The York CCTV (Closed Circuit Television) network covers much of the city centre, as well as car parks and other areas.
We're only able to release CCTV footage under certain circumstances. The ways you can request access to footage vary depending on those circumstances.
We may receive CCTV footage requests in the following circumstances, but we can't always provide the requested footage:
- car collisions or incidents
- incidents of crime
- parking tickets, fixed penalty notices or lost property
- CCTV footage of other people
- CCTV Subject Access Requests
- CCTV Freedom of Information Act requests
Please note that members of the public are not permitted to view CCTV footage.
Car collisions or incidents
Members of the public are not permitted to view CCTV footage. If you've been involved in an incident, the following action is advised.
For car collisions or incidents without police involvement or crime number, contact your insurance company or solicitor to request the footage and these should be sent to: cctv.generalrequest@york.gov.uk by your insurance company or solicitor.
For car collisions or incidents with a police crime number, report an incident or crime to the police who have an internal procedure for requesting CCTV footage. You should not contact us directly, as you will be advised to re-contact the Police.
Incidents of crime
We don't give CCTV footage out to the public relating to incidents that are under investigation by the police.
Footage can be requested by the police when they're investigating incidents. In the case of civil law, insurance companies and solicitors can also request footage when they're investigating an insurance claim or other incident where the allegation needs to be verified.
Parking tickets, fixed penalty notices or lost property
If you're disputing the issuing of any parking tickets or penalty charge notices, you need to address this with the issuer.
CCTV footage can't be used to resolve parking disputes or matters such as lost property.
CCTV footage of other people
CCTV footage of other individuals is classed as third party data and so is not suitable for release.
Under Data Protection regulations we can't release footage of other individuals or images that would lead to the identification of others, as this would be classed as their data and personal to them.
CCTV Subject Access Requests
Your personal information can be requested under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.
Requesting your information is classed as a Subject Access Request (SAR). If you wish to make a SAR, this can be made verbally or in writing.
In order for us to ensure that we release information to the appropriate individuals, we may need to check your identity. It may therefore speed up your request if you're able to provide proof of identification, such as a driver’s licence or passport.
You can request footage of yourself only, and when doing so you must confirm the following details:
- place where the incident occurred
- date when the incident occurred
- time when the incident occurred
SARs should be sent to the Information Governance Team for assessment. Requests should be sent to information.governance@york.gov.uk, or can be made by telephone on: 01904 554145.
We have 30 days to respond to a SAR from the date of receipt.
CCTV Freedom of Information Act requests
You can make a request for any information the council may hold under the Freedom of Information (FOI) act.
An FOI request may be made for information that does not relate to your personal data, for example, ‘how many CCTV cameras are there in York?’.
FOI requests have to be made in writing and must include:
- a name and address for correspondence
- a description of the information you are seeking
Requests can either be sent by email to information.governance@york.gov.uk, or can be sent by post to: Customer Complaints and Feedback Team, West Offices, Station Rise, York, YO1 6GA.
We have 20 working days to respond to a FOI request from the date of receipt.
To find out more about the Freedom of Information Act, visit the ICO’s website.