Service of notices under EPA 1990 s. 160
EPA 1990 s. 160: how to serve notices. Methods: delivery, leaving at proper address, or post. Proper address: last known or registered office for companies.
Any notice required or authorised by or under this Act to be served on or given to an inspector may be served or given by delivering it to him or by leaving it at, or sending it by post to, his office. Any such notice required or authorised to be served on or given to a person other than an inspector may be served or given by delivering it to him, or by leaving it at his proper address, or by sending it by post to him at that address. Any such notice may— in the case of a body corporate, be served on or given to the secretary or clerk of that body; in the case of a partnership, be served on or given to a partner or a person having the control or management of the partnership business. For the purposes of this section and of section 7 of the Interpretation Act 1978 (service of documents by post) in its application to this section, the proper address of any person on or to whom any such notice is to be served or given shall be his last known address, except that— in the case of a body corporate or their secretary or clerk, it shall be the address of the registered or principal office of that body; in the case of a partnership or person having the control or the management of the partnership business, it shall be the principal office of the partnership; and for the purposes of this subsection the principal office of a company registered outside the United Kingdom or of a partnership carrying on business outside the United Kingdom shall be their principal office within the United Kingdom. If the person to be served with or given any such notice has specified an address in the United Kingdom other than his proper address within the meaning of subsection (4) above as the one at which he or someone on his behalf will accept notices of the same description as that notice, that address shall also be treated for the purposes of this section and section 7 of the Interpretation Act 1978 as his proper address. The preceding provisions of this section shall apply to the sending or giving of a document as they apply to the giving of a notice.
Text in force at .
Source: legislation.gov.uk — The National Archives (legislation.gov.uk), reproduced under licence Open Government Licence v3.0.
What it actually says
This section sets out the methods for serving notices under the Environmental Protection Act 1990. A notice may be delivered to the person, left at their proper address, or sent by post to that address.
The proper address is generally the person's last known address. For a company, it is the registered or principal office. For a partnership, it is the principal office. If the person has specified an alternative address in the UK for receiving notices of that type, that address becomes the proper address. The same rules apply to sending or giving documents.
When it applies
- An inspector serves a notice on a company by sending it by post to the company's registered office.
- A local authority leaves a notice at the principal office of a partnership to serve a partner.
- A person specifies an address in writing for receiving notices, and later a notice is sent to that address.
- A notice is delivered by hand to an individual at their last known home address.
- A notice is served on a body corporate by giving it to the secretary or clerk.
What this section does not say
- The legal consequences of improper service (e.g., whether a notice is invalid) – this is dealt with under other provisions such as s.23 or s.157.
- What must be included in the notice itself – that is governed by the specific provision that requires the notice.
- Time limits for serving notices – those are set out in the relevant substantive sections.
- Service of court documents or documents under other legislation – this section only applies to notices under EPA 1990.
Related sections
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This page reproduces the text of EPA 1990 s. 160 in force at the date shown and explains it in general terms. It is not legal advice and takes no account of the circumstances of your case, which can change the answer completely. For a live dispute, for limitation periods, and before taking any step in court, consult a qualified lawyer in England and Wales.