FOI 736-2024 / Aug 2024 / XL bully attacks
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST REFERENCE NO: 736-2024
I write in connection with your request for information which was received on 14th August 2024 as follows:
- How many XL bully attacks have been recorded in your area since 1 Feb 2024?
- Could you also share how many XL bully attacks were recorded last year from Jan 23 to Dec 23?
Please find the Warwickshire Police response set out below.
Response: Please be advised that the requested information is not centrally recorded and is therefore not held in a readily retrievable format. There is no field or marker within the crime recording system to easily identify the breed type of a dog. Therefore, in order to provide a response to this element of your request it would be necessary to manually review the wider investigation papers in relation to each and every relevant offence. During 2023 there were 314 offences recorded under Home Office code 008/21 ‘Owner of a dog allowing it to be dangerously out of control in public place and cause injury‘ and, at an estimate of 5 minutes per record to review, this would equate to 26 hours of work for this part of the request alone. Therefore, the work involved in locating and retrieving the requested information exceeds the cost threshold of £450, which equates to 18 hours work at a standard rate of £25 per hour, as stated in the Freedom of Information (Fees and Appropriate Limit) Regulations 2004.
In accordance with section 12(1) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000, this letter acts as a Refusal Notice for this part of the request.
In accordance with Section 16 of the Act, I have a duty to provide advice and assistance in relation to refining your request; however, due to the volume of records that would need to be manually reviewed, I am unable to suggest a way in which this element of your request could be revised to allow the requested information to be retrieved within the fees limit.
However, I can advise that it may be possible to retrieve some information for a lesser period, for example, that requested in Q1. However, it should be noted that, dependent upon numbers returned for the period, this may again attract an excess fees response. Further, where any breed has been recorded in relation to an offence, it is important to note that, in many cases, this is a description provided by persons who have no former knowledge of the animal. Therefore, the information would be based on what has been recorded but could not be taken as verified information in relation to the breed, so this needs to be taken into account with regard to accuracy of information.
I can also advise that, due to the ban being brought in in February 2024, any actual seizures of suspected XL Bullies have been recorded centrally and it may be possible to provide some information in this respect, should you wish to submit a request for this type of information. This would be subject to the usual disclosure considerations.
Every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided is as accurate as possible.
Your attention is drawn to the below which details your right of complaint.
Should you have any further enquiries concerning this matter, please write or email the Freedom of Information Unit quoting the reference number above.
Yours sincerely
Freedom of Information Officer
Freedom of Information Unit
Warwickshire Police
PO Box 4
Leek Wootton
Warwickshire
CV35 7QB