We have been requesting private hire vehicle/hackney carriage/taxi licensing data from you since 2017.
Example:
Registration number
Vehicle make
Vehicle model
License from
License to

1. I’m aware you may not have records that go back this far however please can you tell me from the earliest date available how many other individuals or companies excluding me have requested this type of information within each year? We do not want the details of the FOI requester.
Example:
2017 yourself plus 1 other.
2018 yourself plus 1 other
2019 yourself plus 2 others…

We do not hold recorded information in a reportable format that would allow us to identify how many individuals or organisations have requested this specific type of licensing data in each year since 2017.

While requests for information are logged, they are not categorised in a way that would enable us to extract this level of detail without reviewing individual cases. To determine this, we would need to manually review individual requests over multiple years. While some requests could be discounted quickly, others would require more detailed review depending on how they are described. We would then need to identify the requester and collate the data by year.

On this basis, we do not hold the requested information in a readily retrievable form. To determine this would require a manual review of individual requests, which would exceed the appropriate cost limit under section 12 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

To assist you in refining your request, it may be possible to consider a narrower scope. For example:
Limiting the request to a significantly shorter and more recent time period;
Broadening the request to all FOI requests relating to licensing services (if this aligns with how requests are more readily identifiable); or
Requesting copies of specific requests you are aware of, which would enable us to locate them more directly. (we do publish these online, but depends on size of material whether the system holds the attachments or if need to be sent by other means).
Please note that due to the way requests are recorded, we cannot guarantee that a refined request would fall within the cost limit, but we would be happy to consider any revised request.