Have you had your personal data compromised in a work probation data breach? Did you suffer psychological harm and/or financial damage as a result? If so, you might be eligible to seek compensation.
We have experience helping eligible claimants with data breach claims and can connect those with valid grounds to proceed with an expert solicitor. Read on to learn more about how we can help and the services offered by our panel of solicitors.
Key Takeaway Points
- Certain parties have a responsibility to protect your personal data. These are data controllers, such as an employer, who set the purpose for processing, and data processors, an external organisation who is sometimes tasked with processing personal data on the controller’s behalf.
- Your employer needs to safeguard your personal data, even if you are a new employee on a probation period.
- If there is a failure to adhere to data protection laws, leading to your personal data being compromised in a breach and causing you financial loss and/or emotional damage, you could be eligible to seek compensation.
- You need to provide evidence that you meet the data breach claims eligibility criteria.
- A data breach settlement awarded after a successful claim can compensate for a psychological injury and/or financial damage.
- A No Win No Fee data breach solicitor from our panel can offer several services to help you seek compensation.
If you have any questions after reading our guide, you can get in touch with us. To do so, either call on 020 8050 3051 or fill out our ‘Contact Us‘ form online.
Choose A Section
- How Could We Help You Claim For A Work Probation Data Breach?
- When Are You Able To Claim For A Data Breach At Work?
- Examples Of A Work Probation Data Breach
- What Could You Do After A Work Probation Data Breach?
- How Much Compensation Could You Receive For An Accidental Data Breach At Work?
- Use A No Win No Fee Solicitor To Make A Personal Data Breach Claim
- Read More About Claiming Compensation For Data Breaches
How Could We Help You Claim For A Work Probation Data Breach?
If you get in touch with us, we can answer your questions and provide free guidance on whether you’re eligible to seek data breach compensation. Furthermore, after assessing your case, if we find you have valid grounds to proceed, we can connect you with an expert solicitor from our panel who can represent your claim.
The data breach solicitors from our panel have experience handling claims for a work probation data breach and can assist you by providing the following services:
- Value your claim and ensure you receive a fair settlement.
- Collect evidence to strengthen your case.
- Ensure your case is put forward within the relevant time limits.
- Explain complex legal terminology.
- Keep you updated on the progress of your claim.
- Send any correspondence on your behalf.
For further guidance about how we can help with claims for data breaches, please get in touch using the number at the top of the page.
When Are You Able To Claim For A Data Breach At Work?
Before looking at whether you could claim for a work probation data breach, it’s important to understand what breach is. As per the Information Commissioners Office (ICO), an independent body set to uphold information rights and freedoms in the UK, a personal data breach is a security incident in which the availability, integrity, and confidentiality of your personal data is affected.
Personal data is information that can be used to identify you. If this is breached, it could have several consequences, psychologically and/or financially.
As mentioned, data controllers and processors must adhere to data protection laws called The UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA) in order to protect your personal data. Failure to do so is wrongful conduct which could lead to a personal data breach.
However, in order to make a personal data breach claim, you need to prove the following:
- A data controller or processor did not uphold their obligations as per the UK data protection laws.
- Due to their wrongful conduct, your personal data was compromised in a breach.
- Because of the breach, you experience psychological damage and/or financial losses.
Call us on the number above to discuss your specific circumstances and find out more about the eligibility for data breach compensation claims.
Examples Of A Work Probation Data Breach
As data controllers, employers have the same responsibility to protect the personal data of employees on probation as they do full-time employees who have passed the probation period.
Employers could hold various types of personal data about employees, including name, email address, postal address, phone number, National Insurance number, and bank details. Additionally, they may hold more sensitive data that requires extra protection. This is referred to as special category data and can include data concerning your health, biometric data where used for identification purposes, and data revealing your ethnic or racial origin.
Examples of how this data could be affected in a breach of data protection include:
- An email containing sensitive information being sent to the wrong email address occurs due to human error. As a result, you suffer stress and anxiety because of an email data breach that affected your personal data.
- A scan of your passport, taken as proof of your right to work, is left on someone’s desk. This leads to an unauthorised party gaining access to sensitive data causing you emotional distress.
- You suffer financial loss after paperwork was lost or stolen due to it containing your bank details. Poor physical security measures meant the documents were accessed without authorisation.
For further guidance on claiming for a work probation data breach, please contact us on the number above. We can discuss your specific case and determine whether you’re eligible to seek compensation.
What Could You Do After A Work Probation Data Breach?
There are several steps you could take following a work probation data breach. For example:
- Contact your employer. If you suspect a breach of your personal data has occurred, you could speak to your employer directly. Alternatively, they need to inform you of a breach that’s put your rights and freedoms at risk without undue delay. Any correspondence you have with them, such as letters and emails, can help support your case.
- Contact the ICO. You could make a complaint to the ICO and they might choose to investigate your concerns. If they do, any findings from the investigation can be used as evidence to substantiate your case.
- Gather evidence of any psychological impact. Have any psychological problems assessed by a mental health professional. You can then use copies of your medical records from them as evidence you were mentally affected.
- Gather evidence of any monetary loss. For example, you could keep hold of any bank statements, credit reports, and payslips to show any financial impact of the breach.
Additionally, you might find it beneficial to instruct legal representation. The expert data breach solicitors from our panel can help you collect evidence and build a strong case.
For further guidance on what to do if your data was breached call us using the number above. We could potentially connect you with a solicitor from our panel who could begin helping you put together a strong case.
How Much Compensation Could You Receive For An Accidental Data Breach At Work?
After a successful work probation data breach claim, you could be awarded compensation for:
- Material damage: This refers to the monetary losses incurred due to the breach of your personal data. For example, if your bank details were compromised and money was stolen from your account, you could claim the cost of this back. Alternatively, if you needed to take time off work to recover from the emotional impact of the breach, you could seek reimbursement of lost income.
- Non-material damage: This refers to the psychological harm you incurred due to the breach of your personal data. For example, you may have suffered stress, anxiety, distress, or post-traumatic stress disorder, in more severe cases. Compensation can be awarded to address the emotional affect you have suffered.
When valuing non-material damage, reference can be made to the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). The JCG contains guideline award brackets for different types of harm.
Compensation Table
The table below contains guideline award brackets from the JCG, with the exception of the top entry. Please only use the figures in the table as a guide as the compensation payout you’re awarded for a successful claim will differ.
| Type of Harm | Severity | Notes | Guideline Award Brackets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Severe Impact On Mental Health with Significant Financial Loss | Severe | A settlement addressing the severe psychological impact and substantial monetary losses, such as lost income. | Up to £150,000 plus |
| General Psychiatric Damage | (a) Severe | Significant problems affecting different areas of the person's life and a very poor prognosis. | £54,830 to £115,730 |
| (b) Moderately Severe | A better prognosis than in more severe cases but substantial problems are still present across several areas of the person's life. | £19,070 to £54,830 | |
| (c) Moderate | A good prognosis and significant improvement. | £5,860 to £19,070 | |
| (d) Less Severe | The award given will consider how long the person is affected and to what extent their daily activities and sleep are affected. | £1,540 to £5,860 | |
| Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) | (a) Severe | All aspects of the person's life are badly and permanently affected and they are unable to function at the same level as prior to the trauma. | £59,860 to £100,670 |
| (b) Moderately Severe | A better prognosis and some recovery due to the person receiving professional help. However, a significant disability is still likely for the foreseeable future. | £23,150 to £59,860 | |
| (c) Moderate | The person experiences a significant recovery and any ongoing issues are not majorly disabling. | £8,180 to £23,150 | |
| (d) Less Severe | A mostly complete recovery within one to two years and only minor issues continuing over a longer period. | £3,950 to £8,180 |
For further guidance on how data breach compensation claims are calculated, please contact us using the number above. We can provide a free valuation of your claim to help you understand how much you could potentially be owed.
Use A No Win No Fee Solicitor To Make A Personal Data Breach Claim
Our panel of data breach solicitors can offer their helpful services via a type of No Win No Fee agreement. Whilst there are different types, the one they offer is called a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) which typically means:
- No fees will be required for your solicitor’s services at the start of the claims process, while your claim is ongoing, or if there is a successful outcome for your case.
- A percentage of your compensation will be paid to your solicitor following a claim with a successful outcome. This is taken as their success fee. However, the percentage taken has a legal cap applied to it meaning you keep the most of your settlement.
To find out whether a solicitor could represent your work probation data breach claim, get in touch using the details provided below:
- Call 020 8050 3051 to discuss your claim.
- Use the live chat function below.
- Contact us online.
Read More About Claiming Compensation For Data Breaches
For more helpful data breach claims guides:
- Learn about claiming after a data protection breach at work and the steps you could take to secure a settlement.
- Read if you can claim following a debit card data breach and how compensation is calculated.
- Learn what to do after an employment agency data breach, including when you could seek compensation.
For more helpful resources:
- Read about Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from the NHS.
- Information on making a complaint about data protection from GOV.UK.
- Guidance on your right of access to copies of your data from the ICO.
If you have any other questions about claiming compensation for a work probation data breach, please contact us by calling the number above.
