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Section 181: Evidence by certificate

Road Traffic Act 1972 · 1972 c. 20View on legislation.gov.uk

Part VII: Miscellaneous and General

In any proceedings in England or Wales for an offence under this Act to which this section is applied by column 7 of Part I of Schedule 4 to this Act or which is punishable by virtue of section 178 thereof or for an offence against any other enactment relating to the use of vehicles on roads a certificate in the prescribed form, purporting to be signed by a constable and certifying that a person specified in the certificate stated to the constable—

that a particular motor vehicle was being driven or used by, or belonged to, that person on a particular occasion, or
that a particular motor vehicle on a particular occasion was used by, or belonged to, a firm in which that person also stated that he was at the time of the statement a partner, or
that a particular motor vehicle on a particular occasion was used by, or belonged to, a corporation of which that person also stated that he was at the time of the statement a director, officer or employee,

shall be admissible as evidence for the purpose of determining by whom the vehicle was being driven or used, or to whom it belonged, as the case may be, on that occasion.

Nothing in subsection (1) above shall be deemed to make a certificate admissible as evidence in proceedings for an offence except in a case where and to the like extent to which oral evidence to the like effect would have been admissible in those proceedings.

Nothing in subsection (1) above shall be deemed to make a certificate admissible as evidence in proceedings for an offence—

unless a copy thereof has, not less than seven days before the hearing or trial, been served in the prescribed manner on the person charged with the offence, or
if that person, not later than three days before the hearing or trial or within such further time as the court may in special circumstances allow, serves a notice in the prescribed form and manner on the prosecutor requiring attendance at the trial of the person who signed the certificate.

In this section " prescribed " means prescribed by rules made by the Secretary of State by statutory instument.

About this text

This legislation text comes from legislation.gov.uk. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. These source and reuse terms cover the legislation text, not Remedy's commentary.

Reuse reviewed 21 August 2026 under Open Government Licence v3.0.