Dear Sir or Madam,

could you please supply a list of registration marks withdrawn by
the DVLA following reports from members of staff or other agencies
such as the Police DSA VOSA members of public, MP's etc for
misrepresentaion

could you also break down where the complaints have been recieved
from, which led to the removal?

finally could you please provide a list of registration marks which
have been reported more than once for mis representation

Yours faithfully,

P smith

P Smith,

Please see the attached with regard to your recent request for information.

Bev Owen
Business Planning & Administration
D16
01792 782934
GTN 1213 2934

show quoted sections

Mr Smith

Further to your recent request under the Freedom of Information Act,
please find attached a response.

Regards

show quoted sections

Dear FOI

With regard to Paul Jeffreys response to my request I wish to
appeal and amend aspects of my original questions.

With regard to the statement that registration marks cannot be
released because persons can be identified the DVLA has
contradicted itself in that it has already publicly acknowledged
that it has withdrawn the number H8GAY. Equally if the DVLA has
removed a registration mark then it cannot be said to be linked to
anyone and therefore cannot be used to identify any person.

As such I wish to repeat my request that you release those
registration marks which have been withdrawn.

I will however adjust my second request in that rather than listing
the marks that have recieved warnings I wish you to state simply
the figures involved.

So could you please break down how many people the dvla has written
to to warn them about their registration marks?

How many reports have been recieved more than once for each mark?

Finally please provide a break down of how the reports relate to
the persons reporting them?

ie how many withdrawn following complaints from MPs. how many
following reports from staff etc.

thank you

P Smith

Yours sincerely,

Dear Mr Smith

FOI Request - Appeal on misrepresented number withdrawn by DVLA

I am in receipt of a copy of your e-mail of 06 August stating your
appeal against the Agency’s decision not to release the information
you requested and also your amendment to part of the original request.

I have been asked, as Freedom on Information decision-maker for Vehicle
Customer Services, to review all existing correspondence related to your
request for information made under the Freedom of Information Act
(FOIA).

I can confirm that I agree with Mr Paul Jeffreys reply of 6 August in
which he informed you that the information you requested was exempt from
disclosure, under Section 40 paragraphs 1, 2, & 3 of the FOIA, as it
related to personal data.

I consider that to release details of withdrawn registration marks
under the circumstances you require would jeopardise the security of the
personal details of the former keepers of these marks. Due to this, I
uphold the original decision to deny your request.

However, I am able to deal with your amended requests for information
and shall do so in the order you made them:

1. “Please could you break down how many people the DVLA has written
to warn them about their registration marks?”

Answer: Since the scheme’s implementation in 1999 and up to an
including the 11 August 2008, the DVLA has written to 15,784 people to
warn them about mis-display of their registration mark.

2. “How many reports have been received more than once for each
mark?”

Answer: There have been 693 cases received which relate to a previous
notification of misrepresentation.

3. “Please provide a break down of how the reports relate to the
persons reporting them i.e. how many withdrawn following complaints from
MP’s. How many following reports from staff etc.?”

Answer: As previously advised the Agency collaborates with the police
to address misrepresented number-plates and the Agency acts from a
police notification. To date we have withdrawn 22 registration marks.

I should also clarify that the DVLA’s withdrawal of H8 GAY was made
public by the purchaser of the mark and not the Agency.

The information supplied to you continues to be protected by the
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. You are free to use it for your
own purposes, including any non-commercial research you are doing and
for the purposes of news reporting. Any other re-use, for example
commercial publication, would require the permission of the copyright
holder.

Most documents supplied by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency will
have been produced by government officials and will be Crown Copyright.
You can find details on the arrangements for re-using Crown copyright on
the Office of Public Sector Information website at:
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/click-use/index.htm.

If you are not content with the outcome of this internal review, you
have the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a
decision. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:

Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

Yours sincerely

Richard Batchelor
Vehicle Customer Services
D1

show quoted sections

Dear FOI,

Thank you for your latest response to my request regarding the
withdrawl of numbers.

I am satisfied with your responses to all of my questions bar the
final one.

Please provide a break down of how the reports relate to the
persons reporting them i.e. how many withdrawn following complaints
from MP’s. How many following reports from staff etc.?”

Press reports clearly stated that H8GAY was withdrawn after a
complaint from an MP therefore at least one of those 22 marks
withdrawn is as a result of that complaint.

Can you please confirm that the remaining 21 have only been
withdrawn as a result of police reports or provide the breakdown
which I asked for.

for example I am aware that driving test examiners are able to
submit reports to you.

Yours sincerely,

Paul Smith

Dear Sir or Madam,

I am afraid that the deadline for you to respond to my request has
passed.

under the Freedom of Information Act you should have replied by
now, and are breaking the law.

Can I ask that provide a response to my last request by the end of
today? Friday the 3rd of October

Yours sincerely,

P smith

4 September 2008 Dear FOI,

Thank you for your latest response to my request regarding the
withdrawl of numbers.

I am satisfied with your responses to all of my questions bar the
final one.

Please provide a break down of how the reports relate to the
persons reporting them i.e. how many withdrawn following complaints
from MP’s. How many following reports from staff etc.?”

Press reports clearly stated that H8GAY was withdrawn after a
complaint from an MP therefore at least one of those 22 marks
withdrawn is as a result of that complaint.

Can you please confirm that the remaining 21 have only been
withdrawn as a result of police reports or provide the breakdown
which I asked for.

for example I am aware that driving test examiners are able to
submit reports to you.

Dear Mr Smith

I must apologise for the oversight which has led to the delay in
replying to your enquiry.

Of the 22 marks withdrawn by the Agency, 18 misrepresented registration
marks were withdrawn as a result of police notifications, and 1
withdrawn as the result of a notification from a DVLA enforcement
officer. 3 marks were withdrawn because of their potential to cause
offence, 1 was as the result of an MP’s case and the remaining 2 as
the result of full investigations and consideration following public
complaints about the offensive nature of the registration marks.

Regards,

FOI

show quoted sections

14:27 >>>
Dear Sir or Madam,

I am afraid that the deadline for you to respond to my request
has
passed.

under the Freedom of Information Act you should have replied by
now, and are breaking the law.

Can I ask that provide a response to my last request by the end
of
today? Friday the 3rd of October

Yours sincerely,

P smith

4 September 2008 Dear FOI,

Thank you for your latest response to my request regarding the
withdrawl of numbers.

I am satisfied with your responses to all of my questions bar the
final one.

Please provide a break down of how the reports relate to the
persons reporting them i.e. how many withdrawn following
complaints
from MP’s. How many following reports from staff etc.?

Press reports clearly stated that H8GAY was withdrawn after a
complaint from an MP therefore at least one of those 22 marks
withdrawn is as a result of that complaint.

Can you please confirm that the remaining 21 have only been
withdrawn as a result of police reports or provide the breakdown
which I asked for.

for example I am aware that driving test examiners are able to
submit reports to you.

show quoted sections