Companies Act 1985

450 Punishment for destroying, mutilating, etc. company documents. U.K.

[F1 (1) An officer of a company]. . . who—

(a) destroys, mutilates or falsifies, or is privy to the destruction, mutilation or falsification of a document affecting, or relating to the [F2 company’s] property or affairs, or

(b) makes, or is privy to the making of, a false entry in such a document,

is guilty of an offence, unless he proves that he had no intention to conceal the state of affairs of [F3 the company] or to defeat the law.

[F4 (1A) Subsection (1) applies to an officer of an authorised insurance company which is not a body corporate as it applies to an officer of a company.]

(2) Such a person as above mentioned who fraudulently either parts with, alters or makes an omission in any such document or is privy to fraudulent parting with, fraudulent altering or fraudulent making of an omission in, any such document, is guilty of an offence.

[F5 (3) A person guilty of an offence under this section is liable—

(a) on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding seven years or a fine (or both);

(b) on summary conviction—

(i) in England and Wales, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding twelve months or to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum (or both);

(ii) in Scotland or Northern Ireland, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum (or both).]

(4) F6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

[F7 (5) In this section “document” includes information recorded in any form.]

Textual Amendments

F1 Words substituted by Companies Act 1989 (c. 40, SIF 27), ss. 66(2), 213(2)

F2 Words substituted by Companies Act 1989 (c. 40, SIF 27), ss. 66(2), 213(2)

F3 Words substituted by Companies Act 1989 (c. 40, SIF 27), ss. 66(2), 213(2)

F4 S. 450(1A) inserted (1.12.2001) by S.I. 2001/3649, art. 23(1)(3)

F5 S. 450(3) substituted (1.10.2007) by Companies Act 2006 (c. 46), ss. 1124, 1300, Sch. 3 para. 4(1) (with s. 1133); S.I. 2007/2194, art. 2(1)(k) (with art. 12, Sch. 3 para. 48 and subject to Sch. 1)

F6 S. 450(4) repealed (1.10.2007) by Companies Act 2006 (c. 46), ss. 1124, 1295, 1300, Sch. 3 para. 4(2), Sch. 16 (with s. 1133); S.I. 2007/2194, arts. 2(1)(k), 8, Sch. 2 Pt. 1 (with art. 12, Sch. 3 para. 48 and subject to Sch. 1)

F7 S. 450(5) inserted by Companies Act 1989 (c. 40, SIF 27), ss. 66(4), 213(2)

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 S. 450 extended (with modifications) by S.I. 1989/638, regs. 18, 21, Sch. 4 para. 11

C2 S. 450 applied (with modifications) (6.4.2001) by S.I. 2001/1090, reg. 4, Sch. 2 Pt. I (as amended (4.3.2004) by S.I. 2004/355, art. 9(2))

C3 S. 450 restricted (20.1.2007, 6.4.2007, 1.10.2007, 6.4.2008 for specified purposes) by Companies Act 2006 (c. 46), ss. 1126, 1300 (with s. 1133); S.I. 2006/3428, art. 3(2)(b) (subject to art. 5, Sch. 1 and with arts. 6, 8, Sch. 5 (as amended by S.I. 2007/3495, art. 11, Sch. 5)); S.I. 2007/1093, art. 2(2)(c); S.I. 2007/2194, art. 2(1)(l)(3)(h) (with art. 12); S.I. 2007/3495, art. 3(1)(n) (with arts. 7, 12)

C4 S. 450 applied (with modifications) (E.W.S.) (6.4.2014) by The Co-operative and Community Benefit Societies and Credit Unions (Investigations) Regulations 2014 (S.I. 2014/574), regs. 1(1), 2

C5 S. 450(1) amended (1.7.1994) by S.I. 1994/1696, reg. 68, Sch. 8 Pt. I para. 9(1)(c)