If a personal data breach of your abuse data has caused you to suffer harm, then you may be interested in learning more about abuse data breach compensation claims.
Under the UK General Data Protect Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA), organisations that process the personal data of UK residents have certain responsibilities.
If they fail to comply with this legislation, this could lead to a personal data breach. And if this breach causes you harm, either mentally or financially, then you may be able to claim compensation.
In this guide, we will discuss what makes a valid personal data breach claim, as well as how one of our data breach solicitors may be able to help. If you have any questions about abuse data breach compensation claims, contact our advisors. They can provide free legal advice, and more help. To get in touch:
- Call on 0800 073 8804
- Contact us online
- Or use the live chat feature
Select A Section
- What Are Abuse Data Breach Compensation Claims?
- The Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme
- What Could You Claim Compensation For?
- How To Make Abuse Data Breach Compensation Claims
- Average Settlements For Abuse Data Breach Compensation Claims
- Start A Claim Today
What Are Abuse Data Breach Compensation Claims?
Personal data is any information that could identify you as a living person, either alone or with the help of further information. If this data is involved in a security incident that affects its availability, integrity, or confidentiality, then this is a personal data breach.
Special category data is a kind of personal data that needs extra protection because it is sensitive in nature. This can include your health data, such as medical records, as well as your sexual orientation and your racial or ethnic origin.
Data controllers and processors must comply with data protection legislation when processing the personal data of UK residents. A data controller establishes why and how they need to use your data, and a data processor then processes this data by following the controller’s instructions.
Eligibility To Make Abuse Data Breach Compensation Claims
Valid abuse data breach compensation claims must meet the conditions set out by the UK GDPR, which include:
- The breach contains your personal data
- It is caused by the data controller or processor’s failings
- You suffer harm because of this
Your claim must also be started within the relevant time limit. This can differ, depending on a number of circumstances, but usually, you have six years to start your personal data breach claim. However, this falls to one year if you intend to claim against a public body.
To learn more about abuse data breach compensation claims, contact our advisors today.
The Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme
The Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme provides people with a “Right to Ask” and a “Right to Know” about their partner’s previous domestic abuse convictions or allegations. It allows people to check whether their partner has a recorded history of violence against their partners.
However, this scheme is still subject to the UK GDPR and the DPA. For example, if an abuser’s new partner were to ask for a disclosure of their previous convictions and the scheme mentioned their previous victim by name without a lawful basis for doing so, this would be a data breach. To find out the steps you could take if this were to occur, speak with our team.
What Could You Claim Compensation For?
There are two areas of harm that can be considered for compensation in abuse data breach compensation claims. These are material damage and non-material damage.
Non-material damage is the harm you suffer psychologically as a result of the breach. For example, a breach of your abuse data could make any existing mental health problems worse, such as exacerbated symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or depression. However, a breach of abuse data can also lead to new psychological injuries; you could suffer from anxiety due to a data breach, or you could suffer from stress.
Material damage is the harm you suffer financially as a result of the breach. For example, a breach of your bank account data could lead to criminals stealing money from your account or damage to your credit score.
To find out more about personal data breach claims, read on. Or, contact a member of our team to start your claim.
How To Make Abuse Data Breach Compensation Claims
If you have suffered harm as a result of an abuse data breach, you may be wondering how to make a claim. If an organisation suffers a breach that could affect your rights or your freedoms, they must make you aware of this without undue delay. They must also report the breach to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) within 72 hours.
You can make a complaint directly to the organisation that breached your data, and they may then be able to provide further information. For example, they could tell you how the breach occurred or how to take steps to protect your data later.
However, if they do not respond, or if their response is not satisfactory, you can make a complaint to the ICO. The ICO cannot provide you with compensation, but they can investigate the breach and may fine the organisation responsible.
You can also seek legal advice when you begin the abuse data breach compensation claims process. Get in touch with a member of our team to get free legal advice and learn how one of our solicitors could aid you in making your claim.
Average Settlements For Abuse Data Breach Compensation Claims
Every claim is unique and based on different circumstances, including whether you are eligible for material damage compensation, non-material damage compensation, or both. Because of this, we cannot prove any average settlement amounts.
However, the table below can give you a broad idea of what you could potentially receive by using compensation brackets from the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG).
Injury Or Harm Suffered | Severity | Notes | Payout Estimate |
---|---|---|---|
Mental Harm | Severe | Serious, severe symptoms impact the ability to cope with areas and aspects of life, resulting in a poor prognosis. | £54,830 to £115,730 |
Mental Harm | Moderately Severe | There are still serious symptoms, though the prognosis is more optimistic. | £19,070 to £54,830 |
Mental Harm | Moderate | There is a good prognosis due to a marked improvement in symptoms. | £5,860 to £19,070 |
Mental Harm | Less Severe | The impact on sleep, daily activities and other symptoms all affect this bracket. | £1,540 to £5,860 |
Reactive Disorder (Psychiatric) | Severe | The person will have suffered permanent effects which stop them from returning to work or daily life at the pre-trauma level. | £59,860 to £100,670 |
Reactive Disorder (Psychiatric) | Moderately Severe | This person will have a significant degree of disability in the foreseeable future, though there is a better prognosis with professional treatment. | £23,150 to £59,860 |
Reactive Disorder (Psychiatric) | Moderate | The person will have made a large degree of recovery, and the effects that continue are not grossly disabling. | £8,180 to £23,150 |
Reactive Disorder (Psychiatric) | Less Severe | There will only be minor symptoms left after a virtually full recovery within one to two years. | £3,950 to £8,180 |
Please note that this table only covers compensation for non-material damage and that the brackets shown are guideline amounts that help solicitors to value claims. They are not guarantees of what you could receive.
For a free consultation of what your claim could be worth, get in touch with our advisors today.
Start A Claim Today
Our No Win No Fee solicitors could represent you and help ensure your claim is filed in full with the help of a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). If you are with a solicitor under a CFA, you will typically not need to pay any fees to your solicitor for their services unless your claim succeeds. In this case, they will take a success fee from your compensation. But, if your claim does not succeed, then you will not pay your solicitor for their services.
To find out how our solicitors could benefit your claim, get in touch:
- Call on 0800 073 8804
- Contact us online
- Or use the live chat feature
Further Data Breach Claims Information
You may find the following guides about data breach claims helpful:
- Police Data Breach Compensation Claims Guide
- Is Sharing an Email Address A Breach Of GDPR?
- Nursery Data Breach Compensation Claims Guide
Or, for more information:
Thank you for reading our guide to making abuse data breach compensation claims.
Written by Chelache
Edited By Hampton