Legal – policies and procedures
Learn more about the use of this website as well as our policies and procedures for delivering our services and responsibilities
Website Terms of Use
The Website Terms of Use apply to your use of this website https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/ and all associated Met Office micro-sites linked to this website. They include terms and conditions for various free services provided through this website. They also tell you how you can make use of material presented on this website.
Licences
All information originating from the Met Office is subject to Crown Copyright. The Keeper of Public Records has authorised the Met Office to license the use and reuse of its own information, subject to certain conditions. The Met Office issues such licences under terms and conditions which may include the payment of a fee.
Open Data Policy
The Met Office categorises its data into three groups:
- Open
- Managed
- Internal
Different licence arrangements may apply for each category of data. The Met Office Open Data Policy provides further information on the categorisation of our data.
Free Licences
Open Government Licence
The Website terms of use contain licence provisions under the terms of the UK Open Government Licence for Public Sector Information v3.0 which govern the use of material presented on this website, other than material which we tell you is governed by different licence terms.
Registered Public Sector Information Licence
These Licence to Reproduce Registered Content govern the use of free material provided through this website for which you must register, except for material provided through Met Office DataPoint™.
Chargeable Licences
The Met Office offers a number of products and services for which a chargeable licence fee will apply. Please see the 'Services' tab on this website for details of some of the services offered. To discuss access to information under these licences please contact us.
Exceptional concessions may be granted to organisations or individuals involved in public interest research (i.e. not for commercial gain), or for academic or educational purposes. Where a concession is granted to an organisation or individual, the same concession will be granted to like organisations or individuals in like circumstances. For further details please contact us.
Access to information unavailable on our website
The Met Office aims to allow reuse of such material for no cost or as little cost as possible. The possibility of a licence fee being charged is assessed once the licence application has been received.
In order to request access to information, photographs, graphs, slides and similar material that is not displayed on this website, please complete our Application for Public Sector Information. Your request will be assessed and answered within twenty working days, in accordance with The Re-Use of Public Sector Information 2015.
Further information
The Met Office's Pricing policy defines the overall framework from which the detailed prices are set.
Licensing is carried out in accordance with the Delegation of Authority from the Keeper of Public Records, Competition Act 1998, European Union Law, and World Meteorological Organization Resolution 40. All Met Office licences are non-exclusive and conform to The Re-Use of Public Sector Information Regulations 2015.
For more information on Crown Copyright policy and licensing arrangements please visit the National Archives website - http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/information-management/re-using-public-sector-information/uk-government-licensing-framework/crown-copyright/
Freedom of Information
The Met Office is committed to openness and transparency in the conduct of its operations and to the sharing of information. This page sets out our commitments.
Your Met Office Account
You need your own Met Office account to access Met Office Products.
By registering your details for your Met Office account, you warrant that:
- You are legally capable of entering into binding contracts;
- You are at least 18 years old; and
- You are not accessing, and will not attempt to access, Met Office account services from a Restricted Country.
You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your Met Office account and password, and for restricting access to your computer, and to the extent permitted by applicable law you agree to accept responsibility for all activities that occur under your account or password. You should take all necessary steps to ensure that the password is kept confidential and secure and should inform us immediately if you have any reason to believe that your password has become known to anyone else, or if the password is being, or is likely to be used in an unauthorised manner. You are responsible for ensuring that the details you provide us with are correct and complete, and for informing us of any changes to the information you have provided.
We reserve the right to refuse service, terminate accounts or remove or edit content if you are in breach of applicable laws, these terms or any other applicable terms and conditions, guidelines or policies.
For any further information on our policies and procedures, please contact us.