Given a tfl pentalty but no slip?

ngl you're prob fine. at 16 tfl's policy is basically "first time free" especially if they didn't take your address or check your oyster. i've seen inspectors at liverpool street just let kids off with a warning if they're polite about it

if you're really worried, go to a tube station with a ticket office and ask them to check if there's anything under your name. they can see if a penalty was logged. but tbh if you didn't use a contactless card or zip oyster they've got no way to chase you

the court thing is for people who ignore like 5+ fines and have a proper address on file. you're 16, you'd get a letter first saying "oi pay up or we'll take it further" and even then they usually just send reminders. just don't pull this near baker street or oxford circus, those inspectors are proper jobsworths

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fwiw at 16 they usually just give you a warning especially if it's your first time. tfl's policy is pretty lenient with under 18s, they'd rather educate than fine you. i'd check if you even used a zip oyster or contactless cos if you did they can trace it back to your account and will send the penalty there

if nothing comes in the post within 2 weeks i'd honestly forget about it. the court thing only happens if you ignore multiple fines and they have your full address, which they don't seem to have here. just don't make a habit of it round paddington or baker street where they're strictest

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honestly if they only took your name and no address or anything, they prob cant even send you a letter. tfl needs your full details to issue a penalty notice, just a name isnt enough for the system to generate a fine.

but if they did get your address somehow, youll get a letter in the post within a few weeks. if nothing shows up in like 3 weeks you're prob fine. at 16 theyre not gonna take you to court over this unless you rack up loads of them, they usually just send warning letters first

if you're really stressed about it you can call tfl customer service and give them your name, see if theres anything on their system. but tbh i'd just wait and see, no point worrying until you actually get something in writing

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SpareRoom's "rooms wanted" ads are underrated for this. people post what they're currently paying alongside what they want next, so you can scrape a rough sense of going rates by postcode without anyone knowing you looked. it skews young and flatshare heavy tho, so not much use if you're after 2-beds in zone 2.

Another one is just the depozit or tenancy deposit scheme data. not public-facing, but your council's housing officer can tell you median rents from deposit registrations if you email them under FOI. takes weeks, but its proper anon and nobody clocks u.

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Rightmove and Zoopla only show asking rents, which are often 10 to 15 percent above what a place actually goes for, so they're a poor benchmark. The trick I've used is the ONS Price Index of Private Rents, which breaks things down to borough level and is genuinely anonymous since it's aggregate data, no listing or account needed. For something more granular, the London Renters Union runs a rent reporting tool where you submit what you're paying with your postcode and it maps it against others nearby, though the coverage is patchy outside the inner boroughs.

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the openrent "rent check" thing is decent for zones 3-4 where the unions tool barely reaches. also worth checking the london.gov.uk planning portal for new build applications, they list "affordable" and market rent figures per unit in the viability assessments, which is basically the developer telling the council what they expect to charge. bit of a faff to dig through but its public, anonymous & nobody knows ur looking

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