Enforcement guidance - Enforcement Undertakings

Where we think a person has committed an offence under these Regulations they can offer to:

• take some action to ensure offences are not committed in the future
• act to put right any damage caused to another person or to compensate them for that damage
• correct any damage caused to the environment by their actions

This offer is known as an Enforcement Undertaking.

Cumberland Council will consider whether to accept any offer of such an undertaking on a case-by-case basis.

If we have accepted an enforcement undertaking, we cannot prosecute for the offence to which it relates nor can we issue a fine for that offence.

Completion Certificates

Once we are satisfied that the person has taken the steps specified in the undertaking, we must issue a certificate confirming this. This is called a Completion Certificate.

A person who has given an undertaking can ask us for a certificate at any time and we must decide whether to issue one within 14 days.

We must give a written answer to the person if we decide not to issue the certificate.

Appeals against a decision to not issue a Completion Certificate

A person may appeal against our decision to refuse a completion certificate if they think we:

• made an error in the facts
• didn’t apply the law properly or that our decision was unreasonable

Anyone wishing to appeal a decision should do so in writing to The First Tier Tribunal General Regulatory Chamber.

Non-compliance with an Enforcement Undertaking

If a person does not take the action agreed in the undertaking we can either:

• take action to issue any of the other notices in the regulations
• issue a fine
• prosecute the person

If a person has complied partly but not fully with an enforcement undertaking we must consider this before we take any further action.

Non-compliance penalties

We may recover any costs by issuing a penalty, if a person fails to comply with:

• a compliance notice
• a third party undertaking
• an enforcement undertaking

We will seek 100% of all costs incurred by Cumberland Council of fulfilling the remaining requirements including any costs of clean up or disposal costs.

Where more than one person has been identified as being responsible for the non-compliance, we will treat all persons as being jointly and individually liable for all of the costs.

The council must issue the person with a notice which tells them:

• why we are imposing the penalty
• the amount to be paid
• how payment may be made
• the period in which payment must be made
• their right to appeal
• the consequences of non-payment
• the circumstances in which the council might reduce the amount of the penalty

If the requirements of the compliance notice or the third-party undertaking is complied with before the deadline for payment is reached then the penalty will be cancelled.

Appeals against non-compliance penalties

A person may appeal against our decision to issue a penalty if they think:

• we made an error in the facts
• we didn’t apply the law properly
• our decision was unreasonable
• the amount of the penalty was unreasonable

Anyone wishing to appeal a decision should do so in writing to The First Tier Tribunal General Regulatory Chamber.