Are the polia trespassing?
Page 41
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Can apolice officer enter the cab of a heavy goods vehicle to inspect the tachograph and any tachograph discs which are in the cab? That has certainly been the practice of most police forces since the introduction of the 1968 Transport Act—but it is far from certain that the police have any such power.
Section 99(2) of the Transport Act says: "An officer may on production if so required of his authority.. .at any time enter any vehicle and inspect that vehicle and any recording equipment installed in it and inspect a copy of any record sheet on the vehicle on which a record has been produced by means of equipment or an entry has been made." However, Acts of Parliament are brought into force by Commencement Orders, and the Commencement Order dealing with Sub Sections 1 -9 of Section 99 of the Transport Act includes the following clause: "...except in so far as they relate to the entry and inspection of any vehicle or any equipment installed on any vehicle For the purposes of Section 97 or any such record as is mentioned in that Section'.
In other words. Parliament appears to have excluded from its Commencement Order the power to enter vehicles and inspect under Section 99(2).
Surprisingly this apparent gap in the law has never been brought to the attention of the Courts, despite the many occasions when police officers have entered vehicles and taken records. The situation is confusing but there is little doubt that this Section has not been brought into force, so the police do not have power to enter a cab and inspect records.What's more, they have n to take tachograph discs for a su check. The police can require a produce his tachograph discs for ti day, the current week and the lost previous week. But they cannot re to produce any other records whic in the vehicle.
They can only inspect those reco and take copies if any offence is on the face of the record sheet. can retain that record sheet for the of a prosecution, but he cann record sheets for later examinatior No doubt this loophole will be clos course.
But until it is the police have no enter a cab, search it, or inspect charts.
And if a police officer does so w consent of the driver he will be cc an act of trespass.