What are medico-legal data breach claims, and who could be eligible to make one? Personal data is something that is protected by UK law under the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA) and UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR). All information that could be used either independently or in conjunction with other details to identify you is classed as personal data.
Medico-Legal data breach claims guide
If an organisation, such as a legal firm, fails to comply with this legislation, and this leads to a personal data breach that causes you harm, you may be able to claim compensation.
In this guide, we will explain what a personal data breach is, as well as who could be eligible to claim compensation following a breach. We will also explore the legislation in place to protect the personal data of UK residents and how this legislation outlines claiming criteria.
If you have further questions about medico-legal data breach claims or if you want to start your claim, our team of advisors are here to help. They can provide free legal advice and a free evaluation of your claim. If they find your case to be valid, they may also put you in touch with one of our expert solicitors.
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Select A Section
- What Are Medico-Legal Data Breach Claims?
- What Is The Misuse Of Private Medical Information?
- How Can Solicitors And Medical Experts Prevent Medico-Legal Data Breaches
- Types Of Errors Involved In Medico-Legal Data Breach Claims
- Medico-Legal Data Breach Compensation Payout Examples
- How To Make Medico-Legal Data Breach Claims
What Are Medico-Legal Data Breach Claims?
The DPA and UK GDPR are enforced by an independent agency called the Information Commissioners Office (ICO). The ICO defines a personal data breach as a security incident that compromises the integrity, the confidentiality, or the availability of your personal data.
A medico-legal report is a medical report constructed to support legal proceedings. As such, these reports contain special category data alongside general personal data. Special category data is a type of personal data requiring added protection under legislation. For example, any information regarding your health is classed as special category data, and this information could be found in a medico-legal report.
However, not all medico-legal data breaches become valid claims. It’s essential that you can demonstrate that the solicitor or the law firm’s failings caused the breach. Furthermore, you must experience financial or psychological harm in order to claim.
To learn more about medico-legal data breach claims or to find out how one of our data breach solicitors could help you, get in touch today.
What Is The Misuse Of Private Medical Information?
As we have already mentioned, medical information, such as medical records or information about your medical conditions, falls under special category data. This means that data controllers must establish both a lawful basis for processing this data under Article 6 of the UK GDPR, as well as a separate condition for processing under Article 9 of the UK GDPR.
A data controller decides the purposes for which they intend to use your personal data and how they intend to do so. Whereas a data processor follows the controller’s instructions in order to process this data.
If these two entities fail to establish a lawful basis for processing, or if they handle your medical information in a way that defies data protection legislation, this could lead to a personal data breach.
If a solicitor has misused your medical information, and this has led to a personal data breach, get in touch with our team today to find out what steps you can take next.
How Can Solicitors And Medical Experts Prevent Medico-Legal Data Breaches
There are certain steps that solicitors, GPs and medical specialists can take to ensure that they comply with the UK GDPR and prevent personal data breaches. They can:
- Use strong passwords and other security measures, such as two-factor authentication
- Provide training to staff to help prevent human error data breaches, such as failure to redact documents or failing to use the BCC feature in an email
- Provide adequate physical security for paperwork and records, such as lockable filing cabinets
- Ensure that adequate cybersecurity policies are in place in order to protect digital files and records
If a solicitor or medical expert experiences a data breach that could affect your rights or your freedoms, they must report this to the ICO within 72 hours. They must also inform you without undue delay.
Contact our team today to learn more about medico-legal data breach claims.
Types Of Errors Involved In Medico-Legal Data Breach Claims
A personal data breach can occur in a variety of ways. However, as we have already mentioned, the breach must be caused the the data controller or the data processor engaging in wrongful conduct.
Wrongful conduct could result in a personal data breach through:
- Misdelivery: If a solicitor or medical expert sends your medico-legal report to the wrong email address or wrong postage address, this could be a personal data breach
- Verbal disclosure: For example, your solicitor may disclose information from your medico-legal report over the phone to an unauthorised party.
- Cyberattacks: If the solicitor’s firm or medical organisation responsible for your medico-legal report does not have adequate cybersecurity systems in place, this could make your report vulnerable to cybercriminals.
To learn more about medico-legal data breach claims, get in touch with our advisors today.
Medico-Legal Data Breach Compensation Payout Examples
A medico-legal data breach claim could result in two areas of compensation: material damage and non-material damage. Material damage is the area of compensation that addresses the financial harm you suffer because of the breach. For example, you may have to take time off work in order to recover from the stress of a breach, and this could lead to a loss of earnings. In this case, you could claim these earnings back as material damage.
Non-material damage is the area of compensation that addresses the impact the breach has on your mental health. You may suffer from anxiety due to a data breach, or from depression after a breach.
The table below uses the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) to provide examples of guideline settlements for non-material damage. This document often helps solicitors value claims. Please note that these are not guaranteed amounts.
| Type of Psychiatric & Psychological Harm | JC Guideline Bracket and Severity | Supporting Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Psychiatric Damage Generally | £54,830 to £115,730- (A) Severe | Marked negative issues with work, personal relationships and future prognosis due to permanent and severe symptoms. |
| Psychiatric Damage Generally | £19,070 to £54,830- (B) Moderately Severe | Symptoms are similar to the above, though the prognosis is better. |
| Psychiatric Damage Generally | £5,860 to £19,070 – (C) Moderate | Symptoms are similar to those shown above, with symptoms showing a marked improvement by the time the case goes to trial. |
| Psychiatric Damage Generally | £1,540 to £5,860 – (D) Less Severe | This bracket considers the length of disability, as well as the effect symptoms have on daily activities. |
| Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) | £59,860 to £100,670 – (A) Severe | Permanent and profound symptoms prevent any return to work or function at the pre-trauma level. |
| Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) | £23,150 to £59,860 – (B) Moderately Severe | A more optimistic prognosis is present due to the chance of some recovery with professional treatment. |
| Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) | £8,180 to £23,150 – (C) Moderate | No grossly disabling symptoms continue as a result of a large recovery. |
| Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) | £3,950 to £8,180 – (D) Less Severe | Virtually a full recovery within 1 – 2 years and only minor issues continuing after that. |
For a free evaluation of your claim, get in touch with our team today. Or, read on to learn more about making medico-legal data breach claims.
How To Make Medico-Legal Data Breach Claims
If you have suffered harm due to a medico-legal data breach, you may be wondering how legal representation could benefit your claim. Our No Win No Fee solicitors could provide you with representation under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). Typically, you will not pay any upfront or ongoing fees to your solicitor under a CFA.
If your claim is successful, then your solicitor will take a success fee. This will be a percentage of your compensation, though this percentage comes with a legal cap. But, if your claim does not succeed, then you generally will not pay your solicitor any fees or costs for their services.
Our advisors can put you in touch with one of our expert solicitors if your claim is valid. To learn more about medico-legal data breach claims, get in touch today.
- Calling us on 0800 073 8804
- Contact us online
- Or use the live support option
Medical Data Breach Claim Resources
As well as details on medico-legal data breach claims, the resources below offer further reading on this topic:
- Learn more about how to report a data breach incident
- Advice on police data breach claims
- More advice on claiming compensation for a bank data breach claim
Or, for further resources:
Thank you for reading our guide to medico-legal data breach claims.
Written by Waters
Edited By Hampton
