LNER’s use of industry leading tech benefits national children’s charity

The honed investigation skills and industry leading tech expertise of LNER colleagues has led to a children’s charity receiving a generous donation.

Ambitious about Autism, a national charity for autistic children and young people, has received a £10,000 donation thanks to LNER’s use of cutting-edge technology which uncovers unusual ticket purchase patterns and spots potential fraudsters.

The Rail Delivery Group, which represents train companies, estimates that around £240 million a year is lost through fare evasion. With train operators, rail passengers and taxpayers ultimately subsidising the journeys of those who deliberately dodge fares, it makes financial sense to detect and deter those who try and cheat the system.

The LNER Risk and Assurance team was already successful at identifying fraudulent tickets, but by working together with LNER’s first ever Machine Learning team and harnessing the power of Artificial Intelligence (AI), they found they could find the fraudsters even quicker.

A pilot project began in early 2023 and the system immediately identified a previously compliant customer, who through the systematic abuse of the ticketing system had failed to pay for £10,000 worth of travel. Using information uncovered by the new technology, the team built a case which resulted in the customer repaying the full loss to LNER.

Paul Larder, Head of Risk and Assurance at LNER, said: “Applying machine learning has been a real game changer for us. Previously, we’ve relied on the talent of our Revenue Protection Team to identify customers who deliberately purchase incorrect tickets for travelling on our services. By using AI, we can accurately analyse large amounts of information quickly and identify patterns that our skilled team can investigate further. In essence, it’s helped us make even more of our own luck!”

Following the recovery of the fares, the decision was made to donate the sum to Ambitious about Autism, an organisation which champions the rights of autistic young people and children. The charity, which offers specialist education services and an award-winning employment programme, had previously received funding through LNER’s Customer and Community Investment Fund, so seemed the perfect fit.

LNER’s donation will benefit the charity’s learner and family services team which delivers vital support to the families of hundreds of autistic children and young people.

Danae Leaman-Hill, Director of External Affairs and Development at Ambitious about Autism, said: “We are hugely grateful to LNER for this generous donation which will help us support vulnerable families of autistic children and young people before they reach crisis point. Our dedicated team supports those families, often from low-income households, who are particularly impacted by the cost-of-living crisis. From housing to transport issues, our team helps them overcome challenges so that their children can feel secure, go to school, and reach their potential.”

Photo credit: LNER

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