3.—(1) For the purposes of section 216(1)(a) of the 2007 Act, the charge for removing shall be served by a sheriff officer on the defender—
(a)personally; or
(b)by being left in the hands of a resident at the defender’s dwelling place or an employee at his or her place of business; and
(2) Where a sheriff officer has been unsuccessful in executing service in accordance with paragraph (1), he or she may, after making diligent enquiries, serve the charge for removing—
(a)by depositing it in the defender’s dwelling place or place of business; or
(b)by leaving it at that defender’s dwelling place or place of business in such a way that it is likely to come to the attention of the defender.
(3) Where service is executed under paragraph (2), the sheriff officer shall, as soon as possible after such service, send a letter containing a copy of the charge for removing by first class post to the address at which he or she thinks it most likely that the defender may be found.
(4) Where the defender is furth of Scotland, service will be executed in accordance with rule 5.5 (service on persons furth of Scotland) of the Ordinary Cause Rules 1993(1).
(5) Where the address of the defender is not known and cannot reasonably be ascertained by the sheriff officer, the charge for removing shall be deemed to have been served on the defender if it is—
(a)left with or deposited at the office of the sheriff clerk of the sheriff court district where the defender’s last known address is located; and
(b)displayed by the sheriff clerk on the walls of court for the period of the charge.
(6) Where service is executed under paragraph (5) the period of charge shall run from the first date on which it was displayed on the walls of the court.
(7) Where service is executed in accordance with this rule, the sheriff officer shall leave a copy of the charge for removing at the heritable property—
(a)by affixing a copy of the charge in a sealed envelope addressed to “the occupiers” to the main door or other conspicuous part of the premises; or
(b)in the case of land only, inserting stakes in the ground at conspicuous parts of the occupied land to each of which is attached a sealed envelope containing a copy of the charge addressed to “the occupiers”.
(8) On the face of the envelope used under paragraph (7) there shall be written or printed the following notice:—
TAKE NOTICE: this envelope contains a copy of a charge for removing from a Sheriff Officer.
The Ordinary Cause Rules are contained in Schedule 1 to the Sheriff Courts (Scotland) Act 1907, last amended by S.S.I. 2011/386.