FOI 936/25
FOI 936/25
Request
- How many instances of parcel theft (i.e. parcels stolen from somebody's doorstep, or other cases where thieves steal a package, for example by impersonating a delivery person or homeowner) were reported between 01/08/2024 and 31/07/2025?
- If possible, please can you provide a monthly break down of the number of reported instances of parcel theft (i.e. parcels stolen from somebody's doorstep, or other cases where thieves steal a package, for example by impersonating a delivery person or homeowner) within the date range provided in question one. Or, if this is not possible, any data that would make it possible to calculate this?
- If possible, please can you share either the total reported value of stolen parcels for the date ranges provided in question one or, if this is not possible, any data that would make it possible to calculate this?
- If possible, please can you share the most common time of day when parcels were stolen (using the date ranges provided in question one) in the following format, or, if not possible, any data that would make it possible to calculate this?
- A - 09.01 - 17.00
- B - 17.01 - 22.00
- C - 22.01 - 09.00
- If possible, please can you share the most common age of the people reporting theft (for the date ranges provided in question one) in the following format, or any data that would make it possible to calculate this?
- A - 21 and under
- B - 22-34
- C - 35-44
- D - 45-54
- E - 55-64
- F - 65 and over
- If possible, please can you estimate how long (hours per month) in total that the force spent on any work relating to reported theft of parcels?
- If possible, please can you share the number of reports you received split by type of dwelling/address where the reported incident took place?
- Detatched house or bungalow
- Semi-detatched or terraced house
- Apartment/flat
- Office/business
- Any other
Response
Your request for information has now been considered and I am not obliged to supply the information you have requested.
Section 17(5) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 requires South Wales Police, when refusing to provide such information (because the information is exempt) to provide you the applicant with a notice which:
(a) states that fact,
(b) specifies the exemption in question and
(c) states (if that would not otherwise be apparent) why the exemption applies.
In relation to your particular request, the following exemption applies:
Section 12 – Exemption where cost of compliance exceeds appropriate limit.
At South Wales Police we monitor and collate statistical data on crimes, incidents and other data relevant to our daily business. The predominant purpose of this is to identifying pattern and trends, so resource allocation and policies can be managed to ensure public safety.
The data you have requested is not routinely collated in the format that would easily answer your query. Therefore, to accurately answer your request, a search has been conducted on our crime and incident recording system (Niche RMS) for all occurrences recorded under the occurrence type ‘CR41 Theft & Handling’ where ‘South Wales’ is selected as the owning agency.
Whilst parcel theft occurrences are routinely recorded under the occurrence type ‘CR41 Theft & Handling’, a second search has been conducted on Niche RMS for all occurrences recorded under the Home Office offence code ‘42/1: Theft of mail bag or postal packet’ between 1st August 2024 and 31st July 2025 where ‘South Wales’ is selected as the owning agency.
These searches retrieved a total of 28,016 results.
We estimate that it would take approximately 1 – 2 minutes to individually interrogate each occurrence in order to establish if they relate to parcel theft. This could take longer to retrieve any additional information.
We therefore estimate that it would take in excess of 466 hours to answer your request.
It is estimated that the cost of providing you with the information is above the amount to which we are legally required to respond i.e. the cost of locating and retrieving the information exceeds the "appropriate level" as stated in the Freedom of Information (Fees and Appropriate Limit) Regulations 2004.
In the case of the police service, the appropriate limit is £450 which has been calculated to equate to a total of 18 hours of work.
If any part of the request exceeds the fees limit then Section 12 applies to the whole request.
In accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000, this letter acts as a refusal notice.
Excess cost removes the forces obligation under the Freedom of Information Act, however under Section 16 – Duty to provide advice and assistance, an authority is required to offer an applicant the opportunity to redefine their request within the cost limit. Unfortunately, due to the way in which the data is recorded, we can see no feasible way in which you could refine your request.