Pensions Act, 1990

Offences.

3.—(1) (a) Where a trustee contravenes, in his capacity as trustee, a provision of this Act or a regulation thereunder, he shall be guilty of an offence.

(b) Where an actuary or auditor of a scheme contravenes, in his capacity as such actuary or auditor, a provision of this Act or a regulation thereunder, he shall be guilty of an offence.

(c) In a prosecution for an offence under paragraph (a) or (b) it shall be a defence for the accused person to prove that the contravention to which the offence relates was attributable to a contravention by one or more other persons of a provision of this Act or a regulation thereunder and that he took such reasonable steps (if any) in the circumstances as were open to him to secure the compliance of the person or persons aforesaid with the provision concerned.

(2) Where in any report, certificate or other document required for the purposes of any provision of this Act or regulations thereunder, a person makes a statement which is, to his knowledge, false or misleading in any material particular, he shall be guilty of an offence.

(3) A person guilty of an offence under subsection (1) or (2) shall be liable—

(a) on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £1,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year, or to both,

(b) on conviction on indictment to a fine not exceeding £10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years, or to both.

(4) Where an offence under this Act is committed by a body corporate and is proved to have been so committed with the consent or connivance of or to be attributable to any neglect on the part of any person, being a director, manager, secretary or other officer of the body corporate, or a person who was purporting to act in such capacity, that person shall, as well as the body corporate, be guilty of an offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished as if he were guilty of the first-mentioned offence.

(5) Proceedings for a summary offence under this Act may be brought and prosecuted by the Board.