Freedom of Information Act 2000
Last reviewed 01/12/2008: any recent updates in this colour.
The Freedom of Information Act 2000 establishes a right to ask for official information held by public authorities. If an authority refuses to release information, a complaint can be made under the Act. Such compaints are dealt with by the Information Commissioner's Office, which provides information on the process.
In August 2007 the Information Commissioner (IC) published decisions in relation to two cases where the Financial Services Authority (FSA) had refused to disclose information to an individual, who had then applied to the IC for a ruling under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. In both cases, the IC has upheld the complaint that the information was wrongly withheld and has directed the FSA to release it.
The first case related to a review, carried out by the FSA in 2001, of the way in which firms set premiums for mortgage endowment policies. The second case related to a mystery shopping exercise, conducted in October 2004, designed to test firms' sales of equity release products.
In the first case, published on 7 August 2007, the IC requires the FSA to disclose within 35 days the names of 12 firms which the FSA considered had made inappropriate use of LAUTRO charges when setting premiums for mortgage endowment policies.
In the second case, published on 16 August 2007, the IC requires the FSA to disclose within 35 days the names of the firms selected by the FSA for the purposes of the mystery shopping exercise. It also requires disclosure of the names of 20 firms which were investigated further as a result of the mystery shop, and details relating to that investigation
