Agricultural Credit Act, 1947

Effect of chattel mortgages in relation to execution orders.

31.—(1) A chattel mortgage shall not prevent or restrict the lawful seizure and sale of any stock comprised therein or affected thereby under—

(a) a warrant issued under section 28 of the Land Act, 1933 (No. 38 of 1933),

or

(b) an execution order issued for the enforcement of a judgement or order for the payment of—

(i) moneys due or payable to or for the benefit of the Central Fund, or

(ii) moneys in respect of advances made out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas or the interest on such advances, or

(iii) moneys due or payable to the Irish Land Commission under the Land Purchase Acts, or

(iv) moneys due to the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland in respect of a local loan, within the meaning of the Local Loans Fund Act, 1935 (No. 11 of 1935), or

(v) moneys due to a rate collector in respect of rates levied by the council of a county, the corporation of a county or other borough, the council of an urban district or the commissioners of a town.

(2) A floating chattel mortgage shall not prevent or restrict the lawful seizure and sale of any stock comprised therein or affected thereby under an execution order issued for the enforcement of a judgment or order for the payment of moneys due or payable to a landlord in respect of rent.

(3) Save as is provided in subsections (1) and (2) of this section no stock comprised in or affected by a chattel mortgage shall be seized or sold under an execution order, unless before such seizure the creditor has previously obtained the consent in writing of the mortgagee or has paid to the county registrar executing such execution order the full amount of the principal moneys and interest and costs then owing and unpaid on the security of such chattel mortgage.

(4) Whenever a creditor pays under subsection (3) of this section to a county registrar the full amount owing on the security of a chattel mortgage, the following provisions shall have effect, that is to say:—

(a) the county registrar shall pay such amount to the mortgagee and the mortgagee shall accept such amount in discharge of the moneys secured by such chattel mortgage notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in such chattel mortgage and in particular notwithstanding that such moneys are not then due or payable, and

(b) the said amount shall be added to the debt for which execution is leviable under the execution order, and such execution order shall have effect accordingly.

(5) For the purpose of enabling a creditor to take advantage of the provisions of subsections (3) and (4) of this section, the following provisions shall have effect, that is to say:—

(a) whenever a creditor requires an execution order to be executed against any stock the county registrar shall inspect the appropriate register of chattel mortgages and if on such inspection such stock is found to be comprised in or affected by a chattel mortgage such county registrar shall inform the creditor of the existence of such chattel mortgage, the date thereof and the name and address of the mortgagee, and

(b) the mortgagee shall on demand made by the creditor furnish to the county registrar for transmission to the creditor a statement of the full amount of the principal moneys and interest and costs then owing and unpaid on the security of the chattel mortgage.

(6) In this section the word “creditor” means the person at whose instance an execution order is issued, but does not include the mortgagee under a chattel mortgage.