Progress with Court Actions

The request was refused by British Waterways Board.

Dear British Waterways Board,

In reponse to a previous requested you provide a list of Court Cases issued against boaters as of 11 November 2011.

See http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/cu...

Please could you confirm progress with these cases by confirming for each case.

1. The date of any hearings that have subsequently taken place.

2. The outcome of those where the Court has made a final order or equivalent substantial resolution has other wise occurred (for instance by means of a direct settlement with the Defendant).

If possible please could you provide you answers in a spreadsheet type data table format.

Yours faithfully,

Simon Robbins

Information Request,

Dear Mr Robbins,

Thank you for your e-mail which I received today.

I am pleased to inform you that once we have confirmed the extent to which the regulations permit the release of the information which you have requested a response will be sent within a 20 working day timescale of receipt of your request today, 16th May 2012.

Sarina Young
Customer Service Co-Ordinator
British Waterways  |  The Kiln  |  Mather Road  |  Newark  |  NG24 1FB  | Tel:  01636 675740 | Mob:  07785 295 274 | Fax:  01636 705584 |
This summer the canals and rivers that British Waterways cares for and maintains in England and Wales will become part of a new charity called the Canal & River Trust.
Want to know more? Go to - www. waterscape.com/findoutmore
Follow the BW Customer Service team on Twitter at http://twitter.com/BWCustServ 

show quoted sections

Information Request,

1 Attachment

Dear Mr Robbins,

I am writing further to your request for information and my acknowledgement of 16th May. Your request was for the following information relating to the attached document:

"Please could you confirm progress with these cases by confirming for each case.

1. The date of any hearings that have subsequently taken place.

2. The outcome of those where the Court has made a final order or equivalent substantial resolution has other wise occurred (for instance by means of a direct settlement with the Defendant).

If possible please could you provide you answers in a spreadsheet type data table format."

We have considered your request and I can confirm that the information you have requested is available by other means as it is in the public domain. As a result, the information requested is exempt under section 21 [Information Accessible to the Applicant by other means] of the 2000 Act.

Furthermore, we are of the view that the totality of all the information that comes within the subject area of your request is so very great that the cost of locating, retrieving and extracting all such information will far exceed the appropriate limit provided for under the Freedom of Information and Data Protection (Appropriate Limit and Fees) Regulations 2004. Where the cost of compliance exceeds the appropriate limit (£450) BW is relieved of its obligation to comply with the request (s.12(1) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000).

If we haven’t reasonably met your expectations in relation to a request for information or you believe we may not have acted in accordance with the above legislation you should write in the first instance to Kelly Radley Head of Customer Relations, 64 Clarendon Road, Watford, Herts WD17 1DA outlining your concerns and asking for a review to be undertaken. Your correspondence will be acknowledged and a review of your case will be undertaken by one of British Waterways’ directors.

Should you remain unsatisfied by the response you receive you are able to contact the Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF www.ico.gov.uk/Global/contact_us.aspx.

Kind regards,

Sarina Young
Customer Service Co-Ordinator
British Waterways  |  The Kiln  |  Mather Road  |  Newark  |  NG24 1FB  | Tel:  01636 675740 | Mob:  07785 295 274 | Fax:  01636 705584 |
This summer the canals and rivers that British Waterways cares for and maintains in England and Wales will become part of a new charity called the Canal & River Trust.
Want to know more? Go to - www. waterscape.com/findoutmore
Follow the BW Customer Service team on Twitter at http://twitter.com/BWCustServ 

show quoted sections

Dear British Waterways,

In your reply you say that the infomation I have requested is exempt under s 21 of the 2000 Act.

However I believe that simply quoting this section of the Act without also clarifying where one can find the information requested is a failure to fully comply with the associated guidance on s 21. The ICO Guidance on s 21 among other things seems to indicate that when this exemption is used:

"Public authorities are under a duty, set out in section 16 of the Act, to “provide advice and assistance, so far as it would be reasonable to expect the authority to do so, to persons who propose to make, or have made requests for information.” This means that there should be no possibility of applicants being left in any doubt as to how they can obtain the information which they want."

(See: final paragraph, page 1 ff in: http://www.ico.gov.uk/for_organisations/...)

Please would you confirm 'another route' by which I can obtain the information I have requested?

Yours sincerely,

Simon Robbins

Information Request,

1 Attachment

Dear Mr Robbins,

Thank you for your e-mail.

You can obtain the information you have requested directly from the courts using name of the court and the claim reference number which have already been supplied to you on the attached list.

Kind regards,

Sarina Young
Customer Service Co-Ordinator
British Waterways  |  The Kiln  |  Mather Road  |  Newark  |  NG24 1FB  | Tel:  01636 675740 | Mob:  07785 295 274 | Fax:  01636 705584 |
This summer the canals and rivers that British Waterways cares for and maintains in England and Wales will become part of a new charity called the Canal & River Trust.
Want to know more? Go to - www. waterscape.com/findoutmore
Follow the BW Customer Service team on Twitter at http://twitter.com/BWCustServ 

show quoted sections

Simon Robbins left an annotation ()

It seems BW does not possess an easily accesible report of day to day progress with the Court actions thay have taken out against boaters?

geoff mayers left an annotation ()

The list provided by BW refers to those being taken to court as 'debtors'. I am on that list.

I am not a 'debtor'.

In fact BW owe me several hundred pounds.

Yet another apology they owe me.

Geoff Mayers