Betting and Gaming Duties Act 1981

29 Recovery of duty by poinding in Scotland.S

[F1(1)The sheriff, on an application by the proper officer accompanied by a certificate by him that a person, on written demand by the proper officer, has refused or neglected to pay any amount recoverable from him by way of general betting duty or bingo duty or by virtue of section 12(1) or 14 above or of Schedule 2 to this Act, may grant a warrant authorising a sheriff officer—

(a)to take into possession, by force if necessary, any of that person’s corporeal moveables which would not be exempted from poinding and for that purpose to open shut and lockfast places; and

(b)to sell anything so taken into possession by public auction after giving 6 days’ notice of the sale.]

(2)Where an amount recoverable as mentioned in subsection (1) above is determined by reference to the duty on a gaming licence in respect of premises on which gaming is carried on as an activity of a club or wholly or in part by reference to the duty on the playing of bingo on any premises, the moveables which may be [F2taken into possession] under that subsection shall include any corporeal moveables used for the purposes of the club or, as the case may be, the bingo and found on those premises; but no moveables shall be [F2taken into possession] by virtue of this subsection unless a copy of the demand for the amount recoverable has been served—

(a)in the case of an amount recoverable by reference to the duty on a gaming licence, on the secretary of the club (or person performing the functions of secretary) by leaving it or sending it by post addressed to him at an address to which communications about the affairs of the club are ordinarily sent, or

(b)in the case of an amount recoverable by reference to bingo duty, on the bingo promoter or the person having the management of those premises by sending it by post addressed to him at the premises, or at an address at which he carries on any business.

(3)The proceeds of sale of anything sold under this section shall be applied in or towards payment of the costs and expenses [F3incurred in taking into possession the corporeal moveables and their] sale and the payment of the amount recoverable and the surplus, if any, shall be paid—

(a)in the case of an amount recoverable by reference to the duty of a gaming licence where any moveables were [F4taken into possession] by virtue of subsection (2) above, the secretary (or person performing the functions of secretary) of the club, and

(b)in any other case to the person in whose hands the moveables were [F5when they were taken into possession by the sheriff officer].

(4)Where under this section corporeal moveables are [F6taken into possession] for any duty in accordance with an estimate made under paragraph 11 of Schedule 1, paragraph 5 of Schedule 2 or paragraph 14 of Schedule 3 to this Act and it is afterwards proved that the amount properly due was less than the amount estimated, that shall not affect the legality of the [F6taking into possession the corporeal moveables] or anything done under this section in connection with it but the proceeds of sale shall be applied under subsection (3) above in accordance with the amount properly due and not in accordance with the amount estimated.

[F7(5)This section extends to Scotland only.]