Section 47: Protest of bill

47. Protest of bill (1) (a) Where a bill has been dishonoured by non-acceptance it shall be duly protested for non-acceptance, and where a bill which has not been previously dishonoured by non-acceptance, or which has been accepted subsequently to protest for non-acceptance, is dishonoured by non-payment, it shall be protested for non-payment. (b) Where the bill under subsection (1) is not protested the drawer and the indorsers are discharged if any prejudice has been caused by the holder’s failure to perform his duties and then only to the extent of the loss suffered. (2) A bill which has been protested for non-acceptance may be subsequently protested for non-payment. (3) Protest shall be made on one of the 4 business days which follow the day on which the bill is payable. (4) Where the acceptor of a bill becomes bankrupt or insolvent or suspends payment before it matures, the holder may cause the bill to be protested for better security against the drawer or indorsers. (5) (a) A bill shall be protested at the place where it is dishonoured. (b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a), where a bill drawn payable at the place of business or residence of some person other than the drawee, has been dishonoured by non-acceptance, it shall be protested for non-payment at the place where it is expressed to be payable, and no further presentment for payment to, or demand on, the drawee is necessary. (6) A protest shall contain a copy of the bill, and shall be signed by the usher making it, and shall specify— (a) the person at whose request the bill is protested; (b) the place and date of protest, the cause or reason for protesting the bill, the demand made, and the answer given, if any, or the fact that the drawee or the acceptor could not be found. (7) Where a bill is lost or destroyed or is wrongly detained from the person entitled to hold it, protest may be made on a copy or written particulars of it.