Western Australian Current Acts Western Australian Current Acts (1) For the purposes
of this Act an authorised person is —
(a) any
member of the Police Force;
(b) any
person appointed as such under subsection (2) within the area of jurisdiction
entrusted to him by the appointment;
(c) any
person appointed as such under subsection (3) within the area of jurisdiction
entrusted to him by the appointment.
(2) The Minister may
appoint any person who is or acts in the office of —
(a) an
inspector, under the Environmental Protection Act 1986 ; or
(b) a
conservation and land management officer, forest officer, wildlife officer or
ranger, under the Conservation and Land Management Act 1984 ; or
[(c), (d) deleted]
(e) an
honorary warden, under the Aboriginal Heritage Act 1972 ; or
(f) an
inspector or honorary warden, under the Waterways Conservation Act 1976 ; or
(g) a
fisheries officer referred to in the Fish Resources Management Act 1994 ; or
(ga) a
person who is authorised by the CEO under the Road Traffic (Administration)
Act 2008 section 22 to perform a function that can be performed by a warden;
or
(h) a
prescribed officer of a public authority,
to be an authorised
person for the purposes of this Act either in respect of the whole of the
State or any part thereof defined in the appointment.
(3) A person is
appointed as an authorised person under this subsection if the person is
appointed under the Local Government Act 1995 section 9.10(2) to be an
authorised person for the purposes of this Act either in respect of the whole
of a district or any part of a district specified in the appointment.
(4) A person who is
appointed as an authorised person under subsection (2) or (3) —
(a) has
within the area of jurisdiction entrusted to him by the appointment the duties
and powers of an authorised person under this Act, and may exercise such
powers within that area; and
(b) may
exercise the powers conferred upon him by this Act in relation to any person
or vehicle which he has reason to believe is concerned in a contravention of
this Act notwithstanding that such person or vehicle is not then within the
area of jurisdiction entrusted to him if that person or vehicle was pursued
from that area or is known to have been in that area at the time of the
contravention; and
(c) may,
for the purposes of this Act in the course of his duty, enter on any land or,
using only such force as is necessary, may enter a vehicle for the purpose of
removing it; and
(d)
shall be issued with a certificate of his appointment as an authorised person
in the prescribed form, evidencing the area of jurisdiction entrusted to him
under this Act, which he shall, on reasonable demand, produce for inspection
by any person.
(4A) Subsection (4)(d)
does not apply in the case of a person appointed as an authorised person under
subsection (3).
(5) The Minister may
appoint any person to be an honorary inspector under this Act, and a person so
appointed shall have within the area of jurisdiction entrusted to him by the
appointment the powers conferred on an honorary inspector by this Act,
including the power to issue infringement notices, and the duty to report to
the local government contraventions of this Act, and any such person shall be
issued with a certificate of his appointment in the prescribed form and shall,
on reasonable demand, produce that certificate for inspection.
(6) A person shall not
wilfully obstruct any authorised person or an honorary inspector acting in the
execution of this Act.
Penalty: $200.
(7) Where an
authorised person or an honorary inspector has reasonable grounds to believe
that a person has contravened or that a vehicle contravenes, or was used or
driven in contravention of, the provisions of this Act, the authorised person
or inspector may stop that person or vehicle and may request that person to
furnish his name and address to the authorised person or inspector or to
produce any license, registration, permit or exemption relating to the vehicle
in his possession, and to give full information as to the ownership, use,
construction and equipment of that vehicle and where such a person fails or
refuses to do so, or furnishes a name or address or other information that the
authorised person or inspector reasonably believes to be false, he shall be
treated as having wilfully obstructed the authorised person or inspector for
the purposes of subsection (6).
(8) An authorised
person may require any person to permit him to examine and test drive a
vehicle in the possession of that person and may require that person to unlock
or open any such vehicle and to deliver any key relating thereto, and where he
has reason to believe that any vehicle is so constructed or in such condition
that it is likely to occasion danger to any person or damage to property or
otherwise does not comply with the prescribed requirements for vehicles
registered under this Act he may attach to the vehicle a notice, in a
prescribed form, prohibiting the use of that vehicle, except for the purpose
of presenting it for inspection and such other purposes as may be specified in
that notice, either forthwith or on or after a date specified in the notice,
until —
(a) the
defects specified in the notice have been remedied or the requirements
specified in the notice have been met; and
(b) the
vehicle has been presented for further inspection at a place designated by the
Director General and the notice has been removed by or on behalf of the
Director General after an inspection of the vehicle has been made.
(9) Where an
authorised person under subsection (8) orders a driver to discontinue using a
vehicle for which the driver is not a responsible person the driver shall
bring the notice to the attention of a responsible person.
(10) A person who uses
a vehicle in respect of which a notice under subsection (8) is in force
otherwise than for a purpose specified in that notice or for the purpose of
presenting the vehicle to the Director General for inspection by or on behalf
of the Director General, or who wilfully removes, damages or obliterates any
such notice attached to a vehicle, commits an offence.
Penalty: $200.
(11) An authorised
person may without warrant stop, seize and detain any vehicle which he has
reason to believe contravenes, or was used or driven in contravention of the
provisions of this Act if —
(a) the
vehicle appears to him to be neither licensed under the Road Traffic
(Vehicles) Act 2012 , nor registered under this Act; and
(b) the
identity of a responsible person for, or a driver of, the vehicle can not be
established to the satisfaction of that authorised person,
and may cause the
vehicle to be conveyed to a place of safe custody until such time as it may be
dealt with according to law.
(12) Any member of the
Police Force may without warrant stop, seize and detain —
(a) any
off-road vehicle; or
(b) any
vehicle licensed under the Road Traffic (Vehicles) Act 2012 , when in use
otherwise than on a road or private land by consent,
if the vehicle is in
his opinion so constructed or in such condition that it is likely to occasion
danger to any person or damage to any property, and may cause the vehicle to
be conveyed to a place of safe custody until such time as it may be dealt with
according to law.
(13) No authorised
person or other person acting in the performance of his duties shall be liable
for anything done or seizure made under this Act for which there shall have
been reasonable cause, nor in respect of any loss or damage, however arising,
during any period in which a vehicle is detained under this Act.
(14) Regulations made
under this Act may make provision in respect of the removal and detention of
vehicles pursuant to this Act, and for the custody, disposal or sale of such
vehicles, and in respect of recouping the costs of the removal, custody, and
disposal or sale whether by deduction from the proceeds of sale or by recovery
from a responsible person in a court of competent jurisdiction, and for the
payment or appropriation of the proceeds of any such sale or other moneys
relating thereto.
(15) If a vehicle is
seized under subsection (11), it may be detained until the authorised person
is satisfied —
(a) that
it is licensed under the Road Traffic (Vehicles) Act 2012 or registered under
this Act; or
(b) as
to the identity of the owner or driver,
or until an order is
made under section 42, whichever happens first.
(16) A person claiming
to be a responsible person for a vehicle seized under subsection (11) or (12)
may apply to the Magistrates Court for an order that the vehicle be delivered
to him.
(17) A vehicle
detained —
(a)
under subsection (11) or (12) by a member of the Police Force; or
(b)
under subsection (11) by an authorised person appointed under subsection (2),
is to be taken to be
detained in the name of the Director General.
(18) A vehicle
detained under subsection (11) by an authorised person appointed under
subsection (3) is taken to be detained by the local government concerned.
[Section 38 amended: No. 106 of 1981 s. 34; No. 24
of 1995 s. 53; No. 53 of 1994 s. 264; No. 14 of 1996 s. 4; No. 76 of 1996
s. 26 and 27; No. 39 of 2000 s. 58 and 59; No. 59 of 2004 s. 141; No. 28 of
2006 s. 359; No. 8 of 2012 s. 68; No. 16 of 2019 s. 102 and 104; No. 27 of
2021 s. 345(2); No. 23 of 2023 s. 26.]