The Goods Vehicles (Community Licence) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2013

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations give effect to aspects of Regulation (EC) No 1072/2009 of 21 October 2009 (“Regulation 1072/2009”), which makes provision for a Community licence allowing goods vehicles access to the market in the carriage of goods by road between Member States and for a driver attestation where the driver is a third country national.

Regulation 1072/2009, which has direct effect in Member States, recasts existing European Regulations and governs the conditions for the issue and use of Community licences and driver attestations. It prescribes the form of the Community licence (Article 4.4 and Annexes I and II) and driver attestation (Article 5(3) and Annexes I and III), and the period of validity for each (Articles 4(2) and 5(7) respectively).

These Regulations establish an offence, punishable on summary conviction by a fine up to level 4 on the standard scale (regulation 3).

The competent authority for the purposes Regulation 1072/2009 is the Department, as provided for in regulation 4.

Regulation 5 confers entitlement to a Community licence on the basis of the relevant Northern Ireland licence. It also provides that existing Community authorisations and driver attestations are deemed to be Community licences and driver attestations respectively for the purposes of Regulation 1072/2009 and of these Regulations. Provision is also made for administrative penalties in certain circumstances – which include the refusal to issue and the withdrawal of documents (regulation 6). The Regulations confer rights of appeal against administrative penalties (regulations 7 to 9).

Authorised inspecting officers are designated for the purpose of Regulation 1072/2009 (regulation 10).

Regulation 11 requires the holder of a Community licence or driver attestation to supply information in certain circumstances, and provides that such documents may be withdrawn in the event of failure to comply.

Provision is made for the automatic transfer of a Community licence following death and bankruptcy or incapacity of the holder (regulation 12) and for offences which may be committed by a body corporate (regulation 13). In addition provision is made for the amendment of the Road Traffic (Northern Ireland) Order 1981, so that an authorised inspecting officer may prohibit the driving of a vehicle on the road in certain circumstances (regulation 14).

A full impact assessment of the effect that Regulation 1072/2009 (along with two other related EU Road Transport Regulations) will have on the costs of business and the voluntary sector is published with the Explanatory Memorandum alongside this Regulation on www.legislation.gov.uk. Regulation 1072/2009 can be viewed on the EUR-Lex website at www.eur-lex.europa.eu.