Road Safety Act 1986

If a provision of this Part states that a person has the benefit of the reasonable steps defence for an offence, it is a defence to a charge for the offence if the person charged establishes that—

the person did not know, and could not reasonably be expected to have known, of the conduct that constituted the commission of the offence; and

either—

the person had taken all reasonable steps to prevent that conduct from occurring; or

there were no steps that the person could reasonably be expected to have taken to prevent the conduct from occurring.

Without limiting subsection (1), in determining whether things done or omitted to be done by the person charged constitute reasonable steps, a court may have regard to—

the circumstances of the alleged offence, including (where relevant) the risk category to which any breach of a mass, dimension or load restraint limit or requirement involved in the relevant offence belongs; and

without limiting paragraph (a), the measures available and measures taken for any or all of the following—

to accurately and safely weigh or measure the vehicle or its load or to safely restrain the load in or on the vehicle;

to provide and obtain sufficient and reliable evidence from which the weight or measurement of the vehicle or its load might be calculated;

to manage, reduce or eliminate a potential offence arising from the location of the vehicle, or from the location of the load in or on the vehicle, or from the location of goods in the load;

to manage, reduce or eliminate a potential offence arising from weather and climatic conditions, or from potential weather and climatic conditions, affecting or potentially affecting the weight or measurement of the load;

to exercise supervision or control over others involved in activities leading to the offence; and

the measures available and measures taken for any or all of the following—

to include compliance assurance conditions in relevant commercial arrangements with other responsible people;

to provide information, instruction, training and supervision to employees to enable compliance with relevant laws;

to maintain equipment and work systems to enable compliance with relevant laws;

to address and remedy similar compliance problems that may have occurred in the past; and

whether the person charged had, either personally or through an agent or employee, custody or control of the vehicle, or of its load, or of any of the goods included or to be included in the load; and

the personal expertise and experience that the person charged had, or ought to have had, or that an agent or employee of the person charged had, or ought to have had.

If the person charged establishes that the person complied with all relevant standards and procedures under a registered industry code of practice, and with the spirit of the code, with respect to matters to which the offence relates, that is evidence that the person charged took reasonable steps to prevent the offence from occurring.

Subsection (3) does not apply unless the person charged served notice of intention to establish the matters referred to in that subsection on the prosecution at least 28 working days before the day on which the matter is set down for hearing.