The Motor Vehicles (Refilling of Air Conditioning Systems by Service Providers) Regulations 2009

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations implement Article 6(3) of Council Directive 2006/40/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 May 2006 (OJ No. L161, 14.6.2006, p.12) relating to emissions from air conditioning systems in motor vehicles and amending Council Directive 70/156/EEC (OJ No. 42, 23.2.1970, p.1 as last amended by OJ No. L161, 22.6.2007, p.60).

Regulations 1 and 2 provides for general preliminary matters.

Regulation 3 provides that the service provider must not fill an air conditioning system with fluorinated greenhouse gases where there has been an abnormal leak of refrigerant and that leak has not yet been repaired.

Regulation 4 makes it a criminal offence for a service provider to fill an air conditioning system with fluorinated greenhouse gases where an abnormal leak has occurred and the necessary repairs have not been completed. It also makes it a criminal offence to obstruct an officer or make false statements to that officer, and for a person to claim they are acting as an officer when they do not have the authority to do so.

Regulation 5 contains a defence on which a person may rely in certain circumstances. The burden of proof is on the defendant to show that he took all reasonable steps and exercised all due diligence to avoid committing the offence.

Regulation 6 extends the liability to other parties where they have committed some act or default that resulted in the principal offender committing an offence under these Regulations.

Regulation 7 makes it an offence to obstruct or provide false statements to an officer acting in pursuance of these Regulations.

Regulation 8 provides an officer with powers to search premises and seize certain items and records in order to gather evidence that an offence has been committed.

Regulation 9 contains provisions for appeal against the detention of equipment and records. Regulation 10 makes the enforcement authority liable to pay compensation where equipment or records are seized or detained without reasonable cause. Regulation 11 allows the enforcement authority to recover expenses following a successful conviction. Regulations 12 and 13 make savings for certain privileges and civil rights.

A transposition note setting out how these Regulations transpose the provisions of Directive 2006/40/EC is available from the Department for Transport, Great Minster House, 76 Marsham Street, London, SW1P 4DR and is annexed to the Explanatory Memorandum which is available alongside this instrument on the OPSI website ( www.opsi.gov.uk). An impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no impact on the private or voluntary sectors is foreseen.

A copy of Directive 2006/40/EC may be obtained from the Stationery Office (www.tso.co.uk) or from the EUROPA website (http://eur-lex.europa.eu/en/index.htm).