Sunday, September 12, 2010

How To Respond to Any request?

How should an organisation respond to my request?

The organisation has to reply promptly, and at the most within 40 days, starting from the day they receive both the fee and the information they need to identify you and the information you need. A credit reference agency must reply within seven days to a request for a credit file.
If an organisation reasonably needs more information to help them find your information or identify you, they have to ask you for the information they need. They can then wait until they have all the necessary information as well as the fee before dealing with your request.
The organisation should give you the information in writing but they need not do this if it is not possible, if it takes ‘disproportionate effort’ or if you agree to some other form, such as seeing it on screen. The Act does not define what disproportionate effort means but we think the following should be taken into account:
  • the cost of giving you the information;
  • the length of time it will take;
  • how difficult it will be;
  • the size of the organisation; and
  • the effect on you of not having the information in permanent form.

What will be sent to me?

You are entitled to be told if any personal information is held about you and if it is, to be given:
  • a copy of the information in permanent form;
  • an explanation of any technical or complicated terms;
  • any information the organisation has about where they got your information from;
  • a description of the information, the purposes for processing the information and who the organisation is sharing the information with; and
  • the logic involved in any automated decisions (if you have specifically asked for this).

How can I get a copy of my credit file?

For instructions on how to get a copy of your credit file view our credt guide.

Can the organisation withhold any information?

Yes. There are some circumstances where the information you have asked for contains information that relates to another person. Unless the other person gives their permission, or it is reasonable in all the circumstances to provide the information without permission, the organisation is entitled to withhold this information.
There are other circumstances where the organisation can withhold information under the Act. For example, if it would put at risk a criminal investigation or catching an offender. If you want more information on the circumstances when information may be withheld in this way, view our guide to data protection for organisations.
The Act covers personal information that:
  • is held, or going to be held on computer;
  • is in, or going to be in, a manual filing system that is highly structured so that information about you can be easily retrieved;
  • is in most health, educational, social service or housing records; or
  • is other information held by a public authority.

How can I access ‘other information’ held by a public authority?

The Freedom of Information Act 2000, which applies to public authorities, amended the Data Protection Act by creating another category of personal information. This category covers personal information held about you by a public authority that is:
  • partly organised, such as in a file with someone’s name on it which has been compiled in date order; or
  • is ‘unstructured’ material, and is not organised in a file or any other way.
You can request access to partly-organised information using a normal subject access request as described above.
If you want access to unstructured information, you will need to describe the information you want so the authority can find it. Although the fee for access to public authority information is £10, the authority can estimate the cost of dealing with a request for unstructured information, and refuse the request if the cost is more than £450 (or £600 if it is central government).

What can I do if the organisation does not comply with my subject access request?

If you have sent all the necessary information (including any fee) and
  • the organisation does not respond to your request within 40 days; or
  • you are not satisfied with their response;
you should send them a reminder letter by recorded delivery (and keep a copy of the letter).
If you do not get a reply fairly quickly, or you think the information you receive is wrong or incomplete, you can:
  • ask us to carry out an assessment to see whether it is likely or unlikely that the organisation has responded properly; or
  • take legal action through the court. For information, please see Taking a case to court.
Our assessment will tell you if it is likely that the organisation has broken the Act and may help you decide whether to take legal action. However, you can take a case to court without asking us for an assessment.

What orders can the court make?

If a court is satisfied that an organisation has not dealt with a subject access request in line with the Act, the court can order them to comply. The court also has the power to award compensation. For more information, please see Claiming compensation and Taking a case to court.

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