Road Safety Act 1986

This section applies if—

an inspector is authorised to seize any thing under this Part; and

the thing cannot, or cannot readily, be physically seized and removed; and

the inspector—

is a police officer who has been authorised under section 119(b) to inspect and search premises; or

has been authorised by the Secretary to issue embargo notices under this section.

The inspector may issue an embargo notice in relation to the thing.

An embargo notice is a notice forbidding the movement, sale, leasing, transfer, deletion of information from or other dealing with the thing, or any part of the thing, without the written consent of the inspector, the Secretary or the Chief Commissioner of Police.

The embargo notice—

must be in the form, or contain the details, required by the regulations; and

must list the activities that it forbids; and

must set out a copy of subsection (8).

The inspector may issue the notice—

by causing a copy of the notice to be served on the occupier; or

if that person cannot be located after all reasonable steps have been taken to do so, by affixing a copy of the notice to the thing in a prominent position.

A person who knows that an embargo notice relates to a thing must not—

do anything that is forbidden by the notice under this section; or

instruct any other person to do anything that is forbidden by the notice under this section or to do anything that the person is forbidden to do by the notice.

It is a defence to a prosecution for an offence against subsection (6) to prove that the person charged—

moved the thing, or part of the thing, for the purpose of protecting or preserving it; and

notified the inspector who issued the notice of the move, and of the new location of the thing or part, within 48 hours after the move.

A person on whom an embargo notice is served must take reasonable steps to prevent any other person from doing anything prohibited by the notice.

Despite anything in any other Act, a sale, lease, transfer or other dealing with a thing in contravention of this section is void.

Sections 143 and 144 apply to an embargo notice as if—

a reference to the seizing of a thing was a reference to the issuing of the notice; and

a reference to taking reasonable steps to return a thing in that section was a reference to the withdrawing of the notice; and

a reference to the retaining of the thing was a reference to the continuation of the notice.