Dog attacks 681/2024

FOI Reference: 681/2024

Request:

1)  The number of reported dog attacks (Home Office code 008/21 – owner or person in charge allowing dog to be dangerously out of control in any place in England or Wales injuring any person or assistance dog) for the following dates:

Feb 1 2020 – July 1 2020

Feb 1 2021 – July 1 2021

Feb 1 2022 – July 1 2022

Feb 1 2023 – July 1 2023

Feb 1 2024 – July 1 2024

2)  Out of the total incidents for each year, please also provide the number that involved a suspected American Bully XL (otherwise known as ‘XL Bully’) and, separately again, the number that involved a confirmed American Bully XL.

For example, for Feb 1 2020 – July 1 2020, total of 20 incidents with 4 involving a suspected XL Bully and 2 involving a confirmed XL Bully.

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Response:

Section 1 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 places two duties on public authorities. Unless exemptions apply, the first duty at Section 1(1)(a) is to confirm or deny whether the information specified in a request is held. The second duty at Section 1(1)(b) is to disclose information that has been confirmed as being held.

I can confirm that the following information is held:

Question 1:

Feb 1 2020 – July 1 2020 = 115

Feb 1 2021 – July 1 2021 = 120

Feb 1 2022 – July 1 2022 = 107

Feb 1 2023 – July 1 2023 = 99

Feb 1 2024 – July 1 2024 = 113

Question 2:

Bully XL     suspected & confirmed

Feb 1 2020 – July 1 2020 = 0

Feb 1 2021 – July 1 2021 = 0

Feb 1 2022 – July 1 2022 = 0

Feb 1 2023 – July 1 2023 = 0

Feb 1 2024 – July 1 2024 = 2

Enquiries have also been made with the Force Dog Section to establish whether they hold any further information.  We are advised that it would exceed the appropriate limit to determine whether any further information is held. Please see below the relevant refusal notice.

I can confirm that the cost of determining whether any information relative to this request is or isn’t held is above the amount to which we are legally required to respond therefore we are withholding the whole of the requested information since we consider that the Section 12 (2) exemption the Cost of Compliance exceeds the Appropriate Limit applies to it.

Where exemptions are relied upon Section 17 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 requires Dyfed Powys 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. The following exemption has been applied to the whole of the information you have requested:

Section 12(2) – The cost of compliance exceeds the Appropriate Limit

Section 12(2) states: “…Subsection (1) does not exempt the public authority from its obligation to comply with paragraph (a) of section 1(1) unless the estimated cost of complying with that paragraph alone would exceed the appropriate limit.”

The cost of determining what information is held, if any, relevant to your request 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. It is estimated that it would exceed 18 hours (i.e. minimum of  hours) to comply with your request. The regulations can be located @ https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2004/3244

The Freedom of Information department has been advised that some of the information in respect of your request is not held in an easily retrievable format. In light of this and in order to accurately obtain the information relative to your request for the time frame stipulated it would involve Dyfed Powys Police accessing and reviewing 99 records.

It has been established that there are a total of 42 records that cover the period of your request, that would take a minimum of 20 minutes, and a further additional 57 records, that would take a minimum of 5 minutes, to review and obtain the information for a single record in respect of your request.

The process outlined results in the below time estimate.

42 records x 20 minutes per record = 14 hours

57 records x 10 minutes per record = 9.5 hours

Time estimate to complete task = 23.5 hours

In accordance therefore with the Freedom of Information Act 2000, this letter acts as a Refusal Notice for the Whole of this request, in relation to the Dog Section,  under Section 17(5) A public authority which, in relation to any request for information, is relying on a claim that section 12 or section 14 applies must, within the time for complying with section 1(1), give the applicant a notice stating that fact.

You may wish to refine and resubmit your request so that it reduces the time shown above to fall within the 18 hours, should you require any further advice in relation to this matter please don’t hesitate to contact the Freedom of Information Unit. Please also be advised that should the request be refined, it does not remove the public authorities right to cite exemptions if relevant.

 

(This is a response under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and disclosed on 31/07/2024)