If a request would cost more than the appropriate limit to answer, the Trust is not obliged to answer it. However, the Trust will provide advice and assistance, so far as it is reasonable to do so, to the person who made the request to see if the question could be refined, or resubmitted in part, to bring it below the appropriate limit.
If after providing advice and assistance (as required under section 16) the request would still cost more than the appropriate limit to answer, the Trust will inform the applicant of this no later than the 20-day limit for answering requests. The Trust has a number of options:
- it can decide not to provide the information
- it can answer and charge a permitted fee calculated in accordance with the Fees Regulations, or
- it can answer without charging