FOI 404104
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST REFERENCE NO: 404104
I write in connection with your request for information which was received on 24th April 2025. Please find below the response to your request:
Total number of crimes involving mobile phones over the last three (3) calendar years, broken down by year.
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.
The information you have requested is not available in a readily retrievable format. There are over 27,000 records where mobile or phone is contained within the summary. Even with limiting the query to thefts results a return of 3774 within the timescales requested. In order to ascertain whether the information you have requested is held would take in excess of 18 hours as each record would have to be checked individually.
In accordance with s.17(5) of the Act, this acts as a Refusal Notice.
Under s.16 of the Act I have a duty to provide advice and assistance in relation to your request.
Unfortunately, due to the volume of records that would need to be reviewed I am unable to identify information that could be supplied within the fees limit.
You may wish to resubmit your request with a more specific question in relation to mobile phones.