Railways Act 1993

Yn ddilys o 01/04/1994

58 Power to require information etc. E+W+S

(1) Where it appears to the appropriate officer that a relevant operator may be contravening, or may have contravened, any relevant condition or requirement, the appropriate officer may, for any purpose connected with such of his functions under section 55 above as are exercisable in relation to that matter, serve a notice under subsection (2) below on any person.

(2) A notice under this subsection is a notice signed by the appropriate officer and—

(a) requiring the person on whom it is served to produce, at a time and place specified in the notice, to the appropriate officer or to any person appointed by the appropriate officer for the purpose, any documents which are specified or described in the notice and are in that person’s custody or under his control; or

(b) requiring that person, if he is carrying on a business, to furnish, at a time and place and in the form and manner specified in the notice, to the appropriate officer such information as may be specified or described in the notice.

(3) No person shall be required under this section to produce any documents which he could not be compelled to produce in civil proceedings in the court or, in complying with any requirement for the furnishing of information, to give any information which he could not be compelled to give in evidence in any such proceedings.

(4) A person who without reasonable excuse fails to do anything required of him by notice under subsection (2) above is guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.

(5) A person who intentionally alters, suppresses or destroys any document which he has been required by any notice under subsection (2) above to produce is guilty of an offence and shall be liable—

(a) on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum;

(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine.

(6) If a person makes default in complying with a notice under subsection (2) above, the court may, on the application of the appropriate officer, make such order as the court thinks fit for requiring the default to be made good; and any such order may provide that all the costs or expenses of and incidental to the application shall be borne by the person in default or by any officers of a company or other association who are responsible for its default.

(7) Any reference in this section to the production of a document includes a reference to the production of a legible and intelligible copy of information recorded otherwise than in legible form; and the reference to suppressing a document includes a reference to destroying the means of reproducing information recorded otherwise than in legible form.