British Airways data breach group action: vital information

This month, the official British Airways data breach group action was given the go ahead by Mr Justice Warby, and we were appointed to the Steering Committee that’s conducting the litigation.

As a result of this key development in the action that we’ve been at the heart of since news of the cyberattacks broke last year, several firms have begun advertising for claims. Understandably, this can cause a great deal of confusion for those who have yet to sign-up to join the BA Group Action, and we thought it best to provide people with some vital information.

So, if you’ve yet to start your case, here’s what you need to know.

Background to the British Airways data breach group action

The British Airways data breach group action has been a legal battle that’s been fought since news of the scandal broke back in 2018.

Since then, a number of developments have happened in the case. Firstly, BA’s lawyers launched their own application for a GLO (Group Litigation Order), which was a highly unusual move. In addition, they also wanted a very short cut-off date for people to join the action.

Working with other law firms that have been at the front of the battle for justice, we contested a number of items that BA’s lawyers appeared to want. We spoke to the media about these issues last month in order to highlight the impact of things like a short cut-off date as well. These matters and issues were debated at the October hearing in efforts to move the BA Group Action forward with the best interests of the victims at heart.

What happened at the hearing?

At the hearing, we were appointed to the Steering Committee for the British Airways data breach group action. The GLO itself was given the go ahead, and a short cut-off time frame to join the BA Group Action was avoided.

Claimants now have until January 2021, but there’s a great deal of work that needs to be done between now and then. We therefore recommend – as we always do with these kinds of actions – that people sign-up and start their case as soon as they can.

What does our important work in this action mean?

We have been fighting for the rights of those affected by the BA data breach, working tirelessly on a No Win, No Fee basis for our valued clients.

It means that we can stay at the forefront of the battle for justice for the victims of the cyberattacks, and our clients can benefit from the fact that they’re with a law firm at the heart of the legal fight.

The BA Group Action is one of dozens of different group and multi-party actions we’re involved with. Our experience speaks for itself, and our clients can claim with confidence when they benefit from our No Win, No Fee representation

Taking care when it comes to who to claim with

Now that the British Airways data breach group action has the go ahead, a number of law firms that have not been at the forefront of the fight have started to advertise for claims.

This often happens, and it can be confusing when there are so many firms out there claiming that they’re the experts and telling you that they’re the ones who are bringing the action. Some of these firms didn’t even attend the big hearing when the GLO was approved at the start of the month!

It’s totally up to you as to who you instruct, but what we do recommend is that you consider the position and the expertise of any firm you speak to. The reason we wanted to be on the Steering Committee is because we have the experience and resources to be able to take on a company as big as BA. We also wanted to remain at the forefront of the fight for justice, and our court appointment recognises this. Our clients can benefit from our position on the Steering Committee, which we think is really important.

In short, always remember to consider:

• No Win, No Fee representation, which we offer;
• The experience of the law firm;
• Position of the law firm in the action.

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