Councillors breach data protection laws – rights for victims

Where councillors breach data protection laws, the victim whose information has been misused or exposed can be entitled to bring a claim for compensation.

We represent thousands of victims for cases on a No Win, No Fee basis. One of the most common types of individual cases are for council data breach compensation claims, so we know how bad the impact can be for the victim.

Victims could be eligible to receive thousands of pounds in damages for the distress caused by the misuse of, or loss of control of, their private information. Here’s some brief guidance in terms of who is responsible for a claim when this happens, what you can, and how we can help you today.

Who is ultimately responsible?

If you have been the victim of a data breach that has arisen from an incident where councillors breach data protection laws, it’s important to know your rights.

You may be able to take legal action, but you won’t normally direct this against a person. Instead, you could be entitled to bring a data breach compensation claim directly against the employer of the councillor, which will usually be the council itself. The concept of vicarious liability means that the employer of an employee involved in negligence can ultimately be responsible. So long as we can show that negligence has occurred, you may be able to bring a case.

There are often systemic reasons behind leaks and breaches as well. Sometimes they occur because the process and procedures at the council are not good enough and that’s the ultimate cause of the problem. It may also come down to training as well, and these are the responsibility of the council.

In summary, the case will usually be brought against the local authority itself fort these reasons.

What can you do?

Where councillors breach data protection laws, those whose information has been exposed or misused could be entitled to make a claim for data breach compensation.

A breach where you may be able to claim could arise where:

• Data has been shared with third parties without proper consent and/or reason to do so;
• Data leaks, perhaps from email or postal errors, or from leaving documents or storage devices somewhere;
• Information being stored for longer than is required;
• Incorrect information is recorded and/or not rectified when the error is noted;
• Data exposure from it being left unsecure, or perhaps from being moved on to a personal laptop or phone which is subsequently hacked.

There can be many more ways in which you may be able to claim. We assess claims on a case by case basis to decide whether we’re able to offer No Win, No Fee representation. When we can, that’s when we may be able to help you.

Some incidents of council data breach claims may have happened as a result of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Whilst most of us have had to adapt the way we work to make sure we can continue to function in our employment, that’s not an excuse for getting lazy over important data protection legislation. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) may take a revised approach to incidents and the law given these unusual circumstances, but the duty to uphold the law remains in place.

Compensation when councillors breach data protection laws

You could be entitled to succeed with a claim for compensation where councillors breach data protection laws.

Importantly, we’re more than happy to offer free, no-obligation advice about your options for justice. All you need to do is contact the team and we can normally tell you right away if it’s a case that we can take forward for you.

We’re here to help.

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