1.   Where the creditor has obtained in a Member State an enforceable judgment, court settlement or authentic instrument which requires the debtor to pay the creditor’s claim and the creditor has reasons to believe that the debtor holds one or more accounts with a bank in a specific Member State, but knows neither the name and/or address of the bank nor the IBAN, BIC or another bank number allowing the bank to be identified, he may request the court with which the application for the Preservation Order is lodged to request that the information authority of the Member State of enforcement obtain the information necessary to allow the bank or banks and the debtor’s account or accounts to be identified.

Notwithstanding the first subparagraph, the creditor may make the request referred to in that subparagraph where the judgment, court settlement or authentic instrument obtained by the creditor is not yet enforceable and the amount to be preserved is substantial taking into account the relevant circumstances, and the creditor has submitted sufficient evidence to satisfy the court that there is an urgent need for account information because there is a risk that, without such information, the subsequent enforcement of the creditor’s claim against the debtor is likely to be jeopardised and that this could consequently lead to a substantial deterioration of the creditor’s financial situation.

2.   The creditor shall make the request referred to in paragraph 1 in the application for the Preservation Order. The creditor shall substantiate why he believes that the debtor holds one or more accounts with a bank in the specific Member State and shall provide all relevant information available to him about the debtor and the account or accounts to be preserved. If the court with which the application for a Preservation Order is lodged considers that the creditor’s request is not sufficiently substantiated, it shall reject it.

3.   When the court is satisfied that the creditor’s request is well substantiated and that all the conditions and requirements for issuing the Preservation Order are met, except for the information requirement set out in point (d) of Article 8(2) and, where applicable, the security requirement pursuant to Article 12, the court shall transmit the request for information to the information authority of the Member State of enforcement in accordance with Article 29.

4.   To obtain the information referred to in paragraph 1, the information authority in the Member State of enforcement shall use one of the methods available in that Member State pursuant to paragraph 5.

5.   Each Member State shall make available in its national law at least one of the following methods of obtaining the information referred to in paragraph 1:

(a) | an obligation on all banks in its territory to disclose, upon request by the information authority, whether the debtor holds an account with them;

(b) | access for the information authority to the relevant information where that information is held by public authorities or administrations in registers or otherwise;

(c) | the possibility for its courts to oblige the debtor to disclose with which bank or banks in its territory he holds one or more accounts where such an obligation is accompanied by an in personam order by the court prohibiting the withdrawal or transfer by him of funds held in his account or accounts up to the amount to be preserved by the Preservation Order; or

(d) | any other methods which are effective and efficient for the purposes of obtaining the relevant information, provided that they are not disproportionately costly or time-consuming.

Irrespective of the method or methods made available by a Member State, all authorities involved in obtaining the information shall act expeditiously.

6.   As soon as the information authority of the Member State of enforcement has obtained the account information, it shall transmit it to the requesting court in accordance with Article 29.

7.   If the information authority is unable to obtain the information referred to in paragraph 1, it shall inform the requesting court accordingly. Where, as a result of the unavailability of account information, the application for a Preservation Order is rejected in full, the requesting court shall without delay release any security that the creditor may have provided pursuant to Article 12.

8.   Where under this Article the information authority is provided with information by a bank or is granted access to account information held by public authorities or administrations in registers, the notification of the debtor of the disclosure of his personal data shall be deferred for 30 days, in order to prevent an early notification from jeopardising the effect of the Preservation Order.