48When police officer may move person’s motor vehicle

48 When police officer may move person’s motor vehicle (1) This section applies to a motor vehicle driven by a person— (a) arrested for an offence against this Act; or (b) taken into custody under section 11, section 13D, section 15 or section 16. (2) A police officer may take charge of, enter and drive the vehicle to a retention area. (3) As soon as practicable after moving the vehicle to a retention area, the police officer must report the action to the police officer in charge of the closest police station and ask that the responsible person for the vehicle (or someone else entitled to possession of the vehicle), and the person who was driving the vehicle before being arrested or taken into custody, be told where it has been moved to. (4) A vehicle moved to a retention area is taken to be uncollected goods under the Uncollected Goods Act 1996 and— (a) the road transport authority is taken to be the possessor of the vehicle under that Act; and (b) the responsible person for the vehicle is taken to be the owner of the vehicle; and

(c) the road transport authority may dispose of the vehicle in accordance with that Act, part 3; and (d) reasonable costs of the possessor in complying with that Act are taken to include the cost of moving the vehicle to the retention area. (5) The possessor is not required to release the vehicle from the retention area in accordance with the Uncollected Goods Act 1996— (a) to the person who has been arrested or taken into custody, unless satisfied, on reasonable grounds, that the person can drive the vehicle without committing an offence against this Act; or (b) to a person who appears to be authorised for the purpose by the responsible person or the person arrested or in custody, unless satisfied, on reasonable grounds, that the person appears to understand the nature of the authority. (6) However, the responsible person for the vehicle is not required to pay costs under the Uncollected Goods Act 1996, section 26 (2) (a) or (b) if the responsible person satisfies the road transport authority that the vehicle was stolen or illegally taken or used at the relevant time. Note The Uncollected Goods Act 1996, s 26 (2) (a) and (b) require the owner to pay the reasonable costs incurred by the possessor in complying with that Act and the possessor’s reasonable costs in storing and maintaining the goods before they are collected.