DEVELOPMENT PLANNING (CLAMPING AND REMOVAL OF OBJECTS USED FOR ILLEGAL DEVELOPMENT) REGULATIONS

DEVELOPMENT PLANNING (CLAMPING AND REMOVAL

OF OBJECTS USED FOR ILLEGAL DEVELOPMENT)

SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION 552.23

DEVELOPMENT PLANNING (CLAMPING AND

REMOVAL OF OBJECTS USED FOR ILLEGAL

DEVELOPMENT) REGULATIONS

1st February, 2002

LEGAL NOTICE 26 of 2002, as amended by Legal Notices 342 of 2002

and 425 of 2007.

The title of these regulations is the Development Planning

(Clamping and Removal of Objects used for Illegal Development)

Regulations.

(1)

In these regulations, unless the context otherwise

requires

"the Act" means the Development Planning Act;

"the Authority" means the Planning Authority established under

the Development Planning Act and, or the Environment and

Resources Authority established under the Environment Protection

Act, as the case may be;

"object" means any equipm ent, machinery, tools, cranes,

bulldozers, mechanical shovels, vehicles or other objects whether

movable or immovable;

" s i t e " m e a n s a ny l a n d , bu i l d in g or a re a a t se a w h er e t h e

Authority can execute any enforcement action.

The Authority or any contractor duly authorised by it for

specific purposes of these regulations may remove, store and

dispose of any object which is being used by any person for the

carrying out of illegal development, or any object which is on the

site subject to the execution of an enforcement notice.

The Authority or any contractor duly authorised by it for

specific purposes of these regulations may

(a) fix wheel clamps to any object which is used or which

the Authority believes that it was or will be used for

the carrying out of illegal development on any site;

and

(b) fix any device to render it inoperable or to render an

object unworkable, or to immobilize any object which

is used or which the Authority believes that it was or

will be used for the carrying out of illegal development

on any site.

The wheel clamps shall neither be removed by the

Authority nor shall the object be returned to its owner before a fee

levied by the Authority in terms of these regulations has been paid

Provided that should the owner of the clamped object fail to

pay such fee within a reasonable time not exceeding twenty-four

DEVELOPMENT PLANNING (CLAMPING AND REMOVAL

OF OBJECTS USED FOR ILLEGAL DEVELOPMENT)

hours, the clamped object shall be removed from site and the fees

then due would be those specified in terms of regulation 9(b), (c)

and (d), as the case may be.

The Authority shall be exempted from any liability for

damage arising in connection with the fixing or removal of clamps

or the removal of any object or the storage or disposal of any object

in accordance with these regulations

Provided that a person who acts with malice or is guilty of

gross negligence in the performance of his duties during such

fixing or removal of clamps or the removal of any object or its

storage or disposal, shall not be exonerated from liability for

damages caused.

(1) The Authority shall publish a notice of removal in the

Gazette and two other local newspapers, describing the objects

removed and indicating the exact locality from where they have

been removed.

(2) The Authority shall also indicate in the same notice the

place where the objects are being stored and call on their owners to

retrieve such objects after producing sufficient proof of their

entitlement thereto, together with any such guarantee which the

Authority may deem sufficient in indemnifying it against any claim

in connection with the return of such object to its lawful owner and

together with any payments due as provided in these regulations

Provided that the provisions of this regulation shall not

apply to any objects whatsoever removed by the Authority, or any

contractor duly authorized by it for the specific purposes of these

regulations, where such objects constituted the illegal development

subject to the execution of an enforcement notice

Provided further that the provisions of this regulation shall

not apply to any objects whatsoever, which objects are the cause of

the change of the use of the site subject of the enforcement notice

in question.

(1) The Authority may order the sale of any object if it

would still not have been retrieved by its lawful owner within thirty

days from the publication of the notice of removal as provided in

regulation 7.

(2) Any sale made in terms of subregulation (1) shall be made

either by public auction or after a call for tenders.

(3) The Authority may, at its discretion, dispose of those

objects which have not been sold by public auction or after a call

for tenders, after having given at least one month’s notice to the

Minister responsible for finance.

(1)

There shall be payable to the Authority the following

fees

(a) for the removal of clamps ......................

€232.94

Provided that for the removal of clamps

affixed to a vehicle, the fee is ................

€93.17

DEVELOPMENT PLANNING (CLAMPING AND REMOVAL

OF OBJECTS USED FOR ILLEGAL DEVELOPMENT)

(b) for the release, towing or removal of an

object and storage thereof during the

first twenty-four hours or part thereof ....

€104.82

(c) for the storage of the object after the

first twenty-four hours per day or part

thereof ..................................................

€116.47

(d) for the auction or any other form of

disposal of the object ............................

€116.47

Provided that when additional expenses in excess of each

particular fee in paragraph (a), (b), (c) and (d) have been incurred,

the Authority shall also have the right to collect such expenses and

subsequently detract them from the proceeds of any sale or disposal

of the object or to demand the payment thereof before surrendering

any object to its lawful owner or to the purchaser in the event of a

sale by auction.

(2) In case where the above fees are not collected by the

Authority in whole or in part, such uncollected fees can be

recovered from the lawful owner of the objects as a civil debt.

Any actions taken by the Authority under these regulations

shall be without prejudice to any criminal or civil action or to any

enforcement action taken in terms of the Act.

Any unauthorised person who attempts to remove or

removes wheel clamps fixed to any object or attempts to remove or

removes any object with clamped wheels, or attempts to contravene

or contravenes the provisions of regulation 4, shall be guilty of an

offence against these regulations and liable, on conviction, to a fine

(multa) of not less than two hundred and thirty-two euro and

ninety-four cents (€232.94) and not more than two thousand and

three hun dred and twent y-n ine eu ro and thirty-seven cen ts

(€2,329.37)

Provided that in the case of a second or subsequent offence,

the offender shall be liable, on conviction, to a fine (multa) of not

less than one thousand and one hundred and sixty-four euro and

sixty-nine cents (€1,164.69) and not more than eleven thousand and

six hundred and forty-six euro and eighty-seven cents (€11,646.87)

and the Court shall order that the said object shall be confiscated

and hand ed ov er to the Authori ty to dispose of in terms of

regulation 8.