FOI 658-2025 / June 2025 / EV charging
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST REFERENCE NO: 658-2025
I write in connection with your request for information which was received on 26th June 2025 as follows:
- The number of reported thefts of electric vehicle (EV) charging cables recorded by your force from 1 June 2024 to 31 May 2025 inclusive.
- The number of reported thefts of electric vehicle (EV) charging cables recorded by your force from 1 June 2023 to 31 May 2024 inclusive.
- If available, the location of these thefts (e.g. postcode area or city/town/village).
- If held, any data on whether the thefts occurred from private driveways, public charging stations, or other types of location.
If this request exceeds the cost limit, please prioritise questions 1 and 2.
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 specific offence for theft of electric vehicle charging cables, and no flag or marker to easily identify when this has occurred in relation to an offence. Keyword searches are not carried out routinely as they are not reliable, they will only bring back records where the chosen keyword(s) is present within the MO Description / Incident Summary within the crime recording system. Therefore, in the event that the circumstances are relevant, but where the exact keyword has not been used to describe the situation, then these would not be picked up within a search. In order to determine a response to Q1 and Q2, it would be necessary to individually review the wider investigation papers in relation to theft offences to determine whether they involved a charging cable. Given the number of the above types of offences recorded yearly by the force, such searches would take an inordinate amount of time and would undoubtedly exceed the amount to which we are legally required to respond for Q1 and Q2 alone, i.e., the cost of locating and retrieving the information exceeds the ‘appropriate level’ as stated in the Freedom of Information (Fees and Appropriate Limit) Regulations 2004. For Police forces in the UK, the ‘appropriate limit’ is up to 18 hours of work on one request.
In accordance with section 12(1) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000, this letter acts as a Refusal Notice for this request.
In accordance with Section 16 of the Act, I have a duty to provide advice and assistance; however, due to the volume of records, which would need to be individually reviewed, I am unable to suggest a way to reduce your request into one which could be managed within the fees limit.
However, although the limitations of a keyword search have been set out above, should you wish to resubmit a request asking for specific words such as ‘electric cable’ to be searched within the MO Description / Incident Summary fields of crimes recorded during the stated period, then this could be undertaken; however, it must be understood that any information returned could not be considered statistically accurate and/or definitive and caution would need to be taken when using such data for any further statistical, analytical or evaluative purposes. Further, any information located 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