Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) Decision notice

Transcription

1 Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) Decision notice Date: 29 September 2016 Public Authority: Address: HM Land Registry Trafalgar House 1 Bedford Park Croydon CR0 2AQ Decision (including any steps ordered) 1. The complainant has made a number of requests to the Land Registry for information concerning bankruptcy petition notifications and bankruptcy order notifications. The Land Registry provided some information and initially argued that the remainder was not held. The complainant disputed this and on review, the Land Registry explained that the further information required was accessible via its website. It therefore applied section 21 of the FOIA to the outstanding information. 2. The Commissioner s decision is that the Land Registry has correctly applied section 21 of the FOIA to the outstanding information. However in failing to apply section 21 of the FOIA to this part of the request within 20 working days, the Commissioner finds the Land Registry to be in breach of section 17(1)(a)(b) and (c) of the FOIA. She does not require it to take any further steps in relation to these requests. Request and response 3. The complainant has made a number of related information requests to the Land Registry. The Commissioner s understanding of the chronology of this case with dates of the requests and responses is outlined below: Request 1 (bankruptcy petition notifications) 4. On 12 May 2016 the complainant requested: How many bankruptcy petition notifications has the land registry received (please list all dates) from the county court in Maidstone after 1

2 lodgement on behalf of Maidstone Borough Council since September On 13 May 2016 the Land Registry informed the complainant that it did not hold the requested information. It explained that although it might be possible to identify notifications by the County Court in Maidstone of petitions in bankruptcy it does not have any information as to the petitioner so it does not know how many were by Maidstone Borough Council. 6. On 13 May 2016 the complainant clarified what he required: Please provide how many bankruptcy petition notifications has the land registry received (please list all dates) from the county court in Maidstone from September On 27 May 2016 the Land Registry informed the complainant that it had received four bankruptcy petition notifications from the county court in Maidstone from September 2015 and all were received on 26 November On 27 May 2016 the complainant requested the petition dates. 9. On 1 June 2016 the Land Registry informed the complainant that it did not hold the information requested. It confirmed it had searched its paper and electronic records. 10. On 2 June 2016 the complainant informed the Land Registry that he considered it impossible that it does not hold this information as it is contained in the bankruptcy petition notifications (which contain the name of the court, the petition number, and date of the petition). He argued that these are sent to the Land Registry and therefore it will hold this information on its computer system. 11. The complainant requested an internal review on 3 June Request 2 (bankruptcy order notifications) 12. On 24 May 2016 the complainant asked the Land Registry for the following information: How many bankruptcy Order notifications has the land registry received from the county court in Maidstone that were ordered on 11th May 2016 on behalf of Maidstone Borough Council. What date did you receive them? 13. On 26 May 2016 the Land Registry informed the complainant that although it might be possible to identify notifications by the County 2

3 Court in Maidstone of petitions in bankruptcy, it does not have any information as to the petitioner. 14. It explained it does not therefore have any information as to how many were received from Maidstone Borough Council. 15. The complainant disputed that the Land Registry would not hold this information. He asked it to confirm what details are required to be sent to it by the courts and to provide a link to a copy of the form they are required to use. 16. The complainant then asked the Land Registry to confirm the date of a notification of a pending bankruptcy petition dated 23rd September 2015 which was received from the county court. 17. On 7 June 2016 the complainant requested an internal review of the Land Registry s failure to respond to him. Internal review 16 June The Land Registry provided an internal review for both requests on 16 June With respect to request one, it explained that it does not have the petition dates, only the date it is notified by the court. With respect to request two, it explained that as it is not informed as to the petitioner, it does not have the information requested. 19. The Land Registry referred the complainant to its practice leaflets: (PG63) Land Charges: registration, official search, office copy and cancellation (PG34) Personal insolvency 20. It explained that these publications provide further details including the changes for petitions for bankruptcy as a result of s.71 of the Enterprise & Regulatory Reform Act It provided links where this information can be accessed. 21. There was further correspondence concerning information required on particular application forms submitted to the courts with respect to the registration of a petition in bankruptcy and the registration of a bankruptcy order. The complainant argued these forms contained the information he required: particulars of petitioner and number and date of petition. Request 8 June On 8 June 2016 the complainant submitted two further requests: 3

4 1) Please confirm the date the Land Registry was notified of pending bankruptcy petitions by the county court in Maidstone that were filed into the court on 23rd September Please list the number of notifications of pending petitions you received. 2) Please confirm the date the Land Registry was notified of bankruptcy orders granted on 11th May 2016 by the county court in Maidstone. Please also list the number of notifications of Bankruptcy orders the Land Registry received. 23. The Land Registry replied to both s in one response dated 21 June 2016 and clarified its response on 15 July In both responses the Land Registry explained that with respect to the bankruptcy petitions and bankruptcy orders it had applied section 21 of the FOIA to this part of the requests. It explained the information was available via its website and it explained how it could be accessed. 25. With respect to the request for a list of the number of notifications of pending petitions and the number of notifications of bankruptcy orders received, the Land Registry asked the complainant to clarify which period he wished to search for and if he was interested in all applications or a particular Court or Courts. Request 15 July On 15 July 2016 the complainant clarified what he required: 1. Period to be searched 23rd September day. 2. Pending Bankruptcy Petitions filed into the Maidstone County Court. Please note forms K3 and K4 are not used to inform the land charges department of the pending action and bankruptcy orders by the court or by the insolvency service for creditor's petitions. What application forms are you referring to that are lodged at the Land Charges Department? Plus: 1. Period to be searched 11th May day. 2. Bankruptcy Orders made by Maidstone County Court. 4

5 Please note forms K3 and K4 are not used to inform the land charges department of the pending action and bankruptcy orders by the court or by the insolvency service for creditor's petitions. What application forms are you referring to that are lodged at the Land Charges Department? Request 25 July On 25 July 2016 the complainant then asked the Land Registry: The Land Registry has confirmed that 4 bankruptcy petition notifications have been received from the county court in Maidstone since last September 2015 until the end of May Please provide the data and information under the FOIA. Please provide the dates the petitions were filed into the court, this information is contained within the petitions and the details are sent to you by the court on Form 6.14 to register the petitions in the pending actions register. Please also confirm for each of the petition filings, the date the bankruptcy orders were made and the date they were sent to you from the Insolvency Service and the date that you registered a restriction in your register. Response 2 August The Land Registry again reviewed the matter on 2 August With respect to the request of 15 July 2016, it confirmed the following points to the complainant: The Land Registry received four bankruptcy petition notifications from the county court in Maidstone from September 2015 and all were received on 26 November It received three notifications of bankruptcy orders that were dated 11 May 2016 from the country court in Maidstone. 29. With respect to the forms used, the Land Registry explained: The court uses form 6.14 to register a pending action with the Land Charges Department. The Official Receiver attached to the court uses form 6.26 to register any subsequent bankruptcy order. 5

6 30. With respect to the request of 25 July 2016 (referred to as the request of 27 July 2016 by the Land Registry), the Land Registry confirmed that under the FOIA it holds information in relation to these four bankruptcy petition notifications and also in relation to connected bankruptcy orders. 31. However the Land Registry explained it had applied section 21 of the FOIA to this part of the request as it considered the information is reasonably accessible to the complainant by other means. It explained the process he needed to follow in order to access this information. 32. The Land Registry explained that if the complainant requires specific details of any bankruptcy entries he needs to make a search first on form K15 which will reveal anything registered against the name that he searched against, the date of registration and the Land Charges registration number. It explained that the date of registration is the date that Land Charges Department received notification of the application. 33. The Land Registry then explained that if the complainant then requires a copy of the information that was lodged at Land Charges Department he can apply on form K19. There is a fee to pay for this service of 1 for each registration. All its forms are available from its website at GOV.UK. 34. The Land Registry explained that further information is available from the Department's website. It provided a link to "Land Registry Practice guide 63: Land Charges - applications for registration, official search, office copy and cancellation". It explained that this practice guide confirms the application form required to obtain a bankruptcy search. 35. The Land Registry also referred the complainant to its Practice Guide 34 and provided a link. It explained that Section 2.3 of Practice Guide 34 shows the entries that are entered onto the register. Questions dated 4 August 2016 with response dated 10 August On 4 August 2016 the complainant asked the Land Registry to review its above response in three separate s. On 10 August 2016 the Land Registry addressed each one (numbered i to iii below): 6

7 37. Question (i) Please provide the dates the petitions were filed into the court, this information is contained within the petitions and the details are sent to you by the court on Form 6.14 to register the petitions in the pending actions register. You have not confirmed if the 4 petitions you received from the court on 26 November 2015 correspond with the 3 bankruptcy orders that are dated 11 May 2016, neither have you provided the date they were sent to you by the Insolvency Service on Form 6.26, neither have you provided the date that you registered a restriction in your register. 38. The Land Registry clarified that Form 6.14 states the date of the petition, and the form is dated. This may or may not be the same date the petition was filed / lodged at court. The information on the form is available to the complainant and section 21 has been applied to this request. It again explained that a copy of these forms can be obtained by completing forms K15 and then K The Land Registry argued that the complainant had not asked in his correspondence whether the four petitions on 26 November 2015 corresponded with the three bankruptcy orders dated 11 May However it explained the answer to this question is that they do not relate. 40. The Land Registry explained that forms 6.26 do not state the date they were sent to Land Registry by the Insolvency Service nor do they provide the date that the restriction was entered on the register. It explained the complainant can obtain a copy of the relevant register of title using Land Registry statutory services (available through to check the date of notification which will be the date of registration of the restriction. 41. Question (ii) The Land Registry has still not provided the date the Land Charges department was notified of pending bankruptcy petitions by the county court in Maidstone that were filed into the court on 23 September 2015 and have not provided how many notifications of pending petitions you received. Are you saying that you did not receive any notifications from the court of pending petitions filed into the court on the 23 September 2015? 42. The Land Registry explained this information had been provided. It confirmed four were received and they were all received on 26 November This is the date of notification to the Land Registry. 7

8 43. It explained that the Form 6.14 which it has is not dated 23 September It is dated 1 September The form does not state the actual date the petition was filed or lodged into court. 44. Question (iii) The Land Registry has still not provided the date the Land Charges department was notified of bankruptcy orders granted on 11 May 2016 by the county court in Maidstone. This information must be sent you by the Insolvency Service, please also confirm how many notifications you received. 45. The Land Registry explained it considered this to be a repeat of an earlier . It clarified that Form 6.26 does not state the date the Land Charges Department was notified of bankruptcy orders dated 11 May The date on the form may not be the same date that Land Charges Department received notification. 46. The Land Registry repeated that it had received three orders that are dated 11 May 2016 and that the information on the forms in relation to the bankruptcy orders is reasonably accessible to the complainant by other means using its statutory services. It explained that the complainant can also obtain a copy of the relevant register of title using Land Registry statutory services (available through to check the date of notification which will be the date of registration of the restriction. Questions of 1 September 2016 with response of 16 September On 1 September 2016 the complainant asked for further clarification and on 16 September 2016 the Land Registry addressed each point: 48. Question (i) Thank you for confirming that none of the 4 bankruptcy petition notifications sent to the Land Charges Department from the court received on 26 November 2015 are related to the 3 bankruptcy orders made on the 11 May 2016 that it is presumed you registered a bankruptcy restriction against. So does this mean that none of the 3 bankruptcy orders made on 11 May 2016 has any previous bankruptcy petition notice registered with the Land Charges Department? 49. The Land Registry explained it had not checked the register of any affected title so cannot answer this as there is no requirement to do so to complete this FOIA request. The Land Registry explained that if the 8

9 complainant wishes to find out the entries on any title he needs to purchase an official copy of the register using the Land Registry s statutory services. 50. Question (ii) Information is not accessible elsewhere because you have not supplied any details to search the register and I have not asked you to provide any creditors or debtors details. 51. The Land Registry explained it does not need to supply details. The debtor s name is input on the form. 52. Question (iii) Quote "To clarify Form 6.14 states the date of the petition, and the form is dated. This may or may not be the same date the petition was filed/lodged at court." Are you saying that the court must also date and sign Form 6.14 before they send it to the Land Charges Department, and they may not send you notification immediately as required under Insolvency rule 6.13? 53. The Land Registry explained it deals with applications as and when they are sent to it. This is why it explained that this may not be the same date the petition was filed at court as it does not have that information. 54. Question (iv) To clarify you were asked to confirm the date you received notification of the petitions filed into the court on 23 September Are you saying that all 4 petition notices received on 26 November 2015 were filed into the court on 23 September 2015 or are you saying they were all filed in to the court on the 1 September 2015 or different dates? Please provide the date the court dated the 6.14 Forms. 55. The Land Registry again explained it deal with applications when they are sent to it. It does not know the date they were filed into court. The complainant would need to ask the court. 56. The Land Registry confirmed that the only information it holds is as stated on the form. The Form 6.14 is dated 1 September Question (v) Quote "The forms 6.26 do not state the date they were sent to the Land Registry by the Insolvency Service nor do they provide the date that the restriction was entered on the register" 9

10 Please confirm for each of the petition filings, the date the bankruptcy orders were made and the date they were sent to you by the Insolvency Service and the dates you registered a restriction on your register, this information will be recorded. The Insolvency Service do date and sign Form 6.26 and this is the date they send them. 58. The Land Registry referred to its previous response and explained the information on the forms is reasonably accessible by other means as are official copies of any register of title using its statutory services. 59. Question (vi) Quote "The date on the form 6.26 may not be the same date that Land Charges Department received notification." I am sure the information that you have provided was not meant to cause confusion but unfortunately it is not very clear. 60. The Land Registry explained that the form 6.26 does not state the date the Land Charges Department was notified of bankruptcy orders which is why the date on the form may not be the same date it received notification. Scope of the case 61. The complainant contacted the Commissioner on 23 June 2016 to complain about the way his initial requests for information (made in May 2016) had been handled. The Commissioner created two cases to investigate the response of the Land Registry to each: FS with respect to the requests of 12 and 13 May 2016; and FS with respect to the request of 24 May The complainant has since asked the Commissioner to review the response of the Land Registry to his requests of 8 June 2016 and 25 July As the requests are broadly similar and the Land Registry s responses are identical, the Commissioner has included all the related requests and responses within the scope of this case. 63. The Commissioner considers the scope of the case is to determine whether the Land Registry handled these requests in accordance with the FOIA. Specifically, the Commissioner will consider whether the Land Registry is correct to apply section 21 to these requests. 10

11 Reasons for decision Section 21 - Information accessible to the applicant by other means 64. Section 21 of the FOIA provides an exemption to information which is reasonably accessible to the applicant otherwise than under section 1 of the FOIA. The purpose of the section 21 exemption is to ensure that there is no right of access to information via FOIA if it is available to the applicant by another route. 65. The Land Registry has explained to the Commissioner that the initial response to the complainant stated further information was not held because the Land Registry had searched its own internal database for the required information concerning the details of the petitioners. This led to some confusion. The complainant argued that the required information was submitted on the relevant forms and that it must be held by the Land Registry. 66. The Land Registry has now clarified that the outstanding information required by the complainant is not held in its internal database. It is actually available in forms accessible via the Land Registry s website. 67. The Land Registry has therefore provided the complainant with a response to his requests and informed him where further information is accessible to him. It has outlined to the complainant what he must do to access the required information. 68. The Commissioner considers that the Land Registry has now provided a correct response under the FOIA to the complainant. However in failing to apply section 21 of the FOIA to the initial requests in May 2016 within 20 working days, the Commissioner finds the Land Registry to be in breach of section 17(1)(a)(b) and (c) of the FOIA. 69. The Commissioner has suggested to the Land Registry that if it has not already done so, it should now review its initial response to the requests which were made in May 2016 so that in future, the correct exemption is applied in the first instance. 11

12 Right of appeal 70. Either party has the right to appeal against this decision notice to the First-tier Tribunal (Information Rights). Information about the appeals process may be obtained from: First-tier Tribunal (Information Rights) GRC & GRP Tribunals, PO Box 9300, LEICESTER, LE1 8DJ Tel: Fax: Website: If you wish to appeal against a decision notice, you can obtain information on how to appeal along with the relevant forms from the Information Tribunal website. 72. Any Notice of Appeal should be served on the Tribunal within 28 (calendar) days of the date on which this decision notice is sent. Signed Rachael Cragg Group Manager Information Commissioner s Office Wycliffe House Water Lane Wilmslow Cheshire SK9 5AF 12