Effect of offer and payment of penaltyN.I.
81.—(1) This Article applies where a conditional offer has been [issued] to a person under Article 80.
[(2) Where the alleged offender makes payment of the fixed penalty in accordance with the conditional offer, no proceedings shall be brought against him for the offence to which the offer relates unless paragraph (3) applies.
(3) This paragraph applies where–
(a)it appears to the appropriate person, on inspecting the licence and its counterpart [or (where the alleged offender is not the holder of a licence) accessing information held on his driving record], that the alleged offender would be liable to be disqualified under Article 40 if he were convicted of the offence to which the conditional offer relates;
(b)the appropriate person returns the payment to the alleged offender together with [(where he is the holder of a licence)] his licence and its counterpart; and
(c)where the appropriate person is not the Department, the appropriate person gives notice that he has done so to the Chief Constable.
(4) Where the requirements specified in the conditional offer in accordance with heads (i) and (ii) of Article 80(5)(a) [or (5A)(a)] have not been fulfilled, no proceedings shall be brought against the alleged offender for the offence to which the offer relates–
(a)until the end of the period of 28 days following the date on which the conditional offer was made, or such longer period as may be specified in the offer, and
(b)where the appropriate person is not the Department, unless the appropriate person notifies the Chief Constable that proceedings may be brought by virtue of this paragraph.]
(6) In determining for the purposes of paragraph [(3)(a)] whether a person convicted of an offence would be liable to disqualification under Article 40, it shall be assumed, in the case of an offence in relation to which a range of numbers is shown in the last column of Part I or Part II of Schedule 1, that the number of penalty points to be attributed to the offence would be the lowest in the range.
(7) In any proceedings a certificate that by a date specified in the certificate payment of a fixed penalty was or was not received by [the appropriate person] shall, if the certificate purports to be signed by [the appropriate person], be evidence of the facts stated.