'Don't make the same mistake I did on train – it nearly cost me £154' (original) (raw)

A man has been left horrified after a ticket inspector tried to charge him £154 for getting an earlier train than the one he was booked on - and people are divided

The man was left confused by what happened (Stock Image)

A bloke has sounded the alarm for anyone who's ever thought about hopping on an earlier train than their ticket states.

Jack Taylor shared his ordeal on TikTok, saying he was made to "feel like a criminal" despite having a ticket. He vented his frustration with the caption: "Do NOT get ANY earlier train. I HAD A TICKET. Felt like a criminal."

In the comments, he revealed he'd forked out £100 for his London-bound ticket. Overlaying his video, he penned: "POV: Watching me get fined for getting an earlier train."

The footage starts with the ticket inspector asking for what sounds like £54.50. Jack can be heard gasping: "Fifty pounds?" only for the inspector to clarify: "£154 sir."

Jack protests "it's too much money" and insists he can't cough up that kind of cash, but the inspector is firm, stating it's not "negotiable". Next, the inspector lays out his choices: either hop off at Darlington and pay just for that leg of the journey or cough up the full £154 please.

He ends up paying £9.40 to go as far as Darlington, where he asks the inspector: "Do you feel mean doing this?" The reply comes: "No sir. Everyone else on this train has paid the exact same price." Jack then had no choice but to "disembark the train" and kill time for "an hour and a half" until his scheduled service arrived.

His situation sparked a flurry of responses on social media. One wrote: "Ticket inspectors were definitely the kids that reminded the teachers they'd set homework just as everyone was leaving."

Another vented: "Ticket inspectors are the true villains they go beyond doing their jobs to just being plain mean." A third posted: "God why do they care SO MUCH if you get an earlier one? They're still getting the money, not like you hopped on for free."

Yet there were some who rallied behind the inspector, with one person querying: "I am confused. Did you get on a train for which you did not book the ticket for? Cuz if you booked a ticket for a flight, you can't expect to get on an earlier flight can you?"

Do you have a story to share? Email: danielle.wroe@mirror.co.uk