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Tax Information Data Breach Compensation Claims

By Cat Way. Last Updated March 2024. Has your personal information been exposed in a tax information data breach? Are you unsure if you would be eligible to make a personal data breach claim? This article aims to provide information on what steps to take should your personal data be exposed in a tax information data breach.

Tax information data breach claims guide

Tax information data breach claims guide

As part of this guide, we will look at different types of laws that will protect your personal data such as The Data Protection Act 2018 and the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR).

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is the UK’s governing body of data privacy laws and can issue fines to those who fail to adhere to the applicable legislation.

For free legal advice about personal data breach claims, please:

Choose A Section

  1. What Is A Data Breach Of Tax Information?
  2. How Your Tax Information Privacy Could Be Breached
  3. What Is Exempt From The UK GDPR?
  4. Examples Of Tax Information Data Breach Claims
  5. Tax Information Data Breach Calculator
  6. Find Out If You Could Claim With A No Win No Fee Solicitor

What Is A Data Breach Of Tax Information?

A personal data breach can be defined as a security incident that has affected personal data confidentiality, integrity, or availability. Only certain types of data are protected by data security laws in this country.

Generally, all personal information must be kept secure this includes any sensitive or special category personal data also. When we speak of personal information we are talking about data that can help to identify an individual such as name, address, email address, DOB and telephone number, to name a few.

A successful personal data breach claim will show how you have suffered financially or mentally because of the breach in personal information. It will have been proven that the data controller or processor will be liable for the breach in some way i.e. they never protected the data in the way it should have been.

A data controller is very often an organisation who decides how and why personal data is processed. They can outsource this data to a processor for it to be processed.

How Long Do I Have To Claim For A Tax Information Data Breach? 

It’s important to consider the time limits in place for starting a personal data breach claim for a tax information data breach. Generally, you will have six years to start a personal data breach claim; however, the time limit is reduced to one year if you are claiming against a public body.

One of the benefits of working with a solicitor on your personal data breach compensation claim is that they can help ensure that your claim is filed within the relevant time limit. To find out how one of our solicitors could help you through the claims process, we recommend getting in touch with our team of friendly advisors today.

How Your Tax Information Privacy Could Be Breached?

Personal data included in a tax Information data breach could have been exposed in several ways, including malicious intent, such as cyber-attacks or phishing attempts. It could also be due to human error, such as poor administrative practices. Examples of how a data breach could occur are listed below.

  • Phishing: Achieved by clicking on any suspicious links within emails can be the gateway for hackers to enter and steal sensitive information.
  • Poor administrative practices: Poor training in data security awareness can lead to human error data breaches. Also if a company does not have up to date cyber security systems in place cybercriminals can infiltrate their systems with ease.
  • Mis delivery of data: This is when personal information or data has been sent to the wrong email address or home address.

Please get in touch with our advisors for further information on how to claim compensation if your personal information has been exposed in a tax information data breach. They are available to answer any questions and guide you through the process.

What Is Exempt From The UK GDPR?

The UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018 set out exemptions for certain rights and obligations in some circumstances. Exemptions are given to organisations on a case by case basis. This means that an organisation can not rely on having routine exemptions. Therefore, the organisation would need to have a document justification of its reasons for needing an exemption.

Exemptions include

  • The right to be informed
  • The right to access
  • Dealing with other individuals’ rights
  • Reporting personal data breaches
  • Complying with the UK GDPR principles.

Examples Of Tax Information Data Breach Claims

A  data breach can happen in several ways, both through cyber and non-cyber means:

Firstly, cyber-attacks can happen to any organisation. It could be due to ransomware that targets databases. Ransomware, for example, is a virus crafted to hide information away, so it becomes inaccessible. Therefore the cyber attackers can demand a ransom to be paid for the information to be returned.

Secondly, human error is one of the major causes of many data breaches. Sending your personal information to the wrong email address could be caused by human error or a lack of training in data safety awareness.

Having proof of an accountant data breach is vital to be able to pursue a personal data breach claim. Not all those who are affected by a data breach will hold a valid claim.

  • Firstly, you must be able to show that your personal or sensitive data has been involved in a data breach.
  • Secondly, you will need to prove that the breach happened because those who had a responsibility to keep your data safe failed in these aspects. If the data controller had done all they could to protect and keep your data secure a claim would not be possible.
  • Thirdly, you can claim two types of damages for the harm you have suffered.

Please feel free to contact us through our live chat feature for any more information on data breaches involving tax information.

Tax Information Data Breach Calculator

There are two kinds of compensation you could receive as a part of your data breach claim:

Material damage

These kinds of damages cover the financial aspects of the data breach, the claim itself and any financial losses caused by the suffering. They can include funds that have been stolen from your bank account or credit card if your financial information has been breached. However, they can also include loss of earnings if you needed to take time away from work while you recover from any mental suffering.

Non-Material damage

These damages will compensate for the suffering and mental injuries that have resulted from your information being breached. After learning that personal or sensitive information may have been exposed your mental health could suffer causing depression or anxiety.

We have used guidelines from the Judicial College in the table below. The guideline bracket amounts are often used when valuing injuries in civil claims.

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Psychological Reaction Compensation Bracket Notes
PTSD Severe £56,180 to £94,470 The claimant will suffer in all aspects of life. This will include work life, social, life and any relationships. There is a very poor prognosis for the future.
Severe Mental Harm £51,460 to £108,620 The claimant will suffer very severe mental illnesses. The prognosis is poor even with professional help.
PTSD Less Severe £3,710 to £7,680 A full or near full recovery will be made in around 2 years. Any symptoms that remain will be minor.
PTSD Moderate £7,680 to £21,730 By trial the claimant should have made a good recovery any continuing symptoms will be minor.
Less Severe Mental Harm £1,440 to £5,500 This bracket will look at how the claimant has suffered on a day to day basis and how long it took to recover.
Moderately Severe Mental Harm £17,900 to £51,460 There will be very significant problems of mental health issues at the outset. However the prognosis is more optimistic than in cases of sever mental harm.

For a free evaluation of what your claim for a data breach involving tax information could be worth, get in touch with our advisors today.

Find Out If You Could Claim With A No Win No Fee Solicitor

If you have decided to use legal representation you might be interested in a No Win No Fee arrangement. Very often a Conditional Fee Agreement CFA will be used for this type of contract. The CFA will state the terms and conditions of the agreement.

If a data breach solicitor agrees to offer their service on this basis it may mean you pay no upfront fees to hire the solicitor.

If the case does not succeed for whatever reason you would not be required to pay the solicitor for the service they have provided.

Only when the case is won will a fee need to be paid. This will be a success fee that is capped by law and is taken from the settlement before it is given to you.

For free legal advice about personal data breach claims, please

Financial Data Breach Resources

We hope that this guide has provided you with some valuable information on whether you can claim for a tax information data breach. Below we have included some use external guides as well as some more of our own articles.

Furthermore, if there are any further questions, please contact us. Our advisors can answer any questions about a tax information data breach.

Guide By Welsh

Edited By Melissa.