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Fair Trading Act 1986

Enforcement and remedies - Offences

40E: Procedural requirements for infringement notices

You could also call this:

“Rules for giving you a notice if you break a Fair Trading rule”

If you break a rule in the Fair Trading Act, you might get an infringement notice. This notice can be given to you in person or sent to your home or work address. If it’s sent by post, it’s treated as if you got it on the day it was posted.

The notice must be in a special form that the law says it should be. It needs to tell you what you did wrong, when and where it happened. It also needs to say how much you have to pay (called an infringement fee), where to pay it, and by when.

The notice must explain that you can ask for a hearing if you want to. It should also say what will happen if you don’t pay or ask for a hearing. There might be other things the notice needs to say too.

If you get an infringement notice, the people in charge can start a legal process against you if they need to. There are special rules about how this works.

There are also reminder notices that might be sent to you. These notices need to have the same information as the original infringement notice.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM6156684.

Topics:
Business > Fair trading
Money and consumer rights > Consumer protection
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40D: Issue of infringement notice, or

“The government can give you a written warning if they think you broke the rules”

Next

40F: What Commission does with infringement fees, or

“The Commerce Commission gives money from fines to the government”

Part 5 Enforcement and remedies
Offences

40EProcedural requirements for infringement notices

  1. An infringement notice may be served on a person (a recipient) who is alleged to have committed an infringement offence—

  2. by delivering it, or a copy of it, personally to the recipient; or
    1. by sending it, or a copy of it, by post, addressed to the recipient at the recipient's last known place of residence or business.

      1. For the purposes of the Summary Proceedings Act 1957, an infringement notice sent under subsection (1)(b) must be treated as having been served on the recipient on the date it was posted.

      2. An infringement notice must be in the form prescribed by regulations made under section 40H and must contain—

      3. details of the alleged infringement offence that are sufficient to fully and fairly inform the recipient of the time, place, and nature of the alleged infringement offence; and
        1. the amount of the infringement fee; and
          1. an address at which the infringement fee may be paid; and
            1. the time within which the infringement fee must be paid; and
              1. a summary of the provisions of section 21(10) of the Summary Proceedings Act 1957; and
                1. a statement that the recipient has a right to request a hearing; and
                  1. a statement of what will happen if the recipient does not pay the fee and does not request a hearing; and
                    1. any other prescribed matters.

                      1. If an infringement notice has been issued, proceedings in respect of the infringement offence to which the notice relates may be commenced in accordance with section 21 of the Summary Proceedings Act 1957; and in that case, section 21 of the Summary Proceedings Act 1957 applies, with all necessary modifications.

                      2. Reminder notices must be prescribed by regulations made under section 40H and must contain the information referred to in subsection (3).

                      Compare
                      Notes
                      • Section 40E: inserted, on , by section 29 of the Fair Trading Amendment Act 2013 (2013 No 143).