Customs and Excise Management Act 1979

117 Execution and distress against revenue traders

(1) Where any sum is owing by a revenue trader in respect of any relevant excise duty or of any relevant penalty, all the following things which are in the possession or custody of that trader or of any agent of his or of any other person on his behalf shall be liable to be taken in execution in default of the payment of that sum, that is to say—

(a) all goods liable to a relevant excise duty, whether or not that duty has been paid ;

(b) all materials for manufacturing or producing any such goods; and

(c) all apparatus, equipment, machinery, tools, vessels and utensils for, or for preparing any such materials for, such manufacture or production, or by which the trade in respect of which the duty is imposed is carried on.

(2) Subsection (1) above shall also apply in relation to things falling within paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of that subsection which, although they are not still in the possession or custody of the trader, an agent of his or other person on his behalf, were in such possession or custody—

(a) at the time when the relevant excise duty was charged or became chargeable or at any time while it was owing; or

(b) at the time of the commission of the offence for which the penalty was incurred.

(3) Notwithstanding anything in subsection (1) or (2) above, but subject to subsection (4) below, where the proper officer has taken account of and charged any goods chargeable with a relevant excise duty and those goods are in the ordinary course of trade sold for full and valuable consideration to a bona tide purchaser and delivered into his possession before the issue or any warrant or process for distress or seizure of the goods, those goods shall not be liable to be seized under this section.

(4) Where any goods have been seized under this section, the burden of proof that the goods are by virtue of subsectror.0) above not liable to be so seized shall lie upon the person claiming that they are not so liable.

(5) Where any relevant excise duty payable by a revenue trader remains unpaid after the time within which it is payable the proper officer may by warrant signed by him empower any person to distrain any thing liable to taken in execution under this section and, subject to subsection (6) below to, to sell anything so distrained by public auction after giving 6 days notice of the sale.

(6) Where, under subsection (5) above any thing has been distrained in respect of duty payable by a distiller, brewer, licensed producer of wine, licensed producer of made-wine or registered maker of cider he may, subject in the case of a registered maker of cider he may, subject in the case of a distiller to the requirements of section 27(3) and (4) of the [1979 c. 4.] Alcoholic Liquor Duties Act 1979 in connection with the sending out or other removal of spirits, at any time before the day appointed for the sale remove the whole or part of any products of or materials for his manufacture which have been so distrained upon paying to the proper officer in or towards payment of the duty the true value of those products or materials

(7) The proceeds of any sale under subsection (5) above shall be applied in or towards payment of the costs and expenses of the distress and sale and in or towards payment of the duty due from the trader, and the surplus (if any) shall be paid to the trader.

(8) In this section—

• " relevant excise duty " means excise duty other than duty chargeable on imported goods ; and

• " relevant penalty " means a penalty incurred under the revenue trade provisions of the customs and excise Acts.

(9) In the application of this section to Scotland any reference to distress or seizure shall be construed as a reference to poinding.