Motability vehicles seized 377/2025

FOI Reference: 377/2025

Between the years 2014 and 2024, how many Motability vehicles were seized by your police force after they were used, or they were suspected to have been used, in criminal activity. Could you please break down the statistics by year, eg, how many in 2014;  2015…

If possible, could you also please provide a breakdown of the nature of each offence involving Motability vehicles. Eg, theft; assault.

Motability vehicles are cars given to eligible claimants in exchange for their disability benefits. I understand that cars which are seized are then taken back by Motability so there should be records of all Motability vehicles involved in criminal activity.

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 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 4,235 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 manually reviewing 25,411 records, due to the fact that we are unable to filter the search on our Police system in order to establish the nature of seizure of any vehicles, neither narrow down the search for the seizure of just ‘Motability vehicles’.

It has also been established that it would take a minimum of 10 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.

2014            -     2,203 records   

2015            -     2,273 records   

2016            -     2,559 records   

2017            -     2,748 records   

2018            -     2,440 records   

2019            -     2,579 records   

2020            -     1,981 records    

2021            -     2,066 records   

2022            -     2,291 records   

2023            -     2,271 records

2024            -     2,000 records   

Total number of records = 25,411

25,411 x 10 minutes per record = 4,235.16 hours

Time estimate to complete task = 4,235 hours

In accordance therefore with the Freedom of Information Act 2000, this letter acts as a Refusal Notice for the Whole of this request 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.

It should be noted that as a result of the systems adopted by Dyfed-Powys Police in relation to the recording of such information that the information released may or may not be accurate.

(This is a response under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and disclosed on 17/04/2025)