WorldPay Contract End Date and rates associated

Summary

The request sought the end date and card rates for the Isle of Man Treasury's WorldPay contract. The Treasury disclosed that the contract operates on a rolling yearly basis but withheld the specific card rates citing commercial sensitivity.

Key Facts

• The WorldPay contract is on a rolling yearly agreement until notice is given to terminate.
• Termination requires at least two months' written notice prior to the scheduled expiration date.
• Specific transaction fees for debit and credit cards were withheld from disclosure.
• The Treasury determined that the public interest in maintaining commercial confidentiality outweighed the interest in transparency.
• The request was processed under the Freedom of Information Act with a partial exemption applied.

Data Disclosed

• 2024-09-18
• 2024-10-15
• 4133939
• 1 year
• 2 months
• Section 30(2)(b)

Exemptions Cited

• Section 30(2)(b) - Economy and Commercial interests (commercial interests of a person)

Original Request

Good Afternoon, Can you please let me know when the WorldPay contract end date is and the relevant card rates associated with it please.

Data Tables (1)

Full Response Text

Freedom of Information
Seyrsnys Fysseree

The Treasury Government Office,
Douglas Isle of Man, IM1 3PU

Telephone: (01624) 685605 Email: FOI.Treasury@gov.im

Government Website: www.gov.im

Our ref: 4133939 14 October 2024

Dear ###,

We write further to your request, received 18 September 2024, which states:

"Good Afternoon,

Can you please let me know when the WorldPay contract end date is and the relevant card rates associated with it please."

Our response to your request is as follows:

Part 1 – Can you please let me know when the WorldPay contract end date is:

The WorldPay contract is currently on a rolling yearly agreement until we give notice to terminate - as detailed in the contract extract below:

“9.2 The term of this Agreement will automatically be renewed for successive one (1) year periods unless either Party gives written notice to the other Party, at least two (2) months prior to the scheduled date of expiration of the initial Term or any renewal term, that this Agreement shall terminate.”

Part 2 - …and the relevant card rates associated with it please.

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the information in part 2 of your request is exempt from disclosure under section 30 of the Act as follows:

Section 30 Economy and Commercial interests

(2)(b) – commercial interests of a person

The information requested for this part of your request is exempt from disclosure on the grounds that releasing the information would likely prejudice the commercial

interests of the Treasury and a third party, in this instance that third party being WorldPay. Accordingly an exemption is engaged under section 30(2)(b) of the Act (its disclosure would or would be likely to, prejudice the commercial interests of a person (including the public authority holding it)).

This exemption applies to the transaction fees for debit and credit cards between Treasury and WorldPay. The Treasury is satisfied that these fees are commercially sensitive and would not be made available to the general public and WorldPay’s competitors in any other circumstances. This is because disclosure of the information would enable Worldpay’s competitors to better understand their pricing strategy allowing competitors to undermine this in the future, ultimately leading to an erosion of margin for WorldPay and having a material impact on their business.

As section 30 is a qualified exemption, it is subject to a public interest test. The factors to be considered are as follows:

Factors in favour of disclosure

• Accountability for the spending of public funds. Ensuring that public money is being used effectively and Departments are getting value for money when purchasing goods and services. • Disclosure would provide transparency and build trust between the public and Government Departments.

Factors in favour of withholding

• Disclosure of the information would place WorldPay at a competitive disadvantage in negotiating future contracts and would prejudice its commercial interests to a significant extent. • The information is not in the public domain. Disclosure would give other commercial competitors a valuable insight into the specific rates charged and would give them an unfair advantage in competing for future contracts, by being able to undercut on price. • The information is confidential in nature and harm would be caused if it was to be disclosed. Disclosure of the information would likely impact on Treasury’s relationship with WorldPay. • The commercial interests of the Treasury would be affected and it would cost the Treasury in the event WorldPay considered taking legal action (for breach of contract) as a result of disclosure of the information. • There is no public interest in placing an organisation at a commercial disadvantage, simply as a result of having entered into a commercial contract with a Public Authority to provide a service, where disclosure of certain financial information has an impact on that organisation.

In taking these factors into account the Treasury determined that the factors in favour of maintaining the exemption outweigh the factors in favour of disclosing the information.

Please quote the reference number 4133939 in any future communications.

Your right to request a review

If you are unhappy with this response to your freedom of information request, you may ask us to carry out an internal review of the response, by completing a complaint form and submitting it electronically or by delivery/post.

An electronic version of our complaint form can be found by going to our website at https://services.gov.im/freedom-of-information/Review . If you would like a paper version of our complaint form to be sent to you by post, please contact me and I will be happy to arrange for this. Your review request should explain why you are dissatisfied with this response, and should be made as soon as practicable. We will respond as soon as the review has been concluded.

If you are not satisfied with the result of the review, you then have the right to appeal to the Information Commissioner for a decision on;

1. Whether we have responded to your request for information in accordance with Part 2 of the Freedom of Information Act 2015; or
2. Whether we are justified in refusing to give you the information requested.

In response to an application for review, the Information Commissioner may, at any time, attempt to resolve a matter by negotiation, conciliation, mediation or another form of alternative dispute resolution and will have regard to any outcome of this in making any subsequent decision.

More detailed information on your right to a review can be found on the Information Commissioner’s website at www.inforights.im.

Should you have any queries concerning this letter, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Further information about freedom of information requests can be found at www.gov.im/foi.

I will now close your request as of this date.