FOI- credits on account

 
Dear Richard Roberts
 
Freedom of Information Act 2000
 
 
Thank you for your request for information that was received on 3 April
2024. It is being handled under reference 46113957.
 
We are dealing with your request and we aim to send a response within 20
working days from the date we received your request.
 
For further information regarding FOI requests, please visit
[1]https://ico.org.uk/your-data-matters/off...
 
If you have any further queries about your request please contact
[2][email address].
 
 
Yours sincerely
 
 
Disclosures Team
 
NOTE: Please do not edit the subject line when replying to this email.
 
Bristol City Council
This email contains proprietary confidential information some or all of
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Dear Richard Roberts
 
 
This request is being handled under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. I
can advise that Bristol City Council holds the information you requested,
however we are withholding this information since we consider this
information is exempt from disclosure under Section 31(1)(a).
 
Section 31(1)(a) is a qualified exemption, and therefore is subject to the
Public Interest Test. Section 31(1)(a) provides an exemption where
prejudice could be caused to allow potential fraudsters to use the
information to identify business entities which were entitled to claim
credits on their accounts. Once such a business had been identified, there
would be a number of avenues open to the fraudsters to seek to obtain
funds.
 
To use this exemption we are required to undertake a public interest test.
The matters which were considered in applying the public interest test are
as follows:
 
Factors in favour of disclosure
Withholding the information could be perceived as the council attempting
to retain monies that belong to the public.
 
It is in the public interest to be open and transparent about our use of
public funds.
 
It is also in the public interest to provide some transparency regarding
the records we hold in respect of the administration of business rates.
This could be of interest to the minority of people who are due a refund,
but have somehow failed to receive the notifications that money is due to
them.
 
Factors in favour of withholding
There is a public interest in ensuring that monies from the public purse,
such as rebates on business accounts, are not fraudulently claimed and
also a public interest in not making it easier for fraud to be committed.
 
Our current verification procedure for refund claims is simple and cost
effective. Disclosure of the requested information would result in
additional verification processes needing to be implemented, at additional
cost to the public which appear disproportionate to the benefits that
would accrue from disclosure. 
 
In relation to any new verification processes that might be needed, these
would be likely to require the production of additional documents by those
claiming a rebate which would place a new administrative burden on the
majority of those legitimate claimants that did not currently exist. This
would be compounded by the fact that the level of scrutiny of those
documents would be higher than at present, given the increased suspicion
that some of the claims (and associated documents) might well be
fraudulent. The result would be that a new verification process would be
likely to slow the rate at which credit balance claims could be considered
and refunded, causing delay in all refunds and the likelihood of
complaints, which would further burden our limited resources.
 
It is considered that the greater public interest, therefore, lies in not
providing the information at this time. In coming to that conclusion, the
public interest in providing the information has been carefully weighed
against any prejudice to the public interest that might arise from
withholding the information; in all the circumstances of the case, the
public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest
in disclosing the information. This response, therefore, acts as a refusal
notice under section 17 of the FoIA.
 
If you are not satisfied with this response or wish to lodge an appeal
against any exemptions that may have been applied, you can do so by
writing to the Data Protection Officer at Bristol City Council Legal
Services, The Council House, College Green, Bristol or
[Bristol City Council request email]. 
 
If, after you have exhausted the councils complaints procedure, you are
still not satisfied with the response you have received you have the right
to complain to the Information Commissioner, details of your right to
complain can be found at http://www.ico.gov.uk/complaints.aspx
 
Yours sincerely
 
 
Bristol City Council
 
NOTE: Please do not edit the subject line when replying to this email.
 
Bristol City Council
This email contains proprietary confidential information some or all of
which may be legally privileged and/or subject to the provisions of
privacy legislation. It is intended solely for the addressee. If you are
not the intended recipient, an addressing or transmission error has
misdirected this e-mail; you must not use, disclose, copy, print or
disseminate the information contained within this e-mail. Please notify
the author immediately by replying to this email. Any views expressed in
this email are those of the individual sender, except where the sender
specifically states these to be the views of Bristol City Council.
 
This email has been scanned for all viruses and all reasonable precautions
have been taken to ensure that no viruses are present. Bristol City
Council cannot accept responsibility for any loss or damage arising from
the use of this email or attachments.

══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════

Council services: http://www.bristol.gov.uk/service
Latest council news: http://www.bristol.gov.uk/ournews
Consultations: http://www.bristol.gov.uk/consult
Privacy Notice: https://www.bristol.gov.uk/about-our-web...