Procedural refusals on FindOut

Information not held

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

What this response means#

The authority is saying it simply does not have the information you asked for. Under section 17 of FOISA, if the authority doesn’t hold the information, it must tell you so.

This is not an exemption - the authority isn’t claiming the information is sensitive or protected. It’s saying the information doesn’t exist in its possession. But “not held” doesn’t always mean what it seems.

Late response or no response

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

What this means#

The authority has not responded to your request within the time allowed by law. Under section 10 of FOISA, a Scottish public authority must respond to your request promptly and in any event within 20 working days of receiving it.

This is not an exemption or a discretionary matter - it’s a legal requirement. Failure to respond in time is a breach of the Act, and the Scottish Information Commissioner takes it seriously.

Neither confirm nor deny (NCND)

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

What this response means#

The authority is refusing to even tell you whether it holds the information you asked for. This is known as a “neither confirm nor deny” response, or NCND. Under section 18 of FOISA, an authority can give this response when simply confirming or denying that it holds information would itself reveal something that is exempt.

This is a legitimate tool, but it is sometimes misused. The key test is not whether the information itself is sensitive - it’s whether the act of saying “yes, we have it” or “no, we don’t” would cause the harm that the underlying exemption is designed to prevent.

Section 12 - Excessive cost of compliance

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

What this refusal means#

The authority is saying that it would cost more than £600 to find and retrieve the information you asked for. This is a cost limit set by regulations - it’s based on staff time at £15 per hour, which means the authority is claiming it would take more than 40 hours of work to locate, retrieve and provide the information.

Section 14 - Vexatious requests

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

What this refusal means#

The authority is saying your request is vexatious. This is one of the most contentious refusals in freedom of information, and it’s important to understand what it does and doesn’t mean.

A vexatious request is one that would impose a significant burden on the authority and has some aggravating feature - for example, it has no serious purpose or value, is designed to cause disruption, or would harass the authority. Being told your request is vexatious can feel like a personal attack - but legally, it’s the request that must be vexatious, not the person making it.