Licences
7.
—(1) The Minister may appoint a Registrar of Pawnbrokers and such number of Assistant Registrars of Pawnbrokers and other officers as he may consider necessary or expedient for the purposes of this Act.
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(2) An Assistant Registrar shall have and may exercise all the powers conferred on the Registrar by this Act subject to such limitations as the Registrar sees fit to impose.
8.
—(1) Every pawnbroker shall annually take out from the Registrar a licence for carrying on his business for which there shall be charged and paid before the grant of the licence such fee as the Minister may prescribe. Application for a licence shall be made in accordance with such rules as may be made under section 50.
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(2) Licences shall be subject to such conditions, if any, as may be imposed by the Registrar in addition to those prescribed in section 9.
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(3) A separate licence shall be taken out and paid for by a pawnbroker for each pawnbroker’s shop kept by him.
(4) Every licence shall be dated on the day on which it is granted and shall determine on 31st December of each year.
(5) Any person who acts as a pawnbroker or holds himself out as carrying on the business of pawnbroking without having in force a valid licence granted by the Registrar shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $20,000 and, in the case of a second or subsequent conviction, shall in addition be liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months.
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9.
—(1) No licence shall be granted by the Registrar to a pawnbroker in respect of any premises unless the Registrar is satisfied —
(a)
that the applicant is of good character and is a fit and proper person to carry on the business of pawnbroking;
(b)
that the premises to be licenced are suitable for use as a pawnbroker’s shop;
(c)
that the premises will not be used for the conduct or transaction of any business other than that of pawnbroking;
(d)
that the applicant would obtain adequate insurance against damage, theft or loss of articles that may be pawned with him; and
(e)
that the applicant has deposited with the Accountant-General a sum of $20,000 as security for the proper conduct of his business under the licence.
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(2) The Registrar may, in his discretion, refuse to grant or renew a licence in respect of any applicant or any premises without assigning any reason.
10.
—(1) The Registrar may cancel a licence and forfeit the whole or such part of the money deposited with the Accountant-General under section 9(1)(e) as the Registrar may think fit if he is satisfied that —
(a)
the licensed pawnbroker’s shop is being conducted in an improper or unsatisfactory manner;
(b)
the licensee has been convicted of an offence under this Act;
(c)
the licensee has failed to comply with any of the conditions upon which the licence was granted; or
(d)
since the grant of the licence, the licensee or the premises has ceased to comply with any of the requirements set out in section 9(1).
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(2) The Registrar shall, before cancelling a licence and forfeiting any money under subsection (1), give the licensee concerned notice in writing of his intention to do so specifying a date, not less than 14 days after the date of the notice, upon which the cancellation and forfeiture shall be made and calling upon the licensee to show cause to the Registrar why his licence should not be cancelled and why his money should not be forfeited.
(3) The Registrar, on receiving any representation from a licensee, may, instead of cancelling a licence and forfeiting any money under subsection (1), impose a penalty not exceeding $20,000 on the licensee and may recover the penalty from any cash deposit or other form of security given by the licensee to the Registrar.
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(4) Any cancellation of a licence shall not affect the duties and liabilities of the licensee as a pawnbroker under this Act.
11. Any person aggrieved by the refusal of the Registrar to grant or renew a licence or the decision of the Registrar to cancel a licence and forfeit any money belonging to the licensee or to impose a penalty may, within 10 days of the written notification to him of the refusal, cancellation, forfeiture or imposition of the penalty, appeal in writing to the Minister whose decision shall be final and conclusive.
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12. Upon the expiration or sooner determination of any licence, the pawnbroker shall keep open the licensed premises daily from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. for the redemption of articles pawned with him; and, for all purposes of this Act, except the receiving of articles in pawn, shall continue to exercise the rights and privileges and be subject to the duties and liabilities of a licensed pawnbroker until the whole of the articles held by him in pawn have been redeemed or the latest period of redemption for any of those articles has expired.
Power of Registrar to order pawnbroker to deliver pledges, books and accounts on expiration of licence
13.
—(1) Upon the expiration, cancellation or determination of any licence, the Registrar may, if he thinks fit in the interest of pawners, order the pawnbroker to deliver up to any police officer or any officer named in the order all pledges and books and accounts kept by him in connection with the business of pawnbroking.
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(2) Any officer referred to in subsection (1) may at any time enter any shop or premises of the pawnbroker and take possession of all pledges, books and accounts and remove them to such place as the Registrar may determine.
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(3) The Registrar shall make arrangements for any pledge taken under subsection (2) to be redeemed or, if the period of redemption of the pledge has expired, for the sale of the pledge and the payment of the surplus thereof in the like manner as if the pledge were held by the pawnbroker.
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(4) Upon the redemption or the sale of the unredeemed pledges under subsection (3), the Registrar shall, upon payment by the pawnbroker of all expenses incurred by him, hand over to the pawnbroker an account of all sums received from the pawners as payment of moneys borrowed, including interest thereon, and all books and accounts taken under subsection (2).
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