Fines (Payment and Recovery) Act 2014

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PART 5

Community Service Orders and Imprisonment in Default of Payment of Fine

Community service order in default of payment of fine

19. (1) The Act of 1983 is amended—

(a) in section 1, by inserting the following definitions in subsection (1) :

“‘Act of 2014’ means the Fines (Payment and Recovery) Act 2014;

‘attachment order’ has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2014;

‘fine’ has the same meaning as it has in section 2 (amended by subparagraph (iv) of section 20 (b) of the Act of 2014) of the Courts (No. 2) Act 1986 ;

‘receiver’ has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2014;

‘recovery order’ has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2014;”,

(b) in section 2, by inserting the following subsections:

“(2) This Act also applies to a person (in this Act also referred to as an ‘offender’) who—

(a) has attained the age of 16 years, and

(b) stands convicted of an offence in respect of which the court has imposed a fine that the offender has failed to pay by the due date for payment.

(3) In this section ‘due date for payment’, in relation to a fine, has the same meaning as in the Act of 2014.”,

(c) in section 3, by—

(i) inserting the following subsection:

“(1A) Where a court is satisfied that—

(a) at a sitting of the court on the date specified in the notice concerned under section 7 (4) of the Act of 2014—

(i) an offender to whom subsection (2) of section 2 applies has failed to pay the fine imposed by it in relation to the offender by the due date for payment, and

(ii) it would not be appropriate to make a recovery order or attachment order in respect of that offender,

(b) at the sitting of the court on the date specified in the notice concerned under section 11 (2) of the Act of 2014, a receiver has been unable to recover—

(i) the fine imposed by it in relation to an offender to whom subsection (2) of section 2 applies, or

(ii) a sum or sums from the proceeds of the sale of property belonging to that offender sufficient to pay that fine,

or

(c) at the sitting of the court on the date specified in the notice concerned under section 16 (3) of the Act of 2014, an attachment order made in respect of the earnings of an offender to whom subsection (2) of section 2 applies has not resulted in the collection of the fine imposed by it in relation to the offender,

and is also satisfied that, in relation to that offender, the provisions of section 4 have been complied with, it may make an order (in this Act also referred to as a ‘community service order’) in accordance with this section.”,

and

(ii) substituting the following subsection for subsection (2):

“(2) A community service order shall require the offender to perform, in accordance with this Act, unpaid work for such number of hours as are specified in the order, being—

(a) in the case of an offender to whom subsection (1) of section 2 applies, not less than 40 hours and not greater than 240 hours,

(b) in the case of an offender to whom subsection (2) of section 2 applies who was convicted on indictment of the offence concerned, not less than 40 hours and not greater than 240 hours, and

(c) in the case of an offender to whom subsection (2) of section 2 applies who was convicted summarily of the offence concerned, not less than 30 hours and not greater than 100 hours.”,

(d) in section 5, by inserting the following subsections:

“(2A) The hours of work specified in a community service order under subsection (1A) (inserted by section 19 (1)(c)(i) of the Act of 2014) of section 3 shall be additional to any hours of work specified in any other community service order made in respect of the offender.

(2B) The court shall, for the purpose of determining the number of hours of work to specify in a community service order under subsection (1A) of section 3, take account of—

(a) any sum or sums paid by the offender concerned in satisfaction of part of the fine,

(b) any part of the fine, or any sum or sums from the proceeds of the sale of property of the offender sufficient to pay part only of that fine, recovered by a receiver, and

(c) any part of the fine recovered as a result of an attachment order made in respect of the earnings of the offender.”,

and

(e) in section 7, by inserting the following subsection:

“(6) Subsection (4) shall not apply to an offender to whom subsection (2)of section 2 applies.”.

(2) Section 2 of the Act of 1983 as it stood immediately before the commencement of this section shall, immediately after such commencement, be subsection (1) of such section 2.