8Motor vehicles and trailers to be registered

8 Motor vehicles and trailers to be registered

(1) A person shall not: (a) drive on a road; (b) cause or permit to be driven on a road; or (c) cause or permit to be left standing on a road; a motor vehicle or trailer in the carriage of passengers or goods between prescribed places or for any purpose that is incidental to carriage of that kind unless the motor vehicle or trailer is: (d) registered under this Act in the name of the owner of the motor vehicle or trailer; or (e) registered under a law of a State.

Penalty: 10 penalty units.

Note 1: If a body corporate is convicted of the offence, subsection 4B(3) of the Crimes Act 1914 allows a court to impose a fine of an amount that is not greater than 5 times the maximum fine that could be imposed by the court on an individual convicted of the same offence.

Note 2: A defendant bears an evidential burden in relation to the matters in paragraphs (1)(d) and (e) (see subsection 13.3(3) of the Criminal Code).

(1A) An offence under subsection (1) is an offence of strict liability.

Note: For strict liability, see section 6.1 of the Criminal Code.

(2) A motor vehicle or trailer shall not be taken, for the purposes of subsection (1), to be registered under a law of a State if the registration is an interstate registration that was granted or renewed after the commencement of this section. (2A) For the purposes of the application of subsection (2) in relation to the Australian Capital Territory, the reference in that subsection to the commencement of this section is taken to be a reference to the commencement of this subsection. (3) The registration of a motor vehicle or trailer under a law of a State shall be taken to be an interstate registration for the purposes of subsection (2) if: (a) the registration is subject to the condition, or to the giving of an undertaking, that the motor vehicle or trailer will not be used in the State except for the purposes of trade, commerce or intercourse among the States; or (b) the motor vehicle or trailer is wholly or partly exempt from a fee, charge or tax payable under a law of the State in respect of the use or registration of a motor vehicle or trailer on the grounds that the motor vehicle or trailer is not or will not be used in the State except for the purposes of trade, commerce or intercourse among the States. (4) For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b), a motor vehicle or trailer shall be taken to be partly exempt from a fee, charge or tax if the fee, charge or tax is rebatable or is levied at a nominal rate. (5) Where: (a) a motor vehicle or trailer is registered under this Act; (b) the registration is not in the name of the owner; and (c) the owner has owned the motor vehicle or trailer for not more than 14 days; a person shall not be taken to have contravened subsection (1) in relation to the motor vehicle or trailer.