What makes a request vexatious?

If an individual has asked for their own information, the starting point is that the individual is entitled to that information.

However, there are a number of withholding grounds which permit an agency to withhold personal information in appropriate circumstances.

One of the withholding grounds allows you to refuse to provide information where the request is vexatious or frivolous.

This withholding ground applies where you receive a request which clearly hasn’t been made in good faith, or is a clear abuse of process.

However, you can’t use this withholding ground simply because a requester is an annoying or even malicious individual. Unpleasant individuals are still entitled to access their personal information. It is the request that needs to be vexatious or frivolous before the information can be withheld.

Some examples of vexatious or frivolous requests might be:

• Where the request is for information which has recently been provided, particularly if it’s been requested several times and there doesn’t appear to be any good reason why the individual might need another copy of the information; or

• Where the individual concerned has advised you they don’t care what personal information you provide; instead they only made a request so that they could make a complaint about you to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner.