Legislation – Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025

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Part 5Compulsory purchase

105Electronic service etc

(1)

In section 6 of the Acquisition of Land Act 1981 (service of documents), at the end insert—

“(5)

Any notice or other document required or authorised to be served on a person under this Act may be served by sending it to an email address or uploading it to a website at which the person has agreed in writing to receive notices or documents for the purposes of the compulsory purchase order to which the notice or document relates.

(6)

Any notice or other document required or authorised to be served under this Act on—

(a)

an acquiring authority,

(b)

a confirming authority,

(c)

an inspector,

(d)

a local authority, or

(e)

a statutory undertaker,

may also be served electronically by a method mentioned in subsection (7).

(7)

The methods of electronic service are—

(a)

sending the notice or document to an appropriate email address, or

(b)

uploading the notice or document to an appropriate website.

(8)

For the purposes of subsection (7)—

(a)

an email address or website is an appropriate one for the service of notices or documents if the person being served has—

(i)

provided the email address or details of the website to the sender for the purposes of communicating with them about land subject to the compulsory purchase order or about the order itself, or

(ii)

published the fact that the email address or the website may be used for those purposes;

(b)

an email address is also an appropriate one for the service of notices or documents if the person being served has previously used it for the purposes of communicating with the sender about land subject to the compulsory purchase order or about the order itself.

(9)

A notice or other document sent electronically is, unless the contrary is proved, to be treated as having been received on the working day immediately following the day on which it was sent.

(10)

In this section—

“inspector” means a person appointed under section 14D;

“local authority” means a local authority within the meaning of section 7(1) or section 17(4);

“statutory undertaker” includes the persons mentioned in section 16(3) and in the definition of statutory undertaker in section 17(4);

“working day” means a day other than a Saturday, a Sunday, Christmas Day, Good Friday or a bank holiday under the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971 in England and Wales.

(11)

This section does not apply to a communication required or authorised to be sent under this Act to the High Court.”

(2)

In section 38 of the Land Compensation Act 1961 (service of notices), at the end insert—

“(3)

Any communication required or authorised to be sent to a person under this Act may be sent to an email address or uploaded to a website at which the person has agreed in writing to receive communications for the purposes of the claim for compensation.

(4)

Any communication required or authorised under this Act to be sent to—

(a)

an acquiring authority,

(b)

a confirming authority, or

(c)

a local planning authority,

may also be sent electronically by a method mentioned in subsection (5).

(5)

The methods are—

(a)

sending the communication to an appropriate email address, or

(b)

uploading the communication to an appropriate website.

(6)

For the purposes of subsection (5)—

(a)

an email address or website is an appropriate one if the person to whom the communication is to be sent has—

(i)

provided the email address or details of the website to the sender for the purposes of communicating with them about the claim for compensation, or

(ii)

published the fact that the email address or the website may be used for those purposes;

(b)

an email address is also an appropriate one if the person to whom the communication is to be sent has previously used it for the purposes of communicating with the sender about the claim for compensation.

(7)

A communication sent electronically is, unless the contrary is proved, to be treated as having been received on the working day immediately following the day on which it was sent.

(8)

In this section—

“confirming authority” has the same meaning as in Schedule 2A (see paragraph 9 of that Schedule);

“working day” means a day other than a Saturday, a Sunday, Christmas Day, Good Friday or a bank holiday under the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971 in England and Wales.

(9)

This section does not apply to a communication required or authorised to be sent under this Act to the Upper Tribunal.”

(3)

In Part 6 of the Land Compensation Act 1973 (supplementary provisions), after section 84 insert—

“84AService of documents

(1)

Any communication required or authorised to be sent to a person under this Act may be sent to an email address or uploaded to a website at which the person has agreed in writing to receive communications for the purposes of the claim for compensation.

(2)

Any communication required or authorised under this Act to be sent to—

(a)

an acquiring authority, or

(b)

a responsible authority within the meaning of section 1,

may also be sent electronically by a method mentioned in subsection (3).

(3)

The methods are—

(a)

sending the communication to an appropriate email address, or

(b)

uploading the communication to an appropriate website.

(4)

For the purposes of subsection (3)—

(a)

an email address or website is an appropriate one if the authority has—

(i)

provided the email address or details of the website to the sender for the purposes of communicating with them about the claim for compensation, or

(ii)

published the fact that the email address or the website may be used for those purposes;

(b)

an email address is also an appropriate one if the authority has previously used it for the purposes of communicating with the sender about the claim for compensation.

(5)

A communication sent electronically is, unless the contrary is proved, to be treated as having been received on the working day immediately following the day on which it was sent.

(6)

In this section “working day” means a day other than a Saturday, a Sunday, Christmas Day, Good Friday or a bank holiday under the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971 in England and Wales.

(7)

This section does not apply to a communication required or authorised to be sent under this Act to the Upper Tribunal.”

(4)

The amendments made by subsection (1) do not apply in relation to a compulsory purchase order made under the Acquisition of Land Act 1981 in a case where the first notice under—

(a)

section 11(1) of that Act (purchases by local and other authorities: public notice), or

(b)

paragraph 2(1) of Schedule 1 to that Act (purchases by Ministers: public notices),

was published before this section came into force.

(5)

The amendments made by subsection (1) do not apply in relation to a purchase under the Compulsory Purchase Act 1965 in a case where the notice to treat under section 5(1) of that Act relating to the purchase was given before this section came into force (for the application of section 6 of the Acquisition of Land Act 1981 to the service of notices under the Compulsory Purchase Act 1965, see section 30 of that Act).