Town have lost their High Court claim that Suffolk Constabulary unlawfully charged them for policing costs in the roads surrounding their Portman Road stadium on match days between 2008 and 2013. The club are set to launch an appeal against the decision.
At a two-day hearing last month the club claimed it was unlawful that they were charged for the policing of closed roads such as Portman Road and Sir Alf Ramsey Way on matchdays and were suing for £200,000.
Suffolk Constabulary, who subsequently issued a counterclaim against Town for more than £96,000 in unpaid invoices, argued that the policing of the roads is inseparably linked to that inside the stadium and is therefore the club’s responsibility.
The judge ruled in Suffolk Constabulary’s favour, agreeing that they are entitled to recover the costs of policing those areas around the ground as the services provided amount to "special police services”.
In a statement, Town said: "The club, having considered the Court’s judgment in detail with our lawyers and other interested parties, is disappointed with the decision.
"It should be noted the Suffolk Police have admitted that they did overcharge the club for policing services prior to August 2011.
"The club has sought permission from the Court to appeal the decision and this has been approved and as a consequence we are now applying to the Court of Appeal to grant the hearing of an appeal.
"We will not be making any further comment on the matter in view of that pending appeal against the High Court’s decision.”
Suffol Constabulary said in a statement: "The judgement has acknowledged that policing football matches at Portman Road is something which needs to be paid for fairly and sensibly with appropriate policing costs being recovered.
"We will continue to work with the Safety Advisory Group to provide advice and allow the chair to determine how the club meets it obligation to achieve a Safety Certificate. We will vigorously defend any appeal, on behalf of the Suffolk tax payer.”
In 2012 the High Court ruled that West Yorkshire Police had overcharged Leeds United for "special police services" between 2009 and 2012, the Whites having argued that policing the roads and car parks around Elland Road is not their responsibility.
As a result of that ruling, Town were amongst a number of clubs to take similar action to reclaim cash previously paid - plus interest - for policing around stadia on matchdays. The Blues were charged from £5,926 to £25,242 per fixture.