The Civil Enforcement of Road Traffic Contraventions (Approved Devices, Charging Guidelines and General Provisions) (England) Regulations 2022

PART 5 Enforcement of penalty charges

Notice to owner

20.—(1) Where—

(a) a penalty charge notice has been given with respect to a vehicle under regulation 9, and

(b) the period of 28 days specified in the penalty charge notice as the period within which the penalty charge is to be paid has expired without that charge being paid,

the enforcement authority concerned may serve a notice (a “notice to owner”) on the person who appears to it to have been the owner of the vehicle when the alleged contravention occurred.

(2) A notice to owner may not be served after the expiry of the period of 6 months beginning with the relevant date.

(3) A notice to owner must, in addition to the matters required to be included in it under regulation 3(2) of the 2022 Appeals Regulations, state—

(a) the date of the notice, which must be the date on which the notice is posted,

(b) the name of the enforcement authority serving the notice,

(c) the amount of the penalty charge payable,

(d) the date on which the penalty charge notice was served,

(e) the grounds on which the civil enforcement officer who served the penalty charge notice under regulation 9 believed that a penalty charge was payable with respect to the vehicle,

(f) that the penalty charge, if not already paid, must be paid within “the payment period” as defined by regulation 3(2)(a) of the 2022 Appeals Regulations,

(g) that if, after the payment period has expired, no representations have been made under regulation 5 of the 2022 Appeals Regulations and the penalty charge has not been paid, the enforcement authority may increase the penalty charge by the applicable surcharge, and

(h) the amount of the increased penalty charge.

(4) For the purposes of this regulation, the relevant date—

(a) in a case where a notice to owner is deemed to have been cancelled under regulation 23(5)(c), is the date on which the district judge serves notice in accordance with regulation 23(5)(d);

(b) in a case where a notice to owner has been cancelled under regulation 6 of the 2022 Appeals Regulations (duties of enforcement authority which receives representations against an enforcement notice), is the date on which the notice is cancelled;

(c) in a case where payment of the penalty charge was made, or had purportedly been made, before the expiry of the period mentioned in paragraph (2) but the payment or purported payment had been cancelled or withdrawn, is the date on which the enforcement authority is notified that the payment or purported payment has been cancelled or withdrawn;

(d) in any other case, is the date on which the relevant penalty charge notice was served under regulation 9.

Charge certificate

21.—(1) Where—

(a) an enforcement notice is served on or given to a person (“P”), and

(b) the penalty charge to which it relates is not paid before the end of the relevant period,

the enforcement authority which served the notice may serve a charge certificate on P.

(2) For the purposes of this regulation, the relevant period is—

(a) where P—

(i) makes an appeal to an adjudicator under regulation 7 of the 2022 Appeals Regulations (appeal against a decision to reject representations against an enforcement notice), but

(ii) withdraws the appeal before the adjudicator serves notice of their decision,

the period of 14 days beginning with the day on which P withdraws the appeal;

(b) in any other case, the period of 28 days beginning with the specified date.

(3) For the purposes of paragraph (2)(b) “specified date” means—

(a) where P does not make any representations under regulation 5 of the 2022 Appeals Regulations, the date on which the enforcement notice is served or given;

(b) where—

(i) P makes representations under regulation 5 of the 2022 Appeals Regulations,

(ii) a notice of rejection is served by the authority concerned, and

(iii) no appeal against the notice of rejection is made by P under regulation 7 of those Regulations,

the date on which the notice of rejection is served;

(c) where an adjudicator has, under regulation 7(8) of the 2022 Appeals Regulations, recommended the enforcement authority to cancel the relevant notice, the date on which the enforcement authority notifies P under regulation 7(9) of those Regulations that it does not accept the recommendation;

(d) where P has made an unsuccessful appeal to an adjudicator under the 2022 Appeals Regulations against a notice of rejection and sub-paragraph (c) does not apply, the date on which the adjudicator’s decision is served on P.

Enforcement of charge certificate

22.  Where—

(a) a charge certificate has been served on a person, and

(b) that person has not paid the increased penalty charge provided for in the certificate within the period of 14 days beginning with the date on which the certificate is served,

the enforcement authority may, if a county court so orders, recover the increased charge as if it were payable under a county court order.

Invalid notices

23.—(1) This regulation applies where—

(a) a county court makes an order under regulation 22,

(b) the person against whom it is made (“P”) makes a witness statement complying with paragraph (2), and

(c) that statement is served on the county court which made the order, before the end of—

(i) the period of 21 days, beginning with the date on which notice of the county court’s order is served on P, or

(ii) such longer period as may be allowed under paragraph (4).

(2) A witness statement must state one and only one of the following—

(a) that P did not receive the enforcement notice;

(b) that P made representations to the enforcement authority under regulation 5 of the 2022 Appeals Regulations but a notice of rejection was not received from that authority in accordance with regulation 6 of those Regulations;

(c) that P appealed to an adjudicator under regulation 7 of those Regulations against the rejection by the enforcement authority of representations made under regulation 5 of those Regulations but—

(i) P did not receive a response to the appeal,

(ii) the appeal had not been determined by the time the charge certificate was served, or

(iii) the appeal was determined in P’s favour;

(d) that P has paid the penalty charge to which the charge certificate relates.

(3) Paragraph (4) applies where it appears to a district judge, on the application of P, that it would be unreasonable in the circumstances of the case to insist on P serving a witness statement within the period of 21 days allowed for by paragraph (1).

(4) Where this paragraph applies, the district judge may allow such longer period for service of the witness statement as the judge considers appropriate.

(5) Where this regulation applies—

(a) the order made under regulation 22 is deemed to have been revoked,

(b) the charge certificate is deemed to have been cancelled,

(c) in the case of a witness statement including a statement under paragraph (2)(a), the enforcement notice to which the charge certificate relates is deemed to have been cancelled, and

(d) the district judge must serve written notice of the effect of this regulation on P and on the enforcement authority concerned.

(6) Service of a witness statement including a statement under paragraph (2)(a) does not prevent the enforcement authority from serving a fresh enforcement notice.

(7) Where a witness statement is served including a statement under paragraph (2)(b), (c) or (d), the enforcement authority must refer the case to the adjudicator.

(8) Where a case is referred to the adjudicator—

(a) the adjudicator may give P and the enforcement authority (“the parties”) such directions as the adjudicator considers appropriate in the circumstances, and

(b) the parties must comply with those directions.

(9) A witness statement under this regulation may be served on the county court by email in accordance with Practice Direction 5B made under rule 5.5 of the Civil Procedure Rules 1998(1).

(10) In this regulation “witness statement” means a statement which is—

(a) a witness statement for the purposes of the Civil Procedure Rules 1998, and

(b) supported by a statement of truth in accordance with Part 22 of those Rules.

(1)

S.I. 1998/3132 (L. 17). The current version of Practice Direction 5B is available here: http://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/procedure-rules/civil/rules/part05/pd_part05b