56.—(1) A person who wilfully or maliciously commits any damage or injury to a public service vehicle shall be guilty of an offence and on summary conviction thereof may, in addition to any penalty which may be imposed under section 102 of the Principal Act or under the Dublin Transport Authority Act, 1986, be ordered by the court by which he is so convicted to pay to the owner of the vehicle such sum (being a sum which, when added to the penalty hereinbefore mentioned, does not produce a gross sum in excess of £1,000) as the court shall fix as compensation for the damage or injury and for the loss of the time of the owner and of the driver and conductor of the vehicle or of any of them (as the case may require) in attending the court:

Provided that nothing in this section shall prevent a person from instituting civil proceedings for the recovery of damages in excess of the above-mentioned sum of £1,000.

(2) Whenever a member of the Garda Síochána has reasonable grounds for believing that a person is committing or has committed an offence under this section the member may demand of such person his name and address and may, if such person refuses or fails to give his name and address or gives a name or address which the member has reasonable grounds for believing to be false or misleading, arrest such person without warrant.