Supplementary Benefits Act 1976

6 (1) A person who by virtue of a deduction notice makes one or more deductions from the earnings of a person in his employment shall, in accordance with the regulations, pay the amount or amounts deducted to the Secretary of State.

(2) No criminal proceedings shall lie against any person on account of a contravention of sub-paragraph (2) or (3)(a) of paragraph 4 above ; but if, on any pay-day on which the said sub-paragraph (2) or the said sub-paragraph (3)(a) requires a person to make a deduction from the earnings of a person in his employment, the employer makes no deduction from the employee's earnings, or deducts from them an amount smaller than the amount which he is thereby required to deduct, then—

(a) so much of the last-mentioned amount as is not deducted by the employer from the employee's earnings on that payday shall be recoverable from the employer by the Secretary of State; and

(b) any sum recovered from the employer by the Secretary of State by virtue of paragraph (a) above in consequence of his omission to deduct the required amount from the employee's earnings on that pay-day shall, for the purposes of this Schedule, be deemed to have been repaid by the employee.

(3) For the purposes of any proceedings brought by the Secretary of State by virtue of sub-paragraph (2)(a) above against a person in connection with a deduction notice served on him in respect of a person who at the material time was in that person's employment, it shall be presumed, except in so far as the contrary is proved, that on every pay-day which occurred while that notice was in force the employee's available earnings exceeded his protected earnings (as specified in the notice) by an amount greater than one-tenth of the notified amount (within the meaning of paragraph 4 above).