In this guide, we discuss the potential steps you could take following an employment agency data breach. Firstly, we discuss the responsibilities certain parties have to protect your personal data as per data protection laws. Then, we look at when you could be eligible to start a personal data breach claim. We also discuss how evidence could support your case and what you could gather.
Can You Claim For An Employment Agency Data Breach?
Later on in our guide, we offer some examples of how an employment agency could breach your personal data and the financial and/or psychological impact this could have on you. We also look at how data breach compensation payouts are assigned a value and what each settlement could comprise.
To conclude, we explain the benefits of working with a No Win No Fee data breach solicitor and the services they could potentially offer to assist you with seeking compensation.
Our advisors offer a free case assessment, and if yours is eligible, they can connect you with a solicitor from our panel today. To find out more:
- Call for free 24/7 on 020 8050 3051
- Contact us via the online form.
- Ask a question via the live support option below.
Browse Our Guide
- Can You Claim For An Employment Agency Data Breach?
- How Could An Employment Agency Data Breach Happen?
- How Much Compensation Could I Receive When Claiming For A Personal Data Breach?
- What Evidence Could Help You Make A Data Breach Compensation Claim?
- Can I Use No Win No Fee Data Protection Breach Solicitors To Claim?
- Read More About How To Claim For An Employment Data Protection Breach
Can You Claim For An Employment Agency Data Breach?
Data controllers, often an organisation, such as an employment agency, decide why and how they will process your personal data. In some cases, they will process the data themselves. However, in other cases, they can outsource this task to a data processor who acts on their instruction. Both of these parties have an obligation placed on them by the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) as well as the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA) to protect your personal data.
Personal data is any information that can identify someone when used alone or with other information. This may include your name, postal address, email address, or credit and debit card details. It may also include more sensitive information such as data concerning your health, or biometric data where used for identification purposes. This is known as special category data and is given extra protection due to its sensitive nature.
If a data controller or data processor failed to uphold the obligations placed on them by the UK GDPR and DPA, it could lead to a personal data breach. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), an independent body set up to uphold information rights and freedoms in the UK, provides a definition of a personal data breach. Personal data breaches are security incidents that impact personal data’s availability, confidentiality or integrity.
It’s important to establish that not all personal data breaches enable you to pursue compensation. To have valid grounds to do so, you must prove the following occurred:
- There were failings by the data controller or data processor to adhere to the UK GDPR and DPA.
- Due to their failings, a breach of your personal data occurred.
- As a result of the personal data breach, you suffered monetary loss, psychological damage or both.
To find out more about the eligibility criteria you need to meet in order to claim following an employment agency data breach, please contact an advisor on the number above.
How Could An Employment Agency Data Breach Happen?
Employment agencies, or recruitment agencies, work on behalf of employers to help them find suitable candidates to fill any vacancies they have. They do this by looking at the details and experience on job seekers’ CV’s. Generally, employers pay for the services of recruitment agencies so job seekers don’t need to pay. However, there may be fees charged to job seekers for additional services, such as CV printing. As such, employment agencies may hold several types of personal data.
There are various ways an employment agency data breach could occur. Below, we have provided some data breach examples.
- Human error could see your CV, containing your contact information, sent to the wrong email address. This could lead to you experiencing anxiety.
- The employment agency could suffer a ransomware attack if they have poor cyber-security systems in place. This could result in your credit or debit card details being stolen leading to money being taken from your account.
- Poor physical security could mean files containing your personal data are stolen or lost leading to you suffering distress.
To find out whether you can claim compensation for a data breach please contact an advisor on the number above. You can discuss your specific case and find out more about the potential next steps you could take.
How Much Compensation Could I Receive When Claiming For A Personal Data Breach?
You will be awarded a settlement if you make a successful employment agency data breach claim. This could include compensation for non-material damage, the mental harm caused by the personal data breach, and material damage, the monetary loss caused by the personal data breach.
Legal professionals could estimate the value of the psychological damage you’ve suffered by referring to the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). The JCG provides guideline award brackets for different types of harm.
Below is a table including figures from the JCG. Please use these figures as a guide only. This is because the circumstances in each case are unique so settlements will vary.
Compensation Table
| Harm Type | Severity Level | Compensation Brackets - Guidelines | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Psychiatric Damage | Severe | £54,830 to £115,730 | Various aspects of life affected by marked problems. Person is also given a poor prognosis. |
| Moderately Severe | £19,070 to £54,830 | Significant problems with various aspects of life. Despite this, a much more optimistic prognosis is given. | |
| Moderate | £5,860 to £19,070 | A marked improvement will be made. A good prognosis will also be given. | |
| Less Severe | £1,540 to £5,860 | The level of compensation will be dependent on the length and severity of the disability. | |
| Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) | Severe | £59,860 to £100,670 | Due to permanent effects, the person will be unable to work or function at pre-trauma levels. |
| Moderately Severe | £23,150 to £59,860 | There will be a significant disability for the foreseeable future. Despite this, professional help will allow for some recovery. Also, the person will receive a better prognosis. | |
| Moderate | £8,180 to £23,150 | A large recovery will be made, with only issues that are not grossly disabling persisting. | |
| Less Severe | £3,950 to £8,180 | Within two years, a virtually complete recovery is expected. Only minor symptoms will remain beyond this point. |
Claiming For Material Losses After A Data Breach
Your settlement could also include compensation for material damage. This seeks to address the financial loss created by the personal data breach. It is helpful to have evidence to prove these amounts to ensure you’re fully compensated for them.
Examples of the losses you could have experienced and the evidence you could use to support the losses could include:
- Payslips can help demonstrate a loss of earnings incurred due to time taken off work to deal with the psychological impact the breach had on you.
- Bank statements and credit reports can help show any loans taken out in your name or money stolen from your account.
Our advisors can offer further guidance on how data breach compensation payouts are calculated. If you have any further questions, please contact an advisor on the number above.
What Evidence Could Help You Make A Data Breach Compensation Claim?
Evidence could outline that a personal data breach occurred, why it happened and how it affected you. Some examples of the evidence you could supply to support your personal data breach claim include:
- Correspondence with the employment agency detailing that a breach occurred and what personal data was affected. This could include emails or letters sent by the organisation.
- Documents that highlight the monetary impact you’ve experienced following the breach.
- Medical records that outline the mental harm you’ve suffered.
Get in touch with our advisors for a free consultation today. They can discuss the details of your case and assess whether you have valid grounds to proceed with your case. If deemed eligible, you could be connected with a solicitor from our panel who could help you collate evidence to support your case.
Can I Use No Win No Fee Data Protection Breach Solicitors To Claim?
You may want to instruct a solicitor to help you begin your employment agency data breach claim. Our panel of experienced data breach solicitors offer their helpful services, such as help gathering evidence to support your case and sending correspondence on your behalf, under a specific No Win No Fee contract.
Whilst there are many types, the one they can work under is called a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) which typically offers the following terms:
- They won’t charge you any fees for their services upfront to begin your claim or for their continued work as the claim proceeds.
- Following a claim that completes unsuccessfully, there will be no fees for the completed work on your case.
- If your case succeeds, your solicitor can take a success fee from your compensation. They take this as a percentage which has a legal cap. As such, you can keep the majority of your award.
To find out more about how our panel of No Win No Fee solicitors could assist you and the terms under which they can offer their services, please contact an advisor. You can reach them via the following contact details:
- Call for free 24/7 on 020 8050 3051
- Contact us via the online form.
- Ask a question via the live support option below.
Read More About How To Claim For An Employment Data Protection Breach
Please find more of our helpful guides here:
- Find out whether you could make a claim for a data breach on social media and the steps you could take to seek compensation.
- Discover what you could do following an email data breach in which your personal data was compromised.
- Learn when it could be possible to claim following a credit card data breach and how compensation payouts are calculated.
Here are some external resources to help:
- A guide about when to call 999 provided by the NHS.
- Information regarding statutory sick pay from GOV.UK.
- A guide about how to make a complaint about a personal data breach to the ICO.
Thank you for reading this guide about when you could be eligible to make an employment agency data breach claim. If you have any other questions, please contact an advisor on the number above.