53Offence to operate rescue unit or rescue vehicle without accreditation

53 Offence to operate rescue unit or rescue vehicle without accreditation

53 Offence to operate rescue unit or rescue vehicle without accreditation

(1) A person who establishes, manages or controls a rescue unit which is not accredited under this Division is guilty of an offence.

Maximum penalty—50 penalty units.

(1A) It is an offence for a person who is not a member of a rescue unit accredited under this Division to display, drive or operate a rescue vehicle.

Maximum penalty—50 penalty units.

(1B) It is a defence to any proceeding under subsection (1A) if the person who contravened the subsection had a reasonable excuse or lawful authority for displaying, driving or operating the rescue vehicle.

(2) A rescue unit is required to be accredited even though—

(a) it is a unit of the NSW Police Force, Fire and Rescue NSW, the Ambulance Service of NSW, the State Emergency Service, the NSW Rural Fire Service or any other government agency, or

(b) it is a unit of a volunteer agency, or

(b1) it is a unit comprised of persons from one or more emergency services organisations or other agencies, or

(c) it carries out, in addition to operations for the rescue of persons, other operations such as the rescue of animals or the recovery of property.

(3) A rescue unit is not required to be accredited—

(a) if it is a unit only engaged in surf life-saving, or

(b) (Repealed)

(c) if it is a unit (including a unit of the New South Wales Mines Rescue Brigade) which only carries out rescues at mines under the Coal Industry Act 2001, or

(d) in any other circumstances prescribed by the regulations.

s 53: Am 1990 No 48, Sch 1; 1994 No 13, Sch 4; 1995 No 13, Sch 4.30; 1995 No 91, Sch 1 [30]; 2005 No 80, Sch 1 [8]; 2006 No 58, Sch 2.54; 2006 No 84, Sch 2.15; 2006 No 94, Sch 3.33 [6]; 2012 No 103, Sch 3 [35]; 2018 No 59, Sch 1 [16]–[18]; 2023 No 42, Sch 5[7].