Toll tags and Northern Vehicles

maidhc

I noticed from a discussion in the "Legal Discussion" forum a person posted the legislation which will govern the prosecution of people who fail to pay for using toll roads using barrierless tolling.

It provides the following people are liable to pay the toll:

Roads Act 2007 section 4(3): "Where a toll is payable in respect of a mechanically propelled vehicle where—

(a) the vehicle is registered in the State (other than in the circumstances referred to in paragraph (c)) — the registered owner of the vehicle,

(b) the vehicle is not registered in the State — the person, whom the road undertaking concerned can reasonably ascertain, owns or keeps or has possession or charge of the vehicle in the State,

(c) the registered owner or a person referred to in paragraph (b) or (d), as the case may be, on the occasion in question, was not driving or in the vehicle and had not given permission for or required another to use the vehicle and the Garda Síochána were aware or were informed of this — the person who was driving the vehicle on the occasion, or

(d) a person has entered into an agreement with the road undertaking concerned in respect of the payment of tolls in respect of the vehicle — that person,

and the driver of the vehicle, if he or she is not a person mentioned above, are jointly and severally liable to pay the toll."

As we all know, Ireland has two jurisdictions, and it is common for vehicles registered in another state to traverse the M50. Neither A nor B appear to recognise this in that:


a) There is no obvious way to access DVLA records. Not paying the toll will be a traffic offence, but it is clear the most common way to enforce the toll will be by punitive charges collected by debt collection agencies. This is essentially the same as collecting a debt for unpaid goods. I don't believe there is any precedent for release of information by the DVLA to an extra jurisdictional body where the purpose is not the enforcment of road traffic law, but the collection of a debt.

b) It appears to require that where the vehicle is not registered in the state there must be a person who "owns or keeps or has possession or charge of the vehicle in the State". Thus where a trucker from NI comes down he personally and not the registered owner is liable for the charge. So even if DVLA records can be accessed, they do not prove who can be served with civil proceedings.

So unless someone can prove to the contrary, I respectfully suggest our NI brethern are exempt from paying toll charges!

Steve

Have you a link to the thread? I'm interested in reading more about this.