UK Offence Report

Contravention of The Petroleum (Consolidation) Regulations 2014

the instrument as a whole of The Petroleum (Consolidation) Regulations 2014

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

Contravening this instrument is an offence under section 33(1)(c) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The instrument itself contains no offence-creating words.

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 This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.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
Not determined

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.

Classifier’s reasoning: contravention offences of this kind are strict as to the breach; the fault position is governed by the parent Act and was not read from it.

What would breach the instrument as a whole?

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. Doing what the provision prohibits, or failing to do what it requires under the Petroleum (Consolidation) Regulations 2014.

Penalty

Mode of trial
Set by another provision — the instrument states the penalty by reference to an Act or to another regulation
Maximum fine
Not determined
Maximum prison (summary)
Not determined

The instrument does not state a penalty itself. It sets one by reference to section 33(1)(c) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

the penalty is in the parent Act, not in this instrument.

No penalty was determined from this instrument. It may be in the enabling Act, or in a general penalties provision this pass did not connect to the offence. Absence of a figure here is not evidence that the offence carries no penalty.

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
Status not determined
Made
23 June 2014
In force from
1 October 2014
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 consolidate and modernise the petrol storage legislative framework in England, Scotland and Wales. Regulation 4 provides the general prohibition preventing the keeping of petrol, except in compliance with regulations 5 or 13. Part 2 (regulations 5 to 12) deals with the storage of petrol in dispensing premises, i.e. non-domestic premises. Regulation 5 requires that such storage be in accordance with a valid storage certificate. Regulations 6 and 7 make provision for the application, grant and validity of storage certificates. Prescribed material changes (regulation 8 and specified in Schedule 1) require notification to the petroleum enforcement authority, which results in the issue of a new storage certificate subject to certain requirements in regulation 6. Regulations 9 and 10 make provision for a change of operator of a dispensing premises to be notified to the petroleum enforcement authority. Regulation 11 makes provision for appeals to the Secretary of State from refusals to grant storage certificates by petroleum enforcement authorities and regulation 12 applies general prohibitions on the dispensing and supply of petrol. Part 3 (regulations 13 to 17) deals with the storage of petrol in domestic and other relevant premises. Regulation 13 and paragraph 1 of Schedule 2 make provision for the storage of minimal amounts up to a maximum of 30 litres. Where there is a larger quantity, up to 275 litres, storage is provided for on notification under paragraph 2 of Schedule 2. Where storage is required for quantities in excess of 275 litres provision is made on the basis of a licence issued under regulation 14. Appeals from refusals to grant licences for storage are provided for in regulation 15, while regulations 16 and 17 make provision for the renewal, variation and revocation of licences. Part 4 of the Regulations (regulations 18 to 26) contains various miscellaneous provisions for enforcement, manufacture of portable petrol storage containers (regulation 19 and Schedule 3), repairs of containers (regulation 20), the prohibition on direct filling of fuel tanks from road tankers, and transitional provisions relating to repealed or revoked legislation listed in Schedule 4 (regulations 22 to 25). Regulation 26 requires the Secretary of State to review the operation and effect of these Regulations and publish a report within five years after they come into force and every five years after that. Following the review the Secretary of State must consider whether the Regulations should be allowed to remain as they are, or be revoked or amended. A further instrument would be needed to revoke the Regulations or to amend them. A full impact assessment of the effect that this instrument will have on the costs of business, the voluntary sector and the public is available from the website: www.legislation.gov.uk and a copy has been placed in the Library of each House of Parliament. Regulations concerning the standards for portable petrol storage containers and fire-resistant partitions were notified in draft to the European Commission in accordance with Directive 98/34/EC, as amended by Directive 98/48/EC.

Read the full note and every offence in this 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 0.70.

Basis
the penalty comes from the enabling Act rather than from this instrument
Confidence
0.70 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