New South Wales Consolidated Acts

NATIONAL PARKS AND WILDLIFE ACT 1974 - SECT 159

159 Liability of vehicle owner for parking offences

(1) In this section:
"owner" of a vehicle includes the responsible person for the vehicle within the meaning of the Road Transport (General) Act 2005 .
"parking offence" means the offence committed by a person who, in contravention of the regulations made under this Act:

(a) moors or parks a vehicle, or

(b) causes or permits a vehicle to be moored or parked or to stand or wait.

(2) Where a parking offence occurs, the person who, at the time of the occurrence of the offence, is the owner of the vehicle to which the offence relates is, by virtue of this section, guilty of an offence under the regulation relating to the parking offence in all respects as if the owner were the actual offender guilty of the parking offence unless:

(a) in any case where the parking offence is dealt with under section 160, the owner satisfies the prescribed person referred to in that section that the vehicle was, at the relevant time, a stolen vehicle or a vehicle illegally taken or used, or

(b) in any other case, the court is satisfied that the vehicle was, at the relevant time, a stolen vehicle or a vehicle illegally taken or used.

(3) Nothing in this section affects the liability of an actual offender in respect of a parking offence but, where a penalty has been imposed on, or recovered from, any person in relation to any parking offence, no further penalty shall be imposed on or recovered from any other person in relation thereto.

(4) Notwithstanding anything in subsection (2) or (3), no owner of a vehicle is, by virtue of this section, guilty of an offence if:

(a) in any case where the offence is dealt with under section 160, the owner:

(i) within 21 days after service on the owner of a notice under that section alleging that the owner has been guilty of that offence, supplies by statutory declaration to the prescribed person referred to in that section the name and address of the person who was in charge of the vehicle at all relevant times relating to the parking offence concerned, or

(ii) satisfies the prescribed person so referred to that the owner does not know, and cannot with reasonable diligence ascertain, that name and address, or

(b) in any other case, the owner:

(i) within 21 days after service on the owner of a summons in respect of that offence, supplies by statutory declaration to the informant the name and address of the person who was in charge of the vehicle at all relevant times relating to the parking offence concerned, or

(ii) satisfies the court that the owner did not know and could not with reasonable diligence have ascertained that name and address.

(5) A statutory declaration that relates to more than one parking offence shall be deemed not to be a statutory declaration supplying a name and address for the purposes of subsection (4).

(6) Where a statutory declaration supplying the name and address of a person for the purposes of subsection (4) is produced in any proceedings against that person in respect of the parking offence to which the statutory declaration relates, the statutory declaration is prima facie evidence that that person was, at all relevant times relating to that parking offence, in charge of the vehicle to which the parking offence relates.

(7) The provisions of this section shall be construed as supplementing, and not as derogating from, any other provision of this Act or the regulations or any other Act or regulation, by-law or ordinance under any other Act.