The Local Authorities (England) (Charges for Property Searches) Regulations 2008

Calculation of charges for access to property records

6.—(1) This regulation and regulation 7 make provision for the charges and internal recharges made under regulation 5(2) to be no more than the costs to the local authority of granting access to property records.

(2) Subject to paragraph (3), each charge or recharge (the “unit charge”) for access to property records made during a financial year must be calculated by—

(a) dividing a reasonable estimate of the likely total costs to the local authority in granting access to property records (and performing internal transactions) during the financial year; by

(b) a reasonable estimate of the number of requests for access to property records likely to be received (from another person or different departments of the authority) over that same financial year.

(3) A local authority must take all reasonable steps to ensure that over the course of any period of three consecutive financial years, the total income (including notional income from internal transactions) from such charges and recharges does not exceed the total costs of granting access to property records.

(4) Where under paragraph (2), a local authority makes an overestimate or underestimate of the unit charge for a financial year, it must take this into account in determining the unit charge for the following financial year.

(5) Each unit charge made during a financial year must be the same amount and must be applied on equal terms, regardless of whether it is made in relation to granting access to property records or internal transactions (although multiple unit charges may be made in respect of multiple requests for access or multiple transactions).