Action Fraud (409A/21)
Request
Can I please request the below information broken down annually for each year 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020?
- The number of cases referred to your force from Action Fraud?
- Of this number, how many cases were prosecuted?
- How many prosecutions which were successful?
Response
Our data are not organised in such a way as to allow us to provide this information within the appropriate (cost) limit within the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act (see ‘Reason for Decision’ below).
Although excess cost removes the force’s obligations under the Freedom of Information Act, as a gesture of goodwill I have supplied information, relative to your request, retrieved before it was realised that the fees limit would be exceeded (see attached). I trust this is helpful, but it does not affect our legal right to rely on the fees regulations for the remainder of the request.
REASON FOR DECISION
Please note that researching each individual case would exceed the appropriate limit (FOIA, s.12). In relation to question 1 we only hold the data for 2019 and 2020, it would exceed the FOI time limit to locate and retrieve further information. We do not hold prosecution data, therefore are we unable to answer question 3.
The cost of compliance with the whole of your request is above the amount to which we are legally required to respond, i.e. the cost of locating and retrieving the information would exceed the appropriate costs limit under section 12(1) of the FOI Act 2000. For West Midlands Police, the appropriate limit is set at £450, as prescribed by the Freedom of Information and Data Protection (Appropriate Limit and Fees) Regulations 2004, S.I. 3244.