UK Offence Report

Offence of removing or interfering with immobilisation device, etc.

regulation 7 of The Road Safety (Immobilisation, Removal and Disposal of Vehicles) Regulations 2009

This offence was read from the text as made, and no revised version was available, so a later revocation could not be ruled out. Check the current text at legislation.gov.uk.

What the provision says

7 A person, other than an authorised person or

a person acting under the direction of an authorised person, who removes or attempts to remove an immobilisation device fixed to

a vehicle in accordance with these Regulations is guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to

a fine not exceeding level

3 on the standard scale.

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 This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.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
breaching the provision
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 7?

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. On these words an offence is committed where a person removes or attempts to remove an immobilisation device fixed to a vehicle in accordance with these Regulations.
  2. Doing what the provision prohibits, or failing to do what it requires under the Road Safety (Immobilisation, Removal and Disposal of Vehicles) Regulations 2009.

Penalty

Mode of trial
Summary only — tried in a magistrates’ court
Maximum fine
£1,000
Standard scale
Level 3
Maximum prison (summary)
Not determined

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

The Ministry of Justice records offences under this instrument against offence code 82519 — 82519 - Failure to comply within a reasonable time with a direction under Regulations 10(1)or 11(1) (Road Safety (Immobilisation, Removal and Disposal of Vehicles) Regulations 2009) (MOT). That code may cover several provisions of the instrument, so a count against it is not a count of prosecutions under this provision alone.

No published per-offence figure was found for this provision. Offences created by statutory instrument very largely do not have their own code in the MoJ’s Outcomes by Offence data tool. Absence of a figure is not evidence that the offence is unused.

Status and lifecycle

Current status
Status not determined
Made
5 March 2009
In force from
31 March 2009
Extent
Not stated

How this was established: read from the text as made; no revised version available, so later revocation could not be ruled out.

What the instrument is for

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

These Regulations make provision for the immobilisation, removal and disposal of certain vehicles which have been prohibited from being driven. Regulation 3 provides for the application of the Regulations. They apply where a vehicle has been prohibited from being driven in connection with a contravention of drivers’ hours rules; under powers to prohibit the driving of foreign goods vehicles and foreign public service vehicles; under powers to prohibit the driving of unfit or overloaded vehicles or under powers to prohibit the driving of vehicles on failure to make payment in compliance with a financial penalty deposit requirement. The Regulations do not apply if the vehicle is displaying a current disabled person’s badge or recognised badge (as referred to in section 21A of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 1970). Regulation 4 provides that an authorised person or person acting under the direction of an authorised person may fix an immobilisation device to a vehicle to which the Regulations apply, and move the vehicle, or direct it to be moved for the purposes of fitting the device. Authorised persons are defined in paragraph 10 of Schedule 4 to the Road Safety Act 2006. Where an immobilisation device has been fixed, a notice must be fixed to the vehicle specifying certain matters, including the steps required to secure the release of the vehicle (regulation 4(2)). Paragraphs (3) to (5) of regulation 4 specify the steps required to secure release of an immobilisation device. These include payment of an £80 release fee. Regulations 5 - 8 provide for certain offences in connection with immobilisation, namely failing to comply within a reasonable time with a direction to remove the vehicle (regulation 5); removing or interfering with an immobilisation notice (regulation 6); removing or attempting to remove an immobilisation device (regulation 7); or making false or misleading statements with a view to securing the release of a vehicle from an immobilisation device (regulation 8). Regulations 9 - 11 provide for the removal of a vehicle and the notice which must be provided in respect of such a removal which must include, among other things, details of the steps a person must take to reclaim the vehicle. Regulation 12 sets out those steps. Regulation 13, together with the Schedule, sets out the manner of calculating the amount of compensation payable to the owner of the vehicle if it is claimed after being disposed of. In accordance with regulation 14, the vehicle may be disposed of, sold or destroyed if it is not claimed within three months from the date on which the vehicle was removed or the direction to remove the vehicle was given. The Secretary of State or the person into whose custody the vehicle is delivered may recover charges in accordance with regulation 15 and the Schedule whether or not the vehicle is reclaimed or a claim is made under regulation 14 following its disposal. These include charges for the release, removal, custody and disposal of the vehicle. Regulations 16 and 17 specify offences in respect of failing to comply with a direction to remove or deliver a vehicle and in respect of false or misleading statements. Disputes are dealt with in accordance with regulation 18. Regulation 19 applies certain provisions of the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988 in respect of the offences created by the Regulations. A full Impact Assessment of the effect this instrument will have on costs for the business and voluntary sectors has been produced and is available from the Licensing Roadworthiness and Insurance Division, Department for Transport, Zone 2/09 Great Minister House, 76 Marsham Street, London SW1P 4DR and may be accessed on the Department’s website at www.dft.gov.uk. A copy has been placed in the library of each House of Parliament.

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 is “guilty of 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