Why we need to visit you
Under European Union regulations we must carry out a certain number of inspection visits each year. Sometimes we must carry out our visits with colleagues and auditors, and in many cases we are not allowed to give you any notice of our visit. We realise that this can cause some inconvenience, but we try to keep any disruption to a minimum.
We carry out inspection visits to check that:
- the details you have given are correct; and
- you are meeting the current legal and administrative rules.
We do this by inspecting your premises (including land, crops and livestock) or,
checking your records, (or both). We also check that:
- you have met any commitments you made in your application for payment or your declaration; and
- for livestock inspections, you have properly recorded all animal births, deaths and movements, and reported them to the British Cattle Movement Service where appropriate.
Important: when we complete an inspection, that does not mean that we approve your business activities or that you will get the payments you have claimed. The RPA team responsible for managing your claim or declaration will make the final decision on any action that needs to be taken following the inspection.
If you do not co-operate fully with the inspection, and you do not have good reason for this, we may have to take action such as restricting the movement of any livestock you have. If you have claimed for payment, we will not be able to pay you unless we have completed the inspection. You may even be prosecuted.
Page published: 22 June 2010