The Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 2005

Entry of premises

174.—(1) An appointed person may, for the purpose of enabling or facilitating the performance of any function of the Board in relation to an occupational pension scheme, at any reasonable time enter scheme premises and, while there—

(a) may make such examination and inquiry as may be necessary for such purpose,

(b) may require any person on the premises to produce, or secure the production of, any document relevant to that purpose for inspection by the appointed person,

(c) may take copies of any such document,

(d) may take possession of any document appearing to be such a document or take in relation to any such document any other steps which appear necessary for preserving it or preventing interference with it,

(e) may, in the case of any such document which consists of information which is stored in electronic form and is on, or accessible from, the premises, require the information to be produced in a form—

(i) in which it can be taken away, and

(ii) in which it is legible or from which it can readily be produced in a legible form, and

(f) may, as to any matter relevant to the exercise of the Board’s functions in relation to the scheme, examine, or require to be examined, either alone or in the presence of another person, any person on the premises whom he has reasonable cause to believe to be able to give information relevant to that matter.

(2) Premises are scheme premises for the purposes of paragraph (1) if the appointed person has reasonable grounds to believe that—

(a) they are being used for the business of the employer,

(b) an insolvency practitioner in relation to the employer is acting there in that capacity,

(c) documents relevant to—

(i) the administration of the scheme, or

(ii) the employer,

are being kept there, or

(d) the administration of the scheme, or work connected with the administration of the scheme, is being carried out there,

unless the premises are a private dwelling-house not used by, or by permission of, the occupier for the purposes of a trade or business.

(3) An appointed person applying for admission to any premises for the purposes of this Article must, if so required, produce his certificate of appointment.

(4) When exercising a power under this Article an appointed person may be accompanied by such persons as he considers appropriate.

(5) Any document of which possession is taken under this Article may be retained until the end of the period comprising—

(a) the period of 12 months beginning with the date on which possession was taken of the document, and

(b) any extension of that period under paragraph (6).

(6) The Board may before the end of the period mentioned in paragraph (5) (including any extension of it under this paragraph) extend it by such period not exceeding 12 months as the Board considers appropriate.

(7) In this Article “appointed person” means a person appointed by the Board for the purposes of this Article in relation to the scheme.