FOI 352/25

REQUEST 

This is an information request relating to vehicles impounded by the force, namely mopeds/scooters and vehicles registered with the motability scheme.

Please provide the following information, for the 2019/20, 2020/21, 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/24 and 2024/25 (to present) financial years:

1. The number of mopeds or scooters impounded in relation to PWITs or drug investigations

Please also, for the same financial years, provide the following information:

2. Vehicles (of any kind) impounded for any crime which are registered with the motability scheme. Please provide a breakdown of the types of crime for those impounded

RESPONSE

Your request for information has now been considered and I am not obliged to supply the information you have requested.  

In relation to your request, the following exemption applies:

Section 12 – Exemption where cost of compliance exceeds appropriate limit.

We consulted with our Operational Support Services who have advised that for Q1 for 2024 alone 785 vehicles that would fall into the category motorcycle/scooter/mob scooter have been recovered. We estimate that it would take a minimum of  3 minutes to interrogate each record to establish if the vehicle was impounded in relation to drugs investigations.

In relation to Q2, 9821 vehicles were  recovered for 2024 alone and without going into each vehicle we would not know if it was a mobility vehicle or not. We therefore estimate that it would take a minimum of  2 minutes to interrogate each record to establish if the vehicle impounded was registered with the Motability scheme.

We therefore estimate that it would take in excess of 366 hours to retrieve the information that you require for 2024 alone.

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 data is recorded, we can see no feasible way in which you could refine your request.