Action by enforcement authority
17.—(1) An enforcement authority may itself take any action which an economic operator could have been required to take by a notice served under regulation 5 (enforcement powers) where the conditions for serving such a notice are met and either—
(a)the enforcement authority has been unable to identify any economic operator on whom to serve such a notice; or
(b)the economic operator on whom such a notice has been served has failed to comply with it.
(2) If the enforcement authority has taken action under paragraph (1) following the failure of an economic operator to comply with a notice, the authority may recover from that person as a civil debt any costs or expenses incurred by the enforcement authority in taking the action.
(3) A civil debt recoverable under paragraph (2) may be recovered summarily—
(a)in England and Wales, by way of a complaint pursuant to section 58 of the Magistrates’ Courts Act 1980(1);
(b)in Northern Ireland, in proceedings under Article 62 of the Magistrates’ Court (Northern Ireland) Order 1981(2).
1980 c.43. Section 58 was amended by the Crime and Courts Act 2013 (c.22), Schedule 10 paragraph 40.