# The Public Service Vehicles (Operators’ Licences) (Fees) (Amendment) Regulations 2010, Note: Explanatory note


(This note is not part of the Regulations)
These Regulations amend the Public Service Vehicles (Operators’ Licences) (Fees) Regulations 1995 (“the principal Regulations”) and make provision for refunds of certain fees previously charged under them. The principal Regulations prescribe fees, in relation to the licensing of operators of public service vehicles, under Part II of the Public Service Vehicles Act 1981 (the “1981 Act”).
The principal Regulations were last amended with effect from 20th April 2009, by the Public Service Vehicles (Operators’ Licences) (Fees) (Amendment) Regulations 2009 (S.I. 2009/787) (“the 2009 Amending Regulations”). The 2009 Amending Regulations abolished fees charged for the grant or continuation of operator licences and the issue of discs required to be exhibited in vehicles under the 1981 Act, from 1st April 2010 and reduced those charges for a transitional period up to and including 31st March 2010. The 2009 Amending Regulations also reduced the fee payable for the issue of a replacement disc and this latter fee is now also abolished altogether by regulation 2(5) of these Regulations.
These Regulations contain refund provisions relating to any “relevant fee payment” (defined in regulation 3(1)(d)) which was paid in advance, at rates applicable before the 2009 Amending Regulations came into force, to cover the period 1st April 2009 onwards. “Relevant fee payments”, as so defined, are payments at those earlier rates, in respect of the now abolished fees for the grant or continuation of operator licences under the 1981 Act or for the issue of vehicle discs under that Act. They do not include payments made in respect of replacement discs or payments made at the transitional rates set under the 2009 Amending Regulations.
Relevant fee payments made in respect of complete months beginning on or after the 1st April 2010 are refunded in full (regulation 3(2) and Part 1 of the Schedule). Payments which were made at these earlier rates in respect of complete months in the period beginning on 1st April 2009 and ending on either 31st March 2010, or an earlier date, are refunded at half the rate paid (regulation 3(3) and Part 2 of the Schedule).
Where an earlier refund has been made against part of the relevant fee payment, for all or part of the period that the relevant fee payment was intended to cover, the value of the monthly rate used to calculate the refund payable under regulation 3(2) or (3) is reduced (regulation 3(4)). Where a refund entitlement arose under regulation 4 of the principal Regulations, as they had effect before the coming into force of these Regulations, but has not yet been paid, any refund paid under these Regulations is to discharge the equivalent amount of such an entitlement (regulation 3(5)).
In addition, where a licence ceased to be in force before the date of coming into force of these Regulations, no refund is payable under regulation 3(2), although a refund may be payable under regulation 3(3), provided the operator makes an application in writing (regulation 3(6) and (7)).
A full impact assessment of the effect that this instrument will have on the costs of business and the voluntary sector is available from the VOSA Corporate Office, Berkeley House, Croydon Street, Bristol BS5 0DA. The impact assessment is also annexed to the Explanatory Memorandum which is available alongside the instrument on the OPSI website at www.opsi.gov.uk.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2010/457/note (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/public-service-vehicles-operators-licences-fees-amendment-regulations-2010/note
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.