Road Traffic (Northern Ireland) Order 1981

Prospective

[F1Fixed penalty noticesN.I.

91C.—(1) Where on any occasion the Department has reason to believe that a person has committed an offence under Article 91A, the Department may give the person a notice offering him the opportunity of discharging any liability to conviction for that offence by payment of a fixed penalty to the Department.

(2) Where a person is given a notice under this Article in respect of an offence under Article 91A–

(a)no proceedings may be instituted for that offence before the end of the period of 21 days following the date of the notice, and

(b)he may not be convicted of that offence if he pays the fixed penalty before the end of that period.

(3) A notice under this Article must give such particulars of the circumstances alleged to constitute the offence as are necessary for giving reasonable information of the offence.

(4) A notice under this Article must also state–

(a)the period during which, by virtue of paragraph (2), proceedings will not be taken for the offence,

(b)the amount of the fixed penalty, and

(c)the person to whom and the address at which the fixed penalty may be paid.

(5) Without prejudice to payment by any other method, payment of the fixed penalty may be made by pre-paying and posting a letter containing the amount of the penalty to the person mentioned in paragraph (4)(c) at the address so mentioned.

(6) Where a letter is sent in accordance with paragraph (5) payment is to be regarded as having been made at the time at which that letter would be delivered in the ordinary course of post.

(7) Regulations may make provision as to any matter incidental to the operation of this Article, and in particular–

(a)as to the form of a notice under this Article,

(b)as to the information to be provided in such a notice by virtue of this Article, and

(c)as to any further information to be provided in a such notice.

(8) The fixed penalty payable under this Article is, subject to paragraph (9), £100.

(9) Regulations may substitute a different amount for the amount for the time being specified in paragraph (8).

(10) Regulations may make provision for treating a fixed penalty payable under this Article as having been paid if a lesser amount is paid before the end of a prescribed period.

(11) In any proceedings a certificate which–

(a)purports to be signed on behalf of the Department, and

(b)states that payment of a fixed penalty was or was not received by a date specified in the certificate,

is evidence of the facts stated.]