Weights and Measures Act 1979
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | 1979 c. 45 |
Weights and MeasuresAct 1979
1979 CHAPTER 45
An Act to make further provision with respect to weights and measures.
[4th April 1979]
Be it enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—
Part I
Packaged Goods
Quantity control
1 Duties of packers and importers of packages.
(1) It shall be the duty of a person who is the packer or importer of relevant packages to ensure that when a group of the packages marked with the same nominal quantity is selected in the prescribed manner and the packages in the group or such a portion of the group as is so selected are tested in the prescribed manner by an inspector—
(a ) the total quantity of the goods shown by the test to be included in the packages tested divided by the number of those packages is not less than the nominal quantity on those packages; and
(b ) the number of non-standard packages among those tested is not greater than the number prescribed as acceptable in relation to the number tested.
(2) Regulations in pursuance of the preceding subsection with respect to the manner of selecting or testing packages may, without prejudice to the generality of the powers to make regulations conferred by that subsection or to the generality of section (b ) of this Act, make provision by reference to a document other than the regulations (which may be or include a code of practical guidance issued by the Secretary of State).
(3) Where, as a result of a test in respect of a group of packages which is carried out when the packages are in the possession of the packer or importer of the packages or another person, it is shown that the packer or importer of the packages has failed to perform the duty imposed on him by subsection (1) of this section in respect of the packages, then, without prejudice to the liability of the packer or importer under subsection (1) of the following section in respect of the failure, it shall be the duty of the person in possession of the packages to keep them in his possession—
(a ) except so far as he is authorised by or under regulations to dispose of them; or
(b ) if he is the packer or importer of them, until he has performed his duty under subsection (1) of this section in respect of the group.
(4) It shall be the duty of a person who is the packer or importer of a relevant package to ensure that the container included in the package is marked before the prescribed time and in the prescribed manner with—
(a ) a statement of quantity in prescribed units either of weight or of volume, as regulations require; and
(b ) his name and address or a mark which enables his name and address to be readily ascertained by an inspector or—
(i) if he is the packer of the package, the name and address of a person who arranged for him to make up the package or a mark which enables that name and address to be readily ascertained by an inspector,
(ii) if he is the importer of the package, the name and address of the packer of the package or of a person who arranged for the packer to make up the package or a mark which enables the name and address of the packer or the said person to be readily ascertained by an inspector; and
(c ) if regulations so provide, a mark allocated to him by a scheme in pursuance of section 7(4) of this Act for the purpose of enabling the place where the package was made up to be ascertained.
(5) If at the time when a relevant package is made up or imported the container included in the package is not marked with such a statement as is mentioned in paragraph (a ) of the preceding subsection, it shall be the duty of the packer or, as the case may be, of the importer of the package to decide what statement he proposes to mark on the container in pursuance of that paragraph and to make at that time, and to maintain for the prescribed period, a record of the statement; and the container shall, until the time mentioned in that subsection or any earlier time at which it is actually marked in the prescribed manner in pursuance of that paragraph, be treated for the purposes of this Part of this Act as marked with the statement in the record.
(6) It shall be the duty of a person who makes up packages either—
(a ) to use suitable equipment of the prescribed kind in an appropriate manner in making up the packages; or
(b ) to carry out at the prescribed time a check which is adequate to show whether he has performed the duty imposed on him by subsection (1) of this section in respect of the packages and—
(i) to use suitable equipment of the prescribed kind in an appropriate manner in carrying out the check, and
(ii) to make, and to keep for the prescribed period, an adequate record of the check.
(7) It shall be the duty of a person who is the importer of relevant packages—
(a ) to carry out at the prescribed time such a check as is mentioned in paragraph (b ) of the preceding subsection and to comply with sub-paragraphs (i) and (ii) of that paragraph in connection with the check; or
(b ) to obtain before the prescribed time, and to keep for the prescribed period, documents containing such information about the packages as is adequate to show that the person is likely to have complied with his duty under subsection (1) of this section in relation to the packages.
(8) Without prejudice to the generality of the powers to make regulations conferred by subsection (6) or (7) of this section or to the generality of section 15(2)(b ) of this Act, regulations may provide—
(a ) for equipment not to be equipment for the purposes of the subsection in question unless it is made from materials and on principles specified in the regulations and is inspected, tested and certified as provided by the regulations and for the payment of fees in respect of the inspection, testing and certification of equipment as so provided;
(b ) for questions as to the suitability of equipment, the appropriate manner of using equipment and the adequacy of checks, records and information to be determined for those purposes by reference to documents other than the regulations (which may be or include codes or parts of codes of practical guidance issued or approved by the Secretary of State);
(c ) that the use and the possession for use, for the purposes of subsection (6) or (7) of this section, of a thing which is equipment for the purposes of the subsection in question shall not constitute a contravention of section 9A(1)(b ) of the principal Act (which among other things prohibits the use for trade of any measure or weight not mentioned in Schedule 3 to that Act).
2 Enforcement.
(1) A person who fails to perform a duty imposed on him by the preceding section shall be guilty of an offence.
(2) If an inspector has reasonable cause to believe that a person has failed to perform the duty imposed on him by subsection (1) of the preceding section in relation to a group of packages, the inspector may give to the person in possession of the packages instructions in writing specifying the packages and requiring him to keep the packages at a place specified in the instructions and at the disposal of the inspector for the period of twenty-four hours beginning with the time when the inspector gives him the instructions or for such shorter period as the inspector may specify; and if the person to whom the instructions are given fails without reasonable cause to comply with the instructions he shall be guilty of an offence.
(3) If an inspector has reasonable cause to believe that a person has failed to perform the duty imposed on him by subsection (6) or (7) of the preceding section, then—
(a ) the inspector may give to the person such instructions in writing as the inspector considers appropriate with a view to ensuring that the person does not subsequently fail to perform that duty; and
(b ) Schedule 1 to this Act shall have effect with respect to the instructions;
and if the instructions or the instructions with modifications come into force in pursuance of that Schedule and the person fails without reasonable cause to comply with them he shall be guilty of an offence.
(4) If a person—
(a ) purports to comply with his duty under sub-paragraph (ii) of subsection (6)(b ) of the preceding section or that sub-paragraph as applied by subsection (7)(a ) of that section by making a record which he knows is false in a material particular; or
(b ) purports to comply with his duty under subsection (7)(b ) of that section by reference to a document containing information which he knows is false in a material particular; or
(c ) with intent to deceive, alters any record kept for the purposes of subsection (5) of the preceding section or sub-paragraph (ii) of subsection (6)(b ) of that section or that sub-paragraph as applied by subsection (7)(a ) of that section or any document kept for the purposes of subsection (7)(b ) of that section,
he shall be guilty of an offence.
(5) If a person has in his possession for sale, agrees to sell or sells a relevant package which is inadequate and either—
(a ) he is the packer or importer of the package; or
(b ) he knows that the package is inadequate,
he shall be guilty of an offence; and if the packer of a relevant package which is inadequate, and which was made up by him in the course of carrying out arrangements with another person for the packer to make up packages, delivers the package to or to the order of a person to whom it falls to be delivered in pursuance of the arrangements, the packer shall be guilty of an...
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