Expenses related to Aberdeen Inspired incurred by ACC

The request was partially successful.

Dear Aberdeen City Council,

Aberdeen Inspired, the city's Business Improvement District ('BID' in this request) entity ('AI' in this request) at one point had the city collecting the BID levy imposed on businesses falling inside the BID area. Is this still the case? If not please advise when it stopped. In any event supply answers to the following questions; when a time frame is required to answer, it should be for the last five years AI has been operating.

1. Does ACC do any invoicing, send reminder notices, final notices, notice of pending legal action to businesses in the BID area?

2. If yes to 1. above, how many such invoices, reminder notices, final notices, has ACC sent out for the last five years?

3. Does ACC invoice AI for any of the staff time, accounting, data storage, stationery, postage, administration, mailout costs relating to 1.?

4. How much has ACC charged AI for each of the past five years for 1?

5. How much has ACC invoiced AI in total each year for the past five years?

6. How much has AI invoiced ACC for any and all services, costs over the past five years?

7. Has ACC ever estimated the cost to it of sending out a single invoice? (According to research and analysis group, Gartner, typically the cost of processing an invoice in the UK ranges from £4 to £25, and in some cases is as high as £50, per individual invoice).

8. At one point I understood that businesses in the BID paid their AI invoices to ACC which then paid out to AI. Is any track kept of how much money comes in, the cost of doing the bookkeeping and administration and if so, please advise for the past five years. If so, please advise: a. total value of invoices sent out for past five years and number of businesses that were invoiced; b. total amount collected by ACC of said invoices for past five years; c. total amount disbursed by ACC to AI for past five years.

Yours faithfully,

Suzanne Kelly

Foi Enquiries, Aberdeen City Council

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Access to Information Team, Aberdeen City Council, Aberdeen City Council

1 Attachment

Reference: FOI-364345555
Date of request: 20/09/2021
Title of request: Aberdeen Inspired Costs

Dear Suzanne Kelly,

Thank you for your completing your Freedom of Information Request.

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Kind regards

Access to Information Team
Aberdeen City Council | Customer Development | Customer Experience |
Customer
Marischal College | Broad Street | Aberdeen | AB10 1AB
[4]www.aberdeencity.gov.uk | Twitter: @AberdeenCC |
Facebook.com/AberdeenCC

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Access to Information Team, Aberdeen City Council, Aberdeen City Council

Reference: FOI-364345555
Date of request: 20/09/2021
Title of request: Aberdeen Inspired Costs

Dear Suzanne Kelly,

 

Thank you for your information request. We have completed the necessary
search for the information requested. Our response is now detailed below.

Aberdeen Inspired, the city's Business Improvement District ('BID' in this
request) entity ('AI' in this request) at one point had the city
collecting the BID levy imposed on businesses falling inside the BID
area.  Is this still the case?  If not please advise when it stopped.   In
any event supply answers to the following questions; when a time frame is
required to answer, it should be for the last five years AI has been
operating.

1.    Does ACC do any invoicing, send reminder notices, final notices,
notice of pending legal action to businesses in the BID area?

Aberdeen City Council administer the collection and recovery of the BID
Levy on behalf of Aberdeen Inspired. This includes the issue of the BID
Levy Account Notices, Reminder & Final Notices.

2.    If yes to 1. above, how many such invoices, reminder notices, final
notices, has ACC sent out for the last five years?

This information is not held as there is no requirement for us to do so in
terms of any reporting to Aberdeen Inspired.

We are unable to provide you with information on the number of invoices,
reminder notices, final notices sent out by Aberdeen City Council for the
administration of the BID Levy. In order to comply with its obligations
under the terms of Section 17 of the FOISA, we are informing you that we
do not hold this information. 

3.    Does ACC invoice AI for any of the staff time, accounting, data
storage, stationery, postage, administration, mailout costs relating to
1.?

No, we do not invoice Aberdeen Inspired for any of the above.

4.    How much has ACC charged AI for each of the past five years for 1?

A set charge of £8,500 per annum is deducted from the BID Levy amount
collected.

5.    How much has ACC invoiced AI in total each year for the past five
years?

Aberdeen Inspired are not invoiced for the above charge or any
administration

6.    How much has AI invoiced ACC for any and all services, costs over
the past five years?

None, see response to Question 4.

7.    Has ACC ever estimated the cost to it of sending out a single
invoice?  (According to research and analysis group, Gartner, typically
the cost of processing an invoice in the UK ranges from £4 to £25, and in
some cases is as high as £50, per individual invoice). 

No, there has been no requirement for ACC to calculate this.

 

8.    At one point I understood that businesses in the BID paid their AI
invoices to ACC which then paid out to AI.  Is any track kept of how much
money comes in, the cost of doing the bookkeeping and administration and
if so, please advise for the past five years.  If so, please
advise:  a.  total value of invoices sent out for past five years and
number of businesses that were invoiced; b. total amount collected by ACC
of said invoices for past five years; c.  total amount disbursed by ACC to
AI for past five years.

BID Levy Account Notices are payable to ACC rather than Aberdeen Inspired.
As the amount due by BID Levy payers is determined by the rateable value
of the property, the Business Rates system is used for the administration
and collection of the Levy. BID Levy payers are issued with a unique BID
Account Reference Number which is separate to that of Business Rates
Payments, in order that payments can be easily identified.

8a. The total value of BID Levy Account Notices issued for the last 5
years - £3,654,603.85, this was for approx 4,250 businesses (approx 850
accounts/payers each year).    

8b. The total amount collected over the last 5 years - £3,172,873.80 (this
includes the current year 2021-22 for which bills were only issued at the
end of August 2021).

8c.  £3,172,873.80 plus VAT has been paid to Aberdeen Inspired over the
last 5 years. VAT is reclaimed by ACC therefore there is no loss to the
Council for this.

We handled your request for information in accordance with the provisions
of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002.

If you are dissatisfied with the way we have handled your request or the
content of it, you are entitled to ask for an appeal. You can do this from
your [1]Aberdeen City Council self service account.

For more information on your right to review, please visit [2]Freedom of
Information Review and Appeals.

We hope this helps with your request.

Kind regards

Access to Information Team
Aberdeen City Council | Customer Development | Customer Experience |
Customer
Marischal College | Broad Street | Aberdeen | AB10 1AB
[3]www.aberdeencity.gov.uk | Twitter: @AberdeenCC |
Facebook.com/AberdeenCC

Your personal data is very important to us. Please refer to [4]information
on why and how we use your data.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: This e-mail (including any attachment to it) is
confidential, protected by copyright and may be privileged. The
information contained in it should be used for its intended purposes only.
If you receive this email in error, notify the sender by reply email,
delete the received email and do not make use of, disclose or copy it.
Whilst we take reasonable precautions to ensure that our emails are free
from viruses, we cannot be responsible for any viruses transmitted with
this email and recommend that you subject any incoming email to your own
virus checking procedures. Unless related to Council business, the
opinions expressed in this email are those of the sender and they do not
necessarily constitute those of Aberdeen City Council. Unless we expressly
say otherwise in this email or its attachments, neither this email nor its
attachments create, form part of or vary any contractual or unilateral
obligation. Aberdeen City Council's incoming and outgoing email is subject
to regular monitoring.

References

Visible links
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2. https://www.aberdeencity.gov.uk/services...
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4. https://www.aberdeencity.gov.uk/your-dat...