04/04/2025 via the WhatDoTheyKnow.com web site, NPCC FoIA request ref. 2233/2025.
Dear National Police Chiefs’ Council,
In Excel format, an example of which can be found here:
I ask to be provided, with a vehicle per row, the like information relating to the NPCC/NaVCIS submissions to the PNC LoS (Police national Computer, Lost or Stolen) register for the period:
01/01/2023 to 31/12/2023
01/01/2024 to 31/12/2023 – subsequently amended to 2024
I do not know how you hold or submit LoS records. But these are placed to the PNC which then causes the records to pass to the DVLA. Assuming the information is held in a similar format to that of Essex constabulary, at the above link, I ask to be provided:
Created Date – ‘taken’ date
Vehicle Make
Vehicle Model
Recovered/Not Recovered
Vehicle age (characters 3 & 4 of VRM)
Vehicle Recovered Date
The vehicle value – as at the date of loss or the criteria you use for value*
I appreciate you have, in the past, kindly hand-held me regarding information geld in a readily available format. Should any of the above not fall to such categorisation, but similar, helpful (insofar as it will help me to understand the number and type of losses/recoveries) please withdraw items that would fall foul of s12 and substitute the data you do hold to hand.
Additionally:
Assuming this is recorded, the offence associated with the submission i.e. the reason for creating a ‘lost’ or ‘stolen’ entry which I assume will include obtained by fraud and, if possible, the type of fraud – such as impersonation, intentionally avoidance of repayments, coercion etc.
I am not seeking detail of the offence and possibly you have your own codes for these, your own categorisations – please provide.
Your criteria/policy for submission to PNC – the grounds for recording or not recording on PNC LoS
Whether the PNC entry is annotated to the effect the vehicle was obtained by fraud, as opposed to stolen, where this is the case
Your criteria/policy for seizure of vehicles placed to PNC LoS
For the above calendar years, the number of complaints you received – irrespective of whether the vehicle was placed to PNC LoS, the number of vehicles for which you received a complaint. To clarify, a complaint may relate to more than one vehicle and may be treated as a single investigation. However, I wish to know the number of vehicles reported.
*I am assuming, for accounting/funding purposes detailed information is held on a system, in a readily retrievable format.
Yours faithfully,
11/04/2025, the NOCC responded considering the submission ‘vexatious’, a burden. Their response can be read here.
21/04/202, an apology/clarification was issued to the NPCC with a request to reconsider which can be read here.
30/04/2025, there appearing to be no means by which to seek clarification/assistance, I submitted a request for Internal Review and the submission, over multiple headings can be read here, the headings being:
- The Internal Review Request
- FoIA & ‘Vexatious’
- FLA & the FoIA
- FoIA ‘Value & Serious Purpose:
- FoIA & ‘Motive’
- FoIA & ‘Burden’
- FoIA & ‘Overwhelming’
- FoIA ‘Distress &/or Obstruction’
- FoIA ‘191 emails’
- FoIA ‘Senior Management Discussions’
- FoIA resources
- FoIA & ‘Response Timeliness’
- FoIA ‘Prior FoIA Requests’
- FoIA ‘Similar Requests’
20/05/2025, the IR request, logged as 2266/2025, resulted in the s.14 exemption being upheld.
the matter was placed with the ICO
the ICO upheld the vexatious finding
the matter was presented to an Information Tribunal