips. The man, who used his uncle's broken contactless card to evade fares, was confronted by TfL investigators at Seven Kings station.
530 counts of fare evasion
Footage from Channel 5's Fare Dodgers: At War with the Law shows TfL investigator Lisa closing in on the suspect, who was wanted for a staggering 530 counts of fare evasion, worth around £3,700 in unpaid tickets. The man admitted to using his uncle's contactless card, claiming it stopped working after he went to Georgia.
When Lisa asked why he was still using it on the train, he insisted he only used the faulty card for a day. But Lisa told him 'not to lie' before showing him CCTV footage and pages of travel history. She warned him that 'this is very very serious' and laid out the 'overwhelming' evidence.
Court outcome
The man appeared to panic as the scale of the evidence was revealed, with Lisa telling him to 'breathe' after the amount he owed was put to him. He later apologised to the team. The man reportedly pleaded guilty in court and was fined £40, plus £275 compensation and £275 costs, according to the Standard.
The technique of repeatedly using an invalid or declined card for contactless payment can be spotted by the sophisticated ITAP system and flagged to investigators.
Wider crackdown
TfL said it is checking more passengers who use contactless payment, with over five million contactless payment cards checked in the 2024/25 financial year. This generated £2.2 million in charges from people travelling without a valid contactless card. It is estimated to recover around £190 million lost to fare evasion, which could be invested into the network. During the same period, more than 4,100 people were prosecuted for pushing through gates.
