Section 76 Effect of offer and payment of penalty.F1

England, Wales and Scotland

(1)

This section applies where a conditional offer has been F2issued to a person under section 75 of this Act.

F3(2)

Where the alleged offender F4has fulfilled the conditions specified in the conditional offer under section 75(8A)(a), no proceedings shall be brought against him for the offence to which the offer relates unless subsection (3) below applies.

(3)

This subsection applies where—

(a)

it appears to the appropriate person, on F5... F6accessing information held on F7the alleged offender's driving record, that the alleged offender would be liable to be disqualified under section 35 of this Act if he were convicted of the offence to which the conditional offer relates,

(b)

the appropriate person returns the payment to the alleged offender F8... F9..., and

(c)

where the appropriate person is not the Secretary of State, the appropriate person gives notice that he has done so to the person required to be notified.

(4)

Where the F10alleged offender has not fulfilled the conditions specified in the conditional offer under section 75(8A)(a), no proceedings shall be brought against the alleged offender for the offence to which the offer relates—

(a)

until the end of the period of twenty-eight days following the date on which the conditional offer was made, or such longer period as may be specified in the offer, and

(b)

where the appropriate person is not the Secretary of State, unless the appropriate person notifies the person required to be notified that proceedings may be brought by virtue of this subsection.

(5)

In this section and section F1177A of this Act “ the person required to be notified ” means—

(a)

if the conditional offer was issued under subsection (1) of section 75 of this Act, the chief officer of police,

(b)

if it was issued under subsection (2) of that section, the procurator fiscal, and

(c)

if it was issued under subsection (3) of that section, the chief constable or (as the case may be) the chief constable of the British Transport Police Force.

(6)

In determining for the purposes of subsection F12(3)(a) above whether a person convicted of an offence would be liable to disqualification under section 35, it shall be assumed, in the case of an offence in relation to which a range of numbers is shown in the last column of Part I of Schedule 2 to this Act, that the number of penalty points to be attributed to the offence would be the lowest in the range.

(7)

In any proceedings a certificate that by a date specified in the certificate payment of a fixed penalty was or was not received by F13the appropriate person shall, if the certificate purports to be signed by the appropriate person, be evidence, or in Scotland sufficient evidence, of the facts stated.

F14(8)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(9)

In Scotland, the Secretary of State may by regulations vary the provisions of subsection F15(5)(b) or (c) above.