Licensing and Registration of Vehicles Act 1985

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AT 21 of 1985

LICENSING AND REGISTRATION OF

VEHICLES ACT 1985

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c i e
LICENSING AND REGISTRATION OF VEHICLES ACT

1985

Index Section Page

Duty on, and licensing of, vehicles 5

1 Charge of duty ................................................................................................................ 5
2 Duration of licences ........................................................................................................ 6
3 Collection of duty ........................................................................................................... 6
4 Exemption from duty ..................................................................................................... 7
5 Using and keeping vehicles without a licence, etc ..................................................... 7
6 Issue and exhibition of licences .................................................................................... 7
7 Alteration of vehicle or of its use .................................................................................. 8
8 Recovery of underpayments of duty ........................................................................... 9
9 Surrender of vehicle licence .......................................................................................... 9
10 Trade licences .................................................................................................................. 9
Registration and registration marks, etc. 10

11 Registration and registration marks ........................................................................... 10
12 Failure to fix, and obscuration of, marks and signs ................................................. 10
12A Supply of registration marks ....................................................................................... 11
13 Regulations as to licencing and registration ............................................................. 11
Miscellaneous and supplementary provisions 13

14 Forgery, false information and offences against regulations ................................. 13
14A Power to seize vehicle licences ................................................................................... 14
15 Duty to give information ............................................................................................. 14
16 Institution of proceedings ............................................................................................ 15
17 Burden of proof in certain proceedings ..................................................................... 15
18 Regulations and orders ................................................................................................ 16
19 Financial provision ....................................................................................................... 16
20 Interpretation ................................................................................................................. 16
21 Amendments and transitional provisions ................................................................. 17
22 Short title and commencement ................................................................................... 17
SCHEDULE 1 19

EXEMPTIONS FROM VEHICLE DUTY 19
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SCHEDULE 2 22

TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS 22
SCHEDULE 3 23

AMENDMENT OF ENACTMENTS 23
SCHEDULE 4 23

ENDNOTES 25

TABLE OF LEGISLATION HISTORY 25
TABLE OF RENUMBERED PROVISIONS 25
TABLE OF ENDNOTE REFERENCES 25

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c i e
LICENSING AND REGISTRATION OF VEHICLES ACT

1985

Received Royal Assent: 29 July 1985
Passed: 15 October 1985
Commenced: See endnotes
AN ACT
to consolidate with amendments the enactments relating to the
licensing and registration of mechanically propelled vehicles and trailers; and
for connected purposes.
GENERAL NOTES:

The maximum fines in this Act are as increased by the Fines Act 1986 and by the
Criminal Justice (Penalties, Etc.) Act 1993 s 1.
Duty on, and licensing of, vehicles
1 Charge of duty

(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, a vehicle duty shall be charged in
respect of every vehicle (as defined in section 20) used or kept on any
public road in the Island and shall be paid upon a licence (in this Act
called a ‘vehicle licence’) to be taken out by the person keeping the
vehicle.
(2) The vehicle duty chargeable in respect of a vehicle of any description
shall be chargeable at the rate prescribed in relation to vehicles of that
description by order made by the Department of Infrastructure (in this
Act referred to as ‘the Department’) for the purposes of this section.1

(3) Nothing in this section shall make lawful the keeping of a vehicle, for
any period, in any manner or at any place, if to do so would be unlawful
apart from this section.
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2 Duration of licences

(1) Subject to subsections (2) to (4), a vehicle licence may be taken out for
any period of 12 months running from either the date on which it is
issued or the date on which it is stated to have effect.2

(2) An order under section 1 may provide that vehicle licences may be taken
out for such period less than 12 months as may be specified in the order,
being a period of a fixed number of months running from the date on
which the licence first has effect.3

(3) The rate of duty on any vehicle licence taken out for a period other than
one of 12 months shall be such as to bear to the annual rate of duty
applicable to that vehicle no less proportion than the period for which
the licence is taken out bears to a year.
(4) Provision under subsection (2) may be made so as to apply only to
vehicles of specified descriptions, and different provision may be made
for vehicles of different descriptions or for different circumstances.
3 Collection of duty

(1) Vehicle duty shall be levied by the Department.4

(2) Vehicle licences shall be issued at such convenient places throughout the
Island as may be appointed by the Department, and by such persons and
for such districts as the Department may direct.5

(3) A register of vehicle licences issued shall be kept by the person
authorised to issue the same, in which register shall be entered the date
of issue, and the name, description and place of residence of the person
to whom any licence is issued; and the register shall be prima facie
evidence of the matters therein stated and that no licences other than
those entered in such register have been issued.
(4) Each person authorised to issue vehicle licences shall forward his register
of licences and furnish such copies thereof, and account for and pay to
the Department the duties in respect of the licences issued, at such times
as may be appointed by the Department.6

(5) Every such person shall for the purposes of this Act be deemed to be an
officer employed by the Department.7

(6) If a vehicle licence is issued in respect of a vehicle on payment by cheque
of the duty under section 1, and the cheque is dishonoured, the licence
shall be void.
(7) The Department may, by notice in writing to the person to whom was
issued a licence which is void under subsection (6), require him within 7
days of service of the notice to surrender the licence to the Department,
and a person failing to comply with such a requirement shall be guilty of
Licensing and Registration of Vehicles Act 1985 Section 4


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an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding
£1,000.8

4 Exemption from duty

No vehicle duty shall be chargeable in respect of vehicles of any of the
descriptions specified in Part I of Schedule 1, or vehicles kept or used in the
circumstances specified in Part II of Schedule 1.
5 Using and keeping vehicles without a licence, etc

(1) If any person uses or keeps on a public road any vehicle for which a
vehicle licence is not in force, not being a vehicle exempted from duty by
virtue of any enactment (including any provision of this Act), he shall be
guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not
exceeding £1,000, or 3 times the amount of the vehicle duty chargeable in
respect of the vehicle, whichever is the greater.
(2) For the purposes of subsection (1) the amount of the vehicle duty
chargeable in respect of any vehicle shall be taken to be an amount equal
to the annual rate of duty applicable to the vehicle at the date on which
the offence was committed.
(3) Where a vehicle licence issued in respect of any vehicle limits the number
of passengers which may be carried by that vehicle, any person who uses
the same for carrying passengers in excess of that limit shall be guilty of
an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding
£1,000.
6 Issue and exhibition of licences

(1) Every person applying for a vehicle licence shall make such a declaration
and furnish such particulars with respect to the vehicle for which the
licence is to be taken out or otherwise as may be prescribed.
(2) Every vehicle licence shall be issued for the vehicle specified in the
application for the licence and shall not entitle the person to whom it is
issued to use or keep any other vehicle.
(3) The Department shall not be required to issue any vehicle licence for
which application is made unless they are satisfied that the licence
applied for is the appropriate licence for the vehicle specified in the
application.9

(4) Subject to regulations, every vehicle licence issued for a vehicle shall be
fixed to and exhibited on the vehicle in the prescribed manner.
(5) Regulations may provide for the issue of new licences in the place of
licences which may be lost or destroyed, and for the fees to be paid on
the issue of a new licence.
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7 Alteration of vehicle or of its use

(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, where a vehicle licence has been
taken out for a vehicle and the vehicle is at any time while the licence is
in force kept or used on a public road in an altered condition or in a
manner or for a purpose which brings it within, or which if it were kept
or used solely in that condition or in that manner or for that purpose
would bring it within, a description of vehicle to which a higher rate of
vehicle duty is applicable, vehicle duty at that higher rate shall become
chargeable in respect of the licence for the vehicle.
(2) Where duty at a higher rate becomes chargeable under subsection (1) in
respect of any vehicle licence, the licence may be exchanged for a new
licence, for the period beginning with the date on which the higher rate
of duty becomes chargeable and expiring at the end of the period for
which the original licence was issued, on payment of the appropriate
proportion of the difference between: —
(a) the amount payable on the original licence; and
(b) the amount payable on a vehicle licence taken out for the period
for which the original licence was issued but at a higher rate of
duty, that amount being calculated, if that rate has been changed
since the issue of the original licence, as if that rate had been in
force at all material times at the level at which it is in force when it
becomes chargeable.
(3) For the purposes of subsection (2) the appropriate proportion is the
proportion which the number of months in the period beginning when
the higher rate of duty becomes chargeable and ending with the end of
the period for which the original licence was issued bears to the number
of months in the whole of the last-mentioned period, any incomplete
month being treated as a whole month.
(4) Where a vehicle licence has been taken out for a vehicle, and by reason of
the vehicle being used as mentioned in subsection (1) a higher rate of
vehicle duty becomes chargeable and duty at the higher rate was not
paid before the vehicle was so used, the person so using the vehicle shall
be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction to a
fine not exceeding £1,000.
(5) Where a licence has been taken out for a vehicle of a certain description,
vehicle duty at a higher rate applicable to vehicles of some other
description shall not become chargeable in respect of the vehicle by
reason of the vehicle being kept or used as mentioned in subsection (1),
unless the vehicle as kept or used while the said licence is in force
satisfies all the conditions which must be satisfied in order to bring the
vehicle for the purpose of the charge of vehicle duty into the other
description of vehicles.
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8 Recovery of underpayments of duty

Where the amount of vehicle duty which has been paid on a vehicle licence for a
vehicle is less than the amount payable on the licence appropriate to that
vehicle, the amount of the deficiency shall be recoverable by the Department as
a civil debt.10

9 Surrender of vehicle licence

[P1971/10/17]
(1) The holder of a vehicle licence may at any time surrender the licence to
the Department in the prescribed manner.11

(2) In such circumstances as may be prescribed, the holder of a vehicle
licence, on surrendering the licence, shall be entitled, if he satisfies the
prescribed requirements, to receive from the Department by way of
rebate of duty paid on the licence a sum equal to —
(a) one 365th of the annual rate by reference to which duty was
charged on the licence, multiplied by —
(b) the number of days in the period beginning with the day on
which the licence is received by the Department under
subsection (1) and ending with the day in which the licence would
have expired.12

(3) No sum shall be payable under subsection (2) in a case where the period
mentioned in paragraph (b) of that subsection is less than 30 days.
(4) The Department may, for the purposes of subsection (2), treat a
surrendered licence delivered by post as received by it on the day on
which it was posted.13

10 Trade licences

[P1971/10/16]
(1) The Department may issue to a motor trader or the Chief Constable, on
application in the prescribed manner and on payment of the prescribed
duty, a licence (in this Act called a ‘trade licence’) for all vehicles from
time to time temporarily in his possession in the course of his business,
not exceeding such number of vehicles, of such descriptions, as may be
specified in the licence.14

(2) The duty chargeable in respect of every trade licence shall be chargeable
for each year commencing on the 1st April at the rate prescribed by order
made by the Department for the purposes of this section, and different
rates may be so prescribed as respects different numbers of vehicles or
different descriptions of vehicles specified in such a licence.15

(3) The duty under this section shall be levied by the Department.16

(4) Regulations may make provision —
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(a) for prescribing the conditions subject to which trade licences are
to be issued;
(b) for the inspection and identification of vehicles used under a trade
licence;
(c) for prescribing the records to be kept by the holder of a trade
licence;
(d) for prescribing the purposes for which, and the conditions subject
to which, a vehicle may be used on a public road by virtue of a
trade licence;
(e) for the assignment of registration marks to holders of trade
licences, the issue by the Department, and the use, of plates
showing such marks and bearing such licences, and the fees to be
charged for the replacement of such plates and licences which
have been lost, damaged or destroyed.17

(5) If the holder of a trade licence uses on a public road by virtue of that
licence —
(a) a greater number of vehicles than that specified in the licence; or
(b) a vehicle of a description other than that so specified; or
(c) a vehicle for any purpose other than a prescribed purpose or
contrary to the prescribed conditions;
he shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a
fine not exceeding £1,000.
Registration and registration marks, etc.
11 Registration and registration marks

(1) Every vehicle (other than a trailer) shall be registered with the
Department and the Department shall assign to the vehicle a registration
mark indicating the registered number of the vehicle.18

(2) The registration mark assigned to a vehicle under this section shall be
fixed in the prescribed manner on the vehicle, or on any other vehicle
drawn by that vehicle, or on both.
12 Failure to fix, and obscuration of, marks and signs

(1) If any mark to be fixed or sign to be exhibited on a vehicle in accordance
with section 11 is not so fixed or exhibited, the person driving the
vehicle, or, where the vehicle is not being driven, the person keeping the
vehicle, shall be guilty of an offence.
(2) It shall be a defence for a person charged with an offence under
subsection (1) with failing to fix a mark to prove that he had no
reasonable opportunity of registering the vehicle under this Act and that
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the vehicle was being driven on a public road for the purpose of being so
registered.
(3) If any mark fixed or sign exhibited on a vehicle as aforesaid is in any way
obscured or rendered or allowed to become not easily distinguishable,
the person driving the vehicle, or, where the vehicle is not being driven,
the person keeping the vehicle, shall be guilty of an offence.
(4) It shall be a defence for a person charged with an offence under
subsection (2) to prove that he took all steps reasonably practicable to
prevent the mark or sign being obscured or rendered not easily
distinguishable.
(5) Any person guilty of an offence under this section shall be liable on
summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £1,000.
12A Supply of registration marks

(1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3), if any person sells or supplies a
registration mark, fixed or to be fixed on a vehicle in accordance with
section 11(2), which is not of the prescribed size, shape and character, he
shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine
not exceeding £1,000.
(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to the sale or supply, otherwise than in the
course of a business, of a registration mark with the vehicle to which the
mark relates.
(3) In proceedings for an offence under subsection (1) it shall be a defence
for the person accused to show that, from the information relating to the
vehicle in question which was given to him by the person to whom the
mark was sold or supplied, he reasonably believed that the mark was of
the prescribed size, shape and character.19

13 Regulations as to licencing and registration

(1) Regulations may —
(a) make provision with respect to the registration of vehicles (other
than trailers) and provide for the fees or charges to be paid in
respect thereof;
(b) make provision for the keeping of records with respect to the
registration (except in respect of trailers) and licensing of vehicles
and provide for making any particulars contained in such records
available for use by such persons as may be prescribed on
payment of the prescribed fee;
(c) require a person applying for a vehicle licence in respect of a
vehicle to provide in the prescribed form evidence that the vehicle
complies with the prescribed requirements as to its construction,
equipment and condition;20

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Page 12 AT 21 of 1985 c

(ca) require that an application for a vehicle licence for a goods vehicle
of a prescribed description shall include prescribed information
and be accompanied by prescribed documents relating to the
vehicle from which plated weights and other plated particulars of
the vehicle may be determined;21

(d) provide for the prescribed fee to be paid, in a case where
regulations under paragraph (c) require a vehicle to be tested by a
person appointed by the Department for that purpose;22

(e) require a person applying for a vehicle licence in respect of a
vehicle to produce such evidence as may be prescribed
that either —
(i) on the date when the licence comes into operation there
will be in force a policy of insurance or security complying
with the requirements of Part I of Schedule 5 to the Road
Traffic Act 1985 in relation to the user of the vehicle by the
applicant or by other persons to his order or by his
permission; or
(ii) the vehicle is a vehicle to which paragraph 1 of that
Schedule does not apply at a time when it is being driven
under the owner’s control;
(f) require any person who becomes or ceases to be the keeper of a
vehicle, or who acts as the auctioneer at the sale of a vehicle by
auction, to furnish the prescribed particulars to the Department in
the prescribed manner;23

(g) provide for the issue of registration books in respect of the
registration of any vehicle (other than a trailer) and for the
surrender and production, and the inspection by the prescribed
persons, of any books so issued;
(h) provide for the issue of new registration books in the place of any
such books which may be lost or destroyed, and for the fee to be
paid on the issue of a new registration book;
(i) prescribe the size, shape and character of the registration marks or
the signs to be fixed on any vehicle and the manner in which
those marks or signs are to be displayed and rendered easily
distinguishable, whether by night or by day;
(j) provide for the registration of vehicles (other than trailers)
belonging to persons temporarily resident in the Island for such
period and on such conditions as may be prescribed and for the
fees to be paid in respect of such registration;
(k) make provision for change of ownership, the cancellation of
registrations or licences, the transfer of registrations or licences,
the forms of notices, certificates or declarations to be given or
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made, and the fees or charges to be paid in relation to any of such
matters; and
(l) provide for the cancellation of the registration of vehicles in
respect of which licences have not been issued for 2 years.
(2) Where such evidence, information or documents as are mentioned in
subsection (1)(c), (ca) or (e) are required in respect of a vehicle, no vehicle
licence shall be issued in respect of the vehicle until that requirement is
complied with.24

(3) Regulations may authorise the Department —
(a) to refuse to register a vehicle, or a change of ownership of a
vehicle, unless there is provided in the prescribed form evidence
that the vehicle complies with the prescribed requirements as to
its construction, equipment and condition; and
(b) to cancel the registration of a vehicle where, on a change of
ownership thereof, such evidence as is mentioned in
paragraph (a) is not provided.25

(4) Regulations may authorise the Department —
(a) to refuse to register a vehicle, where it is not satisfied that it is to
be used or kept on a public road in the Island;
(b) to register a vehicle for a limited period (not exceeding 12
months), where it is not satisfied that it is to be used or kept on a
public road in the Island for longer than that period; and
(c) after giving the prescribed notice to the person who is registered
as the keeper of a vehicle pursuant to regulations, to cancel the
registration of a vehicle where it is satisfied that the vehicle has
ceased (otherwise than temporarily) to be used or kept on a public
road in the Island.26

(5) In this section ‘goods vehicle’ has the same meaning as in the Road Traffic
Act 1985, and ‘plated weights’ and ‘plated particulars’ have the same
meanings as in Schedule 2 to that Act.27

(6) Requirements under this section as to the construction, equipment or
condition of a vehicle may be prescribed by reference to a document
appearing to the Department to be suitable for the purpose and specified
in the regulations.28

Miscellaneous and supplementary provisions
14 Forgery, false information and offences against regulations

(1) If any person forges or fraudulently alters or uses, or fraudulently lends
or allows to be used by any other person: —
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(a) any mark to be fixed or sign to be exhibited on a vehicle in
accordance with section 11; or
(b) any licence or registration book under this Act,
he shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £5,000 or
to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months.
(2) Any person who —
(a) in connection with an application for a vehicle licence or a trade
licence, makes a declaration which to his knowledge is false or in
any material respect misleading; or
(b) being required by virtue of this Act to furnish particulars,
evidence, information or documents in connection with an
application for a vehicle licence or the registration of any vehicle
or in connection with a change of the registration of any vehicle
furnishes any particulars, evidence, information or documents
which to his knowledge are false or in any material respect
misleading,29

shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £5,000 or to
imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months.
(3) Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with any regulations
under this Act shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not
exceeding £1,000.
14A Power to seize vehicle licences

(1) If a constable has reasonable grounds to believe that a vehicle on a public
road is exhibiting a vehicle licence in relation to which an offence has
been committed under section 14, the constable may enter the vehicle
and seize the licence.
(2) When a licence is seized under subsection (1), the owner of the vehicle,
the person keeping the vehicle or the person using the vehicle may be
summoned before a court of summary jurisdiction to account for the
presence of the licence on the vehicle unless the licence has been
previously returned or he has been previously charged with an offence in
relation to it.
(3) The court shall make such order respecting the disposal of a seized
vehicle licence and award such costs as the justice of the case may
require.30

15 Duty to give information

(1) Where it is alleged that a vehicle has been used or kept in contravention
of section 5 or 10(5) —
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(a) the owner of the vehicle shall give such information as he may be
required by or on behalf of the Chief Constable or the Department
to give as to the identity of the person or persons concerned and,
if he fails to do so, shall be guilty of an offence unless he shows to
the satisfaction of the court that he did not know and could not
with reasonable diligence have ascertained the identity of the
person or persons concerned; and31

(b) any other person shall, if required as aforesaid, give any
information which it is in his power to give and which may lead
to the identification of any of the persons concerned and, if he
fails to do so, shall be guilty of an offence.
(2) In subsection (1) ‘person concerned’ means —
(a) in relation to an alleged offence of using a vehicle in
contravention of section 5 or 10(5), both the driver and any person
using the vehicle;
(b) in relation to an alleged offence of keeping the vehicle in
contravention of section 5, the person keeping the vehicle.
(3) A person guilty of an offence under subsection (1) shall be liable on
summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £1,000.
16 Institution of proceedings

[P1971/10/28]
(1) Proceedings for an offence under this Act may be instituted by the
Department or by any constable at any time within 6 months from the
date on which evidence, sufficient in the opinion of the Department or
the constable to warrant the proceedings, came to its or his knowledge,
but no such proceedings may be instituted more than 3 years after the
commission of the offence.32

(2) A certificate signed by a constable, or on behalf of the Department, and
stating the date on which such evidence as is mentioned in subsection (1)
came to his or its knowledge, shall be conclusive evidence of that date,
and a certificate purporting to be so signed shall be deemed to be so
signed unless the contrary is proved.33

17 Burden of proof in certain proceedings

If in any proceedings under section 5, 10(5) or 15(1) any question arises —
(a) as to the number of vehicles used, or
(b) as to the character, weight or cylinder capacity of any vehicle, or
(c) as to the number of persons for which a vehicle has seating
capacity, or
(d) as to the purpose for which any vehicle has been used,
Section 18 Licensing and Registration of Vehicles Act 1985


Page 16 AT 21 of 1985 c

the burden of proof in respect of the matter in question shall lie on the
defendant.
18 Regulations and orders

(1) Regulations may be made generally for the purpose of carrying this Act
into effect, and any power to make regulations conferred by any other
provisions of this Act shall not be taken to prejudice the generality of this
provision.
(2) Regulations may contain provisions prescribing any matter which is to
be prescribed under this Act.
(3) Regulations and orders under this Act (except an order under
section 22(2)) shall not have effect unless they are approved by Tynwald.
19 Financial provision

(1) Vehicle duty and the duty under section 10, and any fees and charges
payable to the Department by virtue of regulations or orders under this
Act, shall be paid into the general revenue of the Island.34

(2) Any expenses incurred by the Department for the purposes of this Act
shall be defrayed out of money provided by Tynwald.35

20 Interpretation

In this Act —
“the Board
” [Repealed]36

“the Department
” means the Department of Infrastructure;37

“motor trader
” means —
(a) a manufacturer or repairer of, or dealer in, vehicles;
(b) a person carrying on a business concerned with the financing or
insuring of motor vehicles;
(c) any other class of persons as is prescribed for the purposes of this
definition but only in such circumstances and subject to such
conditions as may be prescribed;38

“prescribed
” means prescribed by regulations or, in the case of rates of duty, by
order under section 1 or 10;
“public road
” means a highway maintainable at the public expense;
“regulations
” means regulations made by the Department;39

“trade licence
” means a licence under section 10;
“vehicle
” means a mechanically propelled vehicle or a trailer drawn by such a
vehicle;
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c AT 21 of 1985 Page 17

“vehicle duty
” means duty chargeable under section 1;
“vehicle licence
” means a licence under section 1.
21 Amendments and transitional provisions

(1) The transitional provisions contained in Schedule 2 shall have effect.
(2) The enactments specified in Schedule 3 shall have effect subject to the
amendments set out in that Schedule.
(3) [Repealed]40

22 Short title and commencement

(1) This Act may be cited as the Licensing and Registration of Vehicles Act
1985.
(2) This Act shall come into operation on such day as the Board may by
order appoint.41

Licensing and Registration of Vehicles Act 1985 Schedule 1



c AT 21 of 1985 Page 19

SCHEDULE 1

EXEMPTIONS FROM VEHICLE DUTY

Section 4 [P1971/10/4]
PART I – DESCRIPTIONS OF EXEMPTED VEHICLES

Emergency vehicles
1. Fire engine.
2. Vehicle used or kept on a road solely for the purpose of the fire service.
3. Ambulance.
4. Vehicle used or kept on a road solely for the purpose of the haulage of lifeboats
and the conveyance of necessary gear of lifeboats being hauled.
Invalids’ vehicles
5. Vehicle (including a cycle with an attachment for propelling it by mechanical
power), not exceeding 10 cwt. unladen weight, and adapted for use and used or kept
on a road by an invalid.
6. Vehicle of a prescribed description used or kept on a road by a person for the
time being in receipt of —
(a) a mobility allowance under section 37A of the Social Security Act
(an Act of Parliament), as it has effect in the Island, or
(b) a mobility supplement under article 26A of the Naval, Military
and Air Force etc. (Disablement and Death) Service Pensions
Order 1983, or
(c) a payment appearing to the Department to be of a similar kind to
a mobility supplement and prescribed for the purposes of this
paragraph.42

7. Vehicle fitted with controls enabling it to be driven by a person having a
particular disability where —
(a) such a person is registered as the keeper of the vehicle pursuant to
regulations under section 13; and either
(b) that person caused the controls to be fitted to the vehicle and
obtained in respect of the cost thereby incurred a grant paid by
the Isle of Man Health Services Board; or
Schedule 1
Licensing and Registration of Vehicles Act 1985


Page 20 AT 21 of 1985 c

(c) his disability is of a kind in the case of which grants in respect of
the fitting of such controls are so paid.
7A. Vehicle fitted with controls enabling it to be driven by a person having a
particular disability where —
(a) a body prescribed for the purpose of this paragraph is registered
as the keeper of the vehicles pursuant to regulations under
section 13; and
(b) the vehicle is not used or kept on a road otherwise than by that
body for the purposes of such persons.43

Highway maintenance, etc. vehicles
8. Road roller.
9. Vehicle —
(a) constructed or adapted for use for the conveyance of built-in road
construction machinery, and not constructed or adapted for the
conveyance of any other load except articles and material used for
the purposes of such machinery; and
(b) used and kept on a road solely for the conveyance of such
machinery, with or without such articles or materials.
10. Vehicle used solely within the district of a local authority by that authority, or
by a person acting in pursuance of a contract with that authority, for the purpose of
cleansing or watering streets or roads or cleansing gullies.
11. Vehicle —
(a) into which there is built, as part of the vehicle, an expanding or
extensible contrivance designed for facilitating the erection,
inspection, repair or maintenance of overhead structures or
equipment; and
(b) which is neither constructed nor adapted for use nor used for the
conveyance of any load except such a contrivance and articles
used in connection therewith; and
(c) which is used solely within the district of a local authority by that
authority, or by a person acting in pursuance of a contract with
that authority, for the purpose of installing or maintaining
materials or apparatus for lighting streets, roads or public places.
12. Vehicle constructed or adapted and used solely for the conveyance of
machinery for spreading material on roads to deal with frost, ice or snow, with or
without articles and materials used for the purposes of the machinery.
Licensing and Registration of Vehicles Act 1985 Schedule 1



c AT 21 of 1985 Page 21

Tramcars
13. Vehicle used on tramlines.
Vehicles of the Department
14. Vehicle used and kept on a road by the Department.44

Miscellaneous vehicles
15. An electrically assisted pedal cycle of a class specified in regulations made for
the purposes of section 68 of the Road Traffic Act 1985.45

PART II – CIRCUMSTANCES IN WHICH VEHICLE IS EXEMPT

Snow-clearing
1. A vehicle shall not be chargeable with vehicle duty —
(a) by reason of its use for clearing snow from a public road by means
of a snow plough or similar contrivance, whether or not forming
part of the vehicle; or
(b) by reason of its use for the purpose of going to or from the place
where it is to be used for clearing snow from public roads by
those means.
Civil defence
2. (1) A vehicle shall not be chargeable with vehicle duty by reason of any use
made of it, in such circumstances and subject to such conditions as may be prescribed,
for the purpose of a public or local authority’s functions in connection with civil
defence, or by reason of its being kept on a road for any such use.
(2) In this paragraph ‘civil defence’ has the same meaning as in the Civil
Defence Act 1954.
Temporary residents
3. A vehicle of a description, or used for a purpose, specified in regulations and
belonging to a person temporarily resident in the Island shall not be chargeable with
vehicle duty for such period, in such circumstances and subject to such conditions as
may be prescribed.
Compulsory tests
4. (1) A vehicle shall not be chargeable with vehicle duty by reason of its use
on a public road —
Schedule 2
Licensing and Registration of Vehicles Act 1985


Page 22 AT 21 of 1985 c

(a) for the purpose of submitting it by previous arrangement for, or
bringing it away from, a compulsory test;
(b) in the course of a compulsory test, for the purpose —
(i) of taking it to, or bringing it away from, a place where part
of the test is to be or has been carried out; or
(ii) if carrying out any part of the test, where the person using
it is an examiner; or
(c) where the vehicle has failed a compulsory test, for the purpose of
delivering it by previous arrangement at, or bringing it away
from, a place where work is to be or has been done on it to
remedy for a further compulsory test the defects on the grounds
of which the vehicle failed the test.
(2) In this paragraph —
‘examiner’ means a person appointed for the purpose of carrying out a
compulsory test;
‘compulsory test’ means a test required by regulations under section 13(1)(c).
Trade licences
5. A vehicle temporarily in the possession of a motor trader or the Chief Constable
in the course of his business as such shall not be chargeable with vehicle duty by
reason of its use on a public road by such holder for a prescribed purpose and subject
to the prescribed conditions.46

SCHEDULE 2

TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS

Section 21(1)
1. [Repealed]47

2. [Repealed]48

General
3. An order under section 1 or 10 may repeal any provision of this Schedule.
4. In this Schedule “the 1969 Act
” means the Licensing and Registration of
Vehicles Act 1969.


Licensing and Registration of Vehicles Act 1985 Schedule 3



c AT 21 of 1985 Page 23

SCHEDULE 3

AMENDMENT OF ENACTMENTS

Section 21(2)
[Sch 3 amended by Value Added Tax Act 1996 Sch 16, and amends the
following Acts —
Highway Act 1927 q.v.
Road Traffic Act 1985 q.v.
Road Traffic Regulation Act 1985 q.v.]
SCHEDULE 4
49

Licensing and Registration of Vehicles Act 1985 Endnotes


c AT 21 of 1985 Page 25

ENDNOTES

Table of Legislation History

Legislation Year and No Commencement






Table of Renumbered Provisions

Original Current






Table of Endnote References

1
Subs (2) amended by SD41/93 and by SD155/10 Sch 5. 2
Subs (1) substituted by Road Traffic (Amendment) Act 2006 s 7. 3
Subs (2) substituted by Road Traffic (Amendment) Act 2006 s 7. 4
Subs (1) amended by SD41/93. 5
Subs (2) amended by SD41/93. 6
Subs (4) amended by SD41/93. 7
Subs (5) amended by SD41/93. 8
Subs (7) amended by SD41/93. 9
Subs (3) amended by SD41/93.) 10
S 8 amended by SD41/93. 11
Subs (1) amended by SD41/93. 12
Subs (2) amended by SD41/93. Para (b) amended by SD41/93. 13
Subs (4) amended by SD41/93. 14
Subs (1) amended by SD41/93 and by Road Traffic (Amendment) Act 2006 s 8(a). 15
Subs (2) amended by SD41/93. 16
Subs (3) amended by SD41/93. 17
Para (e) amended by SD41/93. 18
Subs (1) amended by SD41/93. 19
S 12A inserted by Road Traffic (Amendment) Act 2001 s 20. 20
Para (c) amended by Road Traffic (Amendment) Act 2001 s 18. 21
Para (ca) inserted by Road Traffic (Amendment) Act 2001 s 18. 22
Para (d) amended by SD41/93. 23
Para (f) amended by SD41/93.
Endnotes Licensing and Registration of Vehicles Act 1985


Page 26 AT 21 of 1985 c

24
Subs (2) substituted by Road Traffic (Amendment) Act 2001 s 18. 25
Subs (3) added by Road Traffic (Amendment) Act 2001 s 18. 26
Subs (4) added by Road Traffic (Amendment) Act 2001 s 18. 27
Subs (5) added by Road Traffic (Amendment) Act 2001 s 18. 28
Subs (6) added by Road Traffic (Amendment) Act 2001 s 18. 29
Para (b) substituted by Road Traffic (Amendment) Act 2001 s 18. 30
S 14A inserted by Criminal Justice Act 2001 s 49. 31
Para (a) amended by SD41/93. 32
Subs (1) amended by SD41/93. 33
Subs (2) amended by SD41/93. 34
Subs (1) amended by SD41/93. 35
Subs (2) amended by SD41/93. 36
Definition of ‘the Board’ repealed by GC69/86. 37
Definition of ‘the Department’ inserted by SD41/93 and amended by SD155/10 Sch 5. 38
Definition of ‘motor trader’ substituted by Road Traffic (Amendment) Act 2006 s
8(b). 39
Definition of ‘regulations’ substituted by SD41/93. 40
Subs (3) repealed by Statute Law Revision Act 1992 Sch 2. 41
ADO (whole Act except s 9) 1/4/1986 (GC31/86); (s 9) 1/2/1990 (GC444/89). 42
Para (6) amended by Statute Law Revision Act 1989 Sch 1. Subpara (c) amended by
SD41/93. 43
Para 7A inserted by Statute Law Revision Act 1989 Sch 1. 44
Para 14 amended by SD41/93. 45
Para 15 inserted by Road Traffic Act 1989 s 5. 46
Para 5 amended by Road Traffic (Amendment) Act 2006 s 8(c). 47
Para 1 repealed by GC29/86. 48
Para 2 repealed by GC46/86. 49
Sch 4 repealed by Statute Law Revision Act 1992 Sch 2.