Pensions Act 1995

10 Civil penalties

(1) Where the Authority are satisfied that by reason of any act or omission this section applies to any person, they may by notice in writing require him to pay, within a prescribed period, a penalty in respect of that act or omission not exceeding the maximum amount.

(2) In this section “the maximum amount” means—

(a) £5,000 in the case of an individual and £50,000 in any other case, or

(b) such lower amount as may be prescribed in the case of an individual or in any other case,

and the Secretary of State may by order amend paragraph (a) by substituting higher amounts for the amounts for the time being specified in that paragraph.

(3) Regulations made by virtue of this Part may provide for any person who has contravened any provision of such regulations to pay, within a prescribed period, a penalty under this section not exceeding an amount specified in the regulations; and the regulations must specify different amounts in the case of individuals from those specified in other cases and any amount so specified may not exceed the amount for the time being specified in the case of individuals or, as the case may be, others in subsection (2)(a).

(4) An order made under subsection (2) or regulations made by virtue of subsection (3) do not affect the amount of any penalty recoverable under this section by reason of an act or omission occurring before the order or, as the case may be, regulations are made.

(5) Where—

(a) apart from this subsection, a penalty under this section is recoverable from a body corporate or Scottish partnership by reason of any act or omission of the body or partnership as a trustee of a trust scheme, and

(b) the act or omission was done with the consent or connivance of, or is attributable to any neglect on the part of, any persons mentioned in subsection (6),

this section applies to each of those persons who consented to or connived in the act or omission or to whose neglect the act or omission was attributable.

(6) The persons referred to in subsection (5)(b)—

(a) in relation to a body corporate, are—

(i) any director, manager, secretary, or other similar officer of the body, or a person purporting to act in any such capacity, and

(ii) where the affairs of a body corporate are managed by its members, any member in connection with his functions of management, and

(b) in relation to a Scottish partnership, are the partners.

(7) Where the Authority requires any person to pay a penalty by virtue of subsection (5), they may not also require the body corporate, or Scottish partnership, in question to pay a penalty in respect of the same act or omission.

(8) A penalty under this section is recoverable by the Authority.

(9) The Authority must pay to the Secretary of State any penalty recovered under this section.