(1)Proceedings shall not be brought against any person for the offence to which a fixed penalty notice relates until the end of the period of twenty-one days following the date of the notice or such longer period (if any) as may be specified in the notice (referred to below in this Part of this Act as the suspended enforcement period in respect of the offence).
(2)The Secretary of State may by order provide for offences to become or (as the case may be) to cease to be fixed penalty offences for the purposes of this Part of this Act, and may make such modifications of the provisions of this Part of this Act as appear to him to be necessary for the purpose.
(3)The fixed penalty for a fixed penalty offence shall be—
(a)the amount appropriate in accordance with subsection (4) below in the case of that offence ; or
(b)one-half of the maximum amount of the fine to which a person committing that offence would be liable on summary conviction;
whichever is the less.
(4)Subject to subsection (5) below, the amount appropriate in the case of a fixed penalty offence is—
(a)£20 in the case of any offence involving obligatory endorsement; and
(b)£10 in any other case.
(5)The Secretary of State may by order substitute a different amount or amounts for either or both of the amounts for the time being specified in subsection (4) above.
(6)A fixed penalty notice—
(a)shall give such particulars of the circumstances alleged to constitute the offence to which it relates as are necessary for giving reasonable information about the alleged offence;
(b)shall state the period which, by virtue of subsection (1) above, is the suspended enforcement period in respect of the offence, the amount of the fixed penalty and the justices' clerk or, in Scotland, the clerk of court to whom and the address at which the fixed penalty may be paid; and
(c)shall, when it is given under section 27(1) of this Act in respect of an offence committed in Scotland, be in the prescribed form.
(7)A notice affixed to a vehicle under section 27(2) of this Act shall not be removed or interfered with except by or under the authority of the driver or person in charge of the vehicle or the person liable for the offence in question; and any person contravening this subsection shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £50.