Agricultural Credit Act, 1947

Seizure of stock comprised in a specific chattel mortgage at the instance of the mortgagee.

26.—(1) Where—

(a) a specific chattel mortgage is for the time being duly registered under this Part, and

(b) any moneys remain owing for principal or interest or costs on the security thereof, and

(c) either—

the principal moneys secured by the chattel mortgage or any part of such moneys or any interest thereon are or is unpaid for fourteen days after the day appointed by the chattel mortgage for payment thereof, or

a breach of any covenant or condition contained in the chattel mortgage has been committed by the mortgagor,

the mortgagee may serve on the county registrar of the county or county borough in which any of the stock comprised in the chattel mortgage is situate an order (which shall be in the prescribed form, shall certify the sum due on foot of the chattel mortgage and shall contain such particulars as may be prescribed) requiring the said county registrar to proceed in accordance with this subsection, and thereupon the following provisions shall have effect, that is to say:—

(i) the county registrar shall, as soon as may be, seize and remove from the custody of any person (other than a bona fide purchaser for value without notice of the chattel mortgage) and from any place (other than land or premises belonging to such purchaser) within the county or county borough of such county registrar all or any of the stock comprised in the chattel mortgage,

(ii) upon such seizure the county registrar shall, with all convenient speed, cause the stock so seized to be sold, and shall apply the proceeds of such sale in or towards the discharge of expenses, fees and costs of such seizure and sale and of the sum certified in the order to be due on foot of the chattel mortgage, together with interest on the said sum at the rate of three pounds per cent. per annum from the date of the said order to the date of such seizure, and shall pay the surplus (if any) of such proceeds to the mortgagor.

(2) An order under subsection (1) of this section directed to a county registrar shall have the same force and effect as an execution order and shall be a sufficient authority to that county registrar to act in accordance therewith, and that county registrar shall, when acting in accordance with the order, have all such rights, powers and duties as are for the time being vested in or imposed on him by law in relation to the execution of an execution order.

(3) A county registrar executing an order under subsection (1) of this section shall be entitled—

(a) if the money certified in such order to be due exceeds three hundred pounds, to charge and (where appropriate) to add to such money and (in any case) to levy under such order such fees and expenses, calculated according to the scales appointed by paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section 14 of the Act of 1926, and for the time being in force, as such county registrar would be entitled so to charge or add and to levy if such order were an execution order of the High Court, and

(b) if the money certified in such order to be due exceeds twenty-five pounds but does not exceed three hundred pounds, to charge and (where appropriate) to add to such money and (in any case) to levy under such order such fees and expenses, calculated according to the said scales, as such county registrar would be entitled so to charge or add and to levy if such order were an execution order of the Circuit Court, and

(c) if the money certified in such order to be due does not exceed twenty-five pounds, to charge and (where appropriate) to add to such money and (in any case) to levy under such order such fees and expenses, calculated according to the said scales, as such county registrar would be entitled so to charge or add and to levy if such order were an execution order of the District Court.

(4) The Minister for Justice may make regulations in relation to any matter referred to in this section as prescribed and the word “prescribed” in this section means prescribed by such regulations.

(5) The remedies for the recovery of moneys due under a specific chattel mortgage given by this section to the mortgagee shall be in addition to and not in substitution for any other remedies which the mortgagee may have by law for the recovery of such moneys.