UK Offence Report

Inspection of records and other documents and data relating to recording equipment

regulation 99ZE(6) of The Passenger and Goods Vehicles (Recording Equipment) Regulations 2005

The provision has been revoked and no saving provision preserving liability for earlier conduct was found.

What the provision says

6 A person commits an offence if he produces, supplies or installs any device—

a that is designed to interfere with the proper operation of any recording equipment, or

b that is designed to enable the falsification, alteration, destruction or suppression of data stored in compliance with requirements of the applicable Community Rules on any recording equipment or driver’s card.

Text as made, from legislation.gov.uk. © Crown copyright, reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0. This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.

Who it binds, and what has to be proved

Binds
a person
Conduct
selling or supplying something the instrument restricts
Fault element
Strict liability
Burden of proof
No statutory defence — prosecution proves everything

The prosecution must prove that the conduct happened. This is a strict liability offence as drafted: the provision uses no word of intention, knowledge, recklessness or negligence, so there is no need to show that a person meant to do it, knew about it, or was careless.

Intention, knowledge and carelessness are irrelevant to guilt. They may still matter a great deal to sentence.

The provision states no defence, so the prosecution bears the burden on every element of the offence.

Classifier’s reasoning: no word of intention, knowledge, recklessness or negligence in the offence or its provision.

What would breach regulation 99ZE(6)?

These are illustrations, not law. They are generated from the provision’s own words to show the shape of the offence. Whether any particular conduct is caught depends on the full text, on any amendment since, and on the facts.

  1. Selling the goods under the Passenger and Goods Vehicles (Recording Equipment) Regulations 2005 where the instrument prohibits the sale outright.
  2. Supplying without carrying out a check the instrument requires first, even where the sale would otherwise be lawful.
  3. Offering for sale counts as well as selling: displaying stock is enough where the provision reaches an offer.

Penalty

Mode of trial
Either way — magistrates’ court or Crown Court
Maximum fine
£5,000
Standard scale
Level 5
Maximum prison (summary)
Not determined
Maximum prison (on indictment)
2 years

this is the level 5 value when the instrument came into force (2005-08-05); the standard scale is keyed to the date the offence was committed, and for conduct today the same words mean an unlimited fine.

Sentencing

Offences of this kind are usually sentenced under the guidelines below. This is a mapping by subject, not a finding about this provision, and the links go to a search of the Sentencing Council’s own site.

Prosecution figures

No published per-offence figure was found for this provision, and it could not be matched to a Ministry of Justice offence code. Offences created by statutory instrument very largely do not have one. Absence of a figure is not evidence that the offence is unused.

Status and lifecycle

Current status
Revoked
Revoked by
The Passenger and Goods Vehicles (Community Recording Equipment Regulation) Regulations 2006 (revoked)
Revoked on
3 January 2007
Made
9 July 2005
In force from
5 August 2005
Extent
Not stated

How this was established: the instrument was revoked by a later instrument found in this corpus.

What the instrument is for

(This note is not part of these Regulations) — the explanatory note published with the instrument, © Crown copyright.

These Regulations amend the provisions of Part VI of the Transport Act 1968 to take account of the new, digital tachograph, provided for by Council Regulation (EC) No.2135/98, which amended Regulation (EEC) No.3821/85 on recording equipment in road transport. A digital tachograph is one which complies with Annex IB to the amended Regulation. They also make changes to the enforcement regime, which applies to both analogue tachographs and digital tachographs. They add, in new sections 99ZA to 99ZF, more detailed enforcement provisions which apply where tachographs, whether analogue or digital, are used or documents are required under Community Rules. The enforcement powers are conferred on officers, who are examiners from the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency or police. Under new section 99ZA officers may require the production of records and the driver cards used with digital tachographs. They may copy the electronic data. New section 99ZB confers powers of entry on officers. They may enter vehicles required to be fitted with tachographs, inspect equipment and other things on and in the vehicle, copy data and retain evidence. They may also enter premises. A time limit of six months is imposed by new section 99ZC on the retention powers, unless the retained items are required for proceedings. Under new section 99ZD it is an offence not to comply with an officer’s requirements or obstruct him. The maximum penalty is level 5 on the standard scale. New section 99ZE provides for offences in respect of false records and data, destruction of records and data and failure to make relevant records. The offences extend to those causing or permitting the actions as well as those actually doing them. The maximum penalty on summary conviction is the statutory maximum; on conviction on indictment it is two years' imprisonment or a fine. A Regulatory Impact Assessment has been produced and a copy placed in the library of both Houses of Parliament. Copies may be obtained from the Department for Transport, Great Minster House, 76 Marsham Street, London SW1P 4DR. Alternatively copies can be obtained from the Department’s website which is at ww.dft.gov.uk.

Read the full note and every offence in this instrument

Other offences in the same instrument

How this was identified as an offence

Everything above rests on the judgement that this provision creates a criminal offence, rather than mentioning one. That judgement is made by rule, from the words of the provision, and this is the rule that made it — with a confidence of 0.92.

Basis
the provision says a person “commits an offence”
Confidence
0.92 of 1.00

A provision that states a penalty for an offence created elsewhere can read very like one that creates an offence, and the rules can mistake the one for the other. If the text quoted above sets a penalty for something made an offence by another provision, treat the classification on this page with that in mind, and read the instrument.

Check the source