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TSB Bank Data Breach Compensation Claims Guide

Banks have been keeping our money safe for hundreds of years, but did you know they also keep something else that can be just as valuable? Your personal and financial information, in the wrong hands, can be worth a lot of money. Due to new laws, it needs to be kept safe and secure in similar ways to cash. In this guide, we’re going to show you when you could make a TSB Bank data breach claim. We’ll look at what harm could be caused, why you might be able to claim and how much compensation could be paid.

TSB Bank data breach claim

TSB Bank data breach claim

The laws that relate to your personal information are the General Data Protection Regulation (or GDPR) and The Data Protection Act 2018. If these laws are broken, banks and any other type of organisation can receive financial penalties from the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). We’ll look at their role later on and explain how their investigations could help you with a compensation claim.

Legal Expert is here to support you if you would like to start a data breach claim. Our specialist advisors provide completely free legal advice and a no-obligation review of your case. If the claim appears viable, you could be referred to our data breach solicitors who’ll work on a No Win No Fee basis if they accept your claim.

To discuss claiming today, call us on 0800 073 8804. Or, if you’d like more information on why you could claim, please continue reading.

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A Guide To Data Breach Claims Against TSB Bank

You might not realise how often you’re involved in GDPR-related interactions, but they occur almost every day. When you visit a website, book an appointment, sign up for a new bank account or make a purchase, you’ll often be asked to tick a box or click on an agree button to allow the company involved to use your information in some way.

When this happens, it’s because the company is carrying out its duties under the GDPR which means it needs to get your permission before processing, storing or sharing your personal information. Once you’ve told the organisation about your preferences, it’s important they adhere to your choices.

For instance, if you open a new bank account, the bank can’t use your information to send you marketing information unless you’ve told them you’re OK with that. If a security breach happens and your personal information is leaked, you could be entitled to sue the bank for any harm that follows.

To start a claim, you’ll need to act within the relevant time limits. In most cases, you’ll have 6-years to claim but if your claim is about a breach of your human rights, your time limit could be reduced to just 1-year.

Legal Expert advises you to start any claim as soon as possible so that you find it easier to recall what happened. In addition, your solicitor will probably find it a lot easier to seek any substantiating evidence the sooner they start handling your claim.

When you’ve read this detailed guide about TSB Bank data breach claims, please call one of our advisors if you have any questions or if you’re ready to begin your claim today.

What Is A Data Breach Claim Against TSB Bank?

It’s quite common to associate data breach claims with issues relating to computers and cybersecurity. While that might be the case, they can also involve physical documentation such as personal letters or documents stored in filing cabinets.

The GDPR says that a data breach occurs after a security flaw results in personally identifiable information being altered, destroyed, lost, disclosed or accessed in ways that you’ve never permitted. Whether the act is accidental, deliberate or illegal does not matter – the ICO could issue the company responsible with a financial penalty.

Should the company become aware of a data breach involving your information, they should tell you what happened, when the breach took place and what information was exposed.

For free advice on seeking damages for a TSB Bank data breach, please get in touch with us today.

What Personal Data Is Protected By The GDPR?

The GDPR defines personally identifiable data as any information that could be used to identify you (the data subject) indirectly or directly. The type of information that could mean includes your name, telephone number, email address, gender information, race information, bank account number, credit card number, location information or your address.

The GDPR has a set of principles that data controllers (the company who defines why your data needs to be processed and how it’s gathered) have to stick to, including:

  • Making you aware of why your personal information is needed.
  • Processing data legally, fairly and in a way that’s transparent to you.
  • Only collect the minimum amount of data that’s needed.
  • Keeping your personal information up to date.
  • Processing data securely and confidentially.
  • Only storing personal information for as long as it’s needed.

Legal Expert could help you if you can prove that you’ve been the victim of a banking data breach involving TSB Bank or any other financial institution. For more details on the support we could provide you with, please contact a member of our team today.

Has The Information Commissioners’ Office Taken Enforcement Action Against A Bank?

Now it’s time to look at a real-life case involving TSB Bank which the Information Commissioner’s Office and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) had to investigate.

The issue occurred when TSB’s computer systems were migrated from the systems of its old owner, Lloyds Bank. The ICO had to contact TSB when it became clear that customer data had been exposed to others.

Some customers reported that over the weekend of the migration when they attempted to log in to online banking, they could see the accounts of other customers. Others suggested their accounts had wrongly been credited with thousands of pounds.

The reason for the migration was because TSB had been acquired by a Spanish bank that intended to migrate customers to its own banking software in an effort to save £160m per year.

A TSB spokesperson admitted that a large number of customers logging into online banking via the web and mobile app had caused, “intermittent issues with people accessing our services.”

Source: https://www.computerweekly.com/news/252439781/ICO-and-finance-regulator-assess-TSB-IT-blunder

What Constitutes A Data Protection Breach?

Now we’re going to look at some different scenarios that could lead to a data breach in a bank. They include:

  • If the bank’s computers are hacked and infected with ransomware or viruses which expose your personal financial information.
  • When a member of staff at the bank goes through your records with no reason to do so.
  • If a contractor working in the bank is able to read your bank records because a computer system is left unlocked.
  • Where documents containing identifiable information are thrown away with normal rubbish rather than being securely shredded end up in the public domain.
  • When a letter containing your personal information is sent to the wrong customer.
  • If a bank’s offices are broken into and documentation is lost because it wasn’t locked in secure storage.

If a breach has happened and your personal or financial information has been leaked, we could help you claim whatever the reason. Please call today to find out more.

How The ICO And Financial Conduct Authority May Help You

In the first section of this article, we discussed how the ICO has the power to investigate data protection breaches and issue fines to companies it finds has broken the law. Before you can ask the ICO to step in, though, you’ll need to follow the TSB Bank complaints process first. After you’ve done so, and you’ve escalated the complaint where possible, you could ask the ICO to investigate or you could start your own legal proceedings.

Importantly, an ICO investigation will never result in you receiving compensation. That said, its findings could help with your own legal action against the bank. The only way you’ll receive compensation for any suffering caused by a data breach is by claiming against the bank directly.

Therefore, if it’s been 3-months since your last meaningful communication with the bank, why not connect with one of our advisors to have your claim assessed on a no-obligation basis. If your case is taken on, a solicitor will determine whether a negotiation with the bank directly to try and reach a settlement can be agreed, or whether you should complain to the ICO first of all.

How The Victim Of A Data Breach May Be Compensated

As part of a possible data breach claim against TSB bank, your solicitor could break the claim into 2 main sections:

  • A material damages claim, which will be for any financial losses the data breach has caused.
  • A non-material damages claim for any psychological harm that has been caused.

As well as looking at harm you’ve suffered already, your solicitor will delve further into things to find out if there might be any future issues caused by the breach as well. This is important because you’re only able to make one claim.

For example, you might have to claim for any money you’ve lost because of the breach, but your solicitor will also work out if you might be financially impacted in the future as well. This could be the case if an identity thief used your details to obtain finance which means you might struggle with a mortgage application you’re thinking of making.

In the same way, your solicitor will use medical specialists to ascertain whether any anxiety, depression or stress caused by the data breach could lead to a negative impact on work, education, life in general or your relationships with others in the future.

All of these considerations go to show how important it is to get a claim right and it’s one of the main reasons we advise you to have a specialist representative on your side to make sure that no aspect of the claim is forgotten. Our solicitors could work with you to review your claim, assess the total impact and work out what should be claimed for.

To find out if we’re able to help you start a TSB Bank data breach claim, please reach out to our team today.

Calculating Settlements For Data Breaches By A Bank

Let’s now look at how much compensation could be awarded for the harm caused by a data breach. We’re going to reference a case heard by the Court of Appeal (Vidal-Hall and others v Google Inc [2015]) where it was decided that you can seek damages for psychological harm caused by a data breach even if you haven’t lost any money—a massive departure from the previous position which required financial harm in order to claim.

In addition, the ruling said that compensation for psychological damage should be awarded at the same level as personal injury claims.

Therefore, we’ve added the table below which shows potential compensation amounts for different injuries which could be caused by data breaches. The figures are from a document called the Judicial College Guidelines which we think is more reliable than a data breach compensation calculator. Once your claim has been fully assessed, your solicitor will be able to provide a more personalised estimate.

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Claim Severity Level Compensation (range) Additional Notes
Psychiatric Damage (Generally) Severe £51,460 to £108,620 The factors considered in this category are the victims ability to deal with work, education and life; the effect on relationships; Whether treatment will help; Any future vulnerability; and the medical prognosis. In this category, there will be very poor prognosis and serious problems with all factors listed.
Psychiatric Damage (Generally) Moderately Severe £17,900 to £51,460 The victim will have significant problems with the factors listed above but they will receive a much more optimistic prognosis.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Severe £56,180 to £94,570 The victim will suffer permanent symptoms of PTSD in this category including nightmares, suicidal ideation, flashbacks and mood swings. There will be no chance of returning to pre-trauma levels which will make work impossible.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Moderate £7,680 to £21,730 The effects on this victim will be significant for the foreseeable future but there will be a chance of improvement with professional help leading to a better prognosis.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Less Severe Up to £7,680 The victim will just about have fully recovered in this category. Their injuries will have lasted for up to 2-years and any symptoms which continue will be minor.

As you’ll see from the table, compensation is awarded based on the severity of any injuries. That’s why, as part of the claims process, you’d be asked to visit a local specialist for a medical assessment. During the appointment, you’d be asked a number of questions and your medical notes will be reviewed.

Once the examination is over, the specialist will detail their findings in a report which will be sent on to your solicitor, who’ll use this to evidence your case.

How To Take Action Against A Bank For Civil Damages

OK, just to go over what we’ve explained already, to start a TSB Bank data breach claim, the first thing to do is to lodge a formal complaint with them. You should explain clearly what information you want and what you expect them to do. Once you receive a formal response, you’ll have the choice of accepting their findings or to escalate your complaint.

If you’ve followed all escalation routes, and it’s been 3-months since you last communicated with the bank, you could start legal proceedings against them or request an ICO investigation.

We’d advise looking at your legal options first because the ICO cannot issue compensation to you. They can issue financial penalties to the bank for data protection breaches, and their investigation can be useful in your legal action, but it won’t mean you’re compensated.

If you ask one of our data breach solicitors to start a claim, and your case is taken on, they’ll usually look at settling with the bank directly to see if an amicable arrangement can be reached without involving the ICO. To find out more about whether you could claim on this basis, please discuss your case with an advisor today.

Find A Solicitor Dealing With Data Breach Cases

So, if you need legal representation to help with your claim, how do you identify the best data breach solicitor to help you? There’s an argument that choosing the most local law firm might be the best thing to do and some people use online reviews to check out which solicitor to use. Others simply look to friends or family for recommendations.

In theory, each of those actions might work out for you. In other cases, though, you might end up spending a lot of time getting nowhere. To save yourself time and to give yourself a good chance of finding an experienced solicitor, why not contact Legal Expert instead?

If your claim is taken on, you’ll be paired with a data breach solicitor from our team who’ll deal with all aspects of the claim for you. They’ll communicate with the defendant on your behalf, answer any questions you might have and give you regular updates as things happen. Importantly, they’ll work extra hard to try and make sure you are compensated fairly for your suffering.

No Win No Fee Data Breach Claims Against TSB Bank

If you’ve read this article and are now considering starting a claim, but you’re worried about the potential costs involved, then we can help. To alleviate your worries and to reduce any financial risks, our solicitors offer a No Win No Fee solution for all claims they agree to take on.

After a telephone consultation with an advisor, a data breach solicitor will review your claim to see if there’s a reasonable chance of success. If they’re happy to continue, and you’d like to proceed, you’ll be provided with a contract called a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), which is the formal name for a No Win No Fee agreement. The CFA is used to fund the case and will show you that:

  • You won’t be asked for any fee to start the claim.
  • There won’t be any solicitor’s fees (or hidden charges) requested while the claim progresses.
  • You don’t have to pay your solicitor’s fees if the claim fails.

In the event your solicitor wins your case, they’ll retain a part of your compensation called a success fee. This is a percentage of your compensation that covers the solicitor’s time and expenses. By law, success fees are limited and, so there are no surprises, your percentage will be clearly shown in the CFA.

If you’d like us to check if your TSB Bank data breach claim could be made on a No Win No Fee basis, please get in touch today.

Talk To Our Data Breach Team

If you are in a position to start a TSB Bank data breach claim, there are a number of ways to get in contact with our team. You can:

To make the process of starting a claim easier, you can contact our live chat or claims line 24-hours a day, 7-days a week. When you get in touch, an advisor will assess your claim with you on a no-obligation basis and review any evidence you can supply. If your claim appears to have strong grounds, you could be referred to one of our specialist solicitors for a more in-depth review.

Related Guides

You’ve arrived at the final part of our guide about TSB Bank data breach claims. Therefore, to provide additional help both now and if you require our help in future, we’ve linked to some more of our helpful guides as well as some external resources which you may find useful.

Anxiety Disorder – Information relating to Generalised Anxiety Disorder from the NHS.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) – The conduct regulator for financial markets and financial services firms.

ICO Action – An up to date feed of fines and investigation reports from the ICO.

Credit Card Data Breaches – A look at claims relating to the harm caused by credit card data breaches.

Hospital Negligence Claims – This guide shows you when you could claim compensation for suffering caused by negligence in a hospital.

Slip Trip or Fall Claims – Details on why you could be eligible for compensation following a slip trip or fall.

Other Useful Compensation Guides

Thank you for reading our guide to TSB data breach claims.

 

Guide by Hambridge

Edited by Billing