Vehicle Excise and Registration Act 1994 section 51A

Admissions: offences under regulations

Section 51A sets out how courts in England, Wales or Northern Ireland may accept a written admission from a person accused of certain vehicle registration offences as evidence that they were the keeper of the vehicle at the relevant time.

• This section applies to proceedings for offences relating to failure to notify prescribed particulars when a vehicle is sold or disposed of, failure to provide prescribed documents on sale or disposal, or failure to notify or declare when a vehicle licence is surrendered, not renewed, or when an unlicensed vehicle is being kept.
• Where the accused has been sent a postal requirement under section 46A to identify who was keeping the vehicle at a particular time, and the accused provides a signed written statement confirming they were the keeper at that time, the court may accept that statement as evidence.
• The standard of proof required to show that the postal requirement was properly served on the accused is the same as that used under section 51 (the general admissions provision).
• This provision enables enforcement authorities to link an accused person to the keeping of a vehicle at the relevant time, thereby supporting prosecution for regulatory non-compliance with vehicle registration requirements.