FOI 342202
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST REFERENCE NO: 342202
I write in connection with your request for information which was received on 18th June 2024. Please find below the response to your request:
1.How many hit and run incidents has the force recorded in the last three years [between April 6- April 5 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/23]?
1a) Of those, how many resulted in casualties and what was the severity of the casualty?
1b) Of those, how many incidents where the driver was uninsured?
1c) Of those, how many resulted in a prosecution or other police course of action? Can you specify which?
Reply
Your request for information has been considered in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (“the Act”), and I am not obliged to provide the information requested. S.12(1) of the Act states that a public authority is not obliged to comply with a request for information if the authority estimates that the cost of complying with the request would exceed the “appropriate limit”. For police forces in England and Wales, the "appropriate limit" is £450 or 18 hours of work as set by the Freedom of Information (Fees and Appropriate Limit) Regulations 2004. S.12(2) of the Act exempts a public authority from its obligations under Section 1(1) - the duty to confirm if the information being requested is held, if to provide that confirmation alone would exceed the “appropriate limit”.
The information you have requested in Question 1, How many hit and run incidents has the force recorded in the last three years [between April 6- April 5 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/23] and specifically 1b) how many incidents where the driver was uninsured and
1c) of those, how many resulted in a prosecution or other police course of action? Can you specify which? is not available in a readily retrievable format.
This information may be mentioned within three different systems West Mercia Police utilise to manage collision cases. These systems do not interact with each other hence in order to retrieve the requested information, if held, would involve a manual trawl and cross check of those systems/individual records held within which would far exceed the 18hr limit for FOIs. In accordance with s.17(5) of the Act, this acts as a Refusal Notice.
However, in accordance with Section 16 of the Act I have a duty to provide advice and assistance in relation to your request and can provide the information requested for questions 1 and 1a as this was retrieved during our initial research. This should not be taken as a precedent that additional information would be supplied outside of the time/fees legislation for any subsequent requests. Please see below:-
- In 2021/22 a total number of 280 hit/run or non-stop (vehicle not hit) incidents were reported.
- From these collisions: -
- There were 3 fatal casualties
- There were 53 seriously injured casualties
- There were 276 slightly injured casualties
- In 2022/23 a total number of 270 hit/run or non-stop (vehicle not hit) incidents were reported.
- From these collisions:-
- There were 3 fatal casualties
- There were 40 seriously injured casualties
- There were 285 slightly injured casualties
- In 2023/24 a total number of 231 hit/run or non-stop (vehicle not hit) incidents were reported.
- From these collisions:-
- There were 2 fatal casualties
- There were 51 seriously injured casualties
- There were 230 slightly injured casualties