Advice For Making A College Data Breach Claim

If you need to know more about what to do after a college data breach, this article can help. We discuss data protection legislation, such as the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA) and UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), and how these affect the way that colleges can handle your personal data.

College data breach

College data breach claims guide

An independent body called the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is in place to enforce these laws. The ICO does not take compensation claims, and they do not offer compensation.

But, if you suspect a data breach has occurred, and this breach has caused you harm, you may be eligible for compensation. Our advisors can tell you whether you could be eligible to claim, and could also put you in contact with a solicitor from our panel.

To start your free consultation, or to learn more about the claims process, get in touch with our team today:

Choose A Section

  1. When Are You Eligible To Make A College Data Breach?
  2. Potential Examples Of A College Data Breach
  3. What Compensation Could You Receive From A Data Breach Claim?
  4. What Evidence Could Help You When Claiming For A Data Breach?
  5. Our Panel Of Solicitors Can Help You Claim For A Data Breach On A No Win No Fee Basis
  6. Learn More About How To Claim For A College Data Breach

When Are You Eligible To Make A College Data Breach?

Personal data can be any detail that when used on its own (or in conjunction with other information) positively reveals or infers an identity. If you are a UK resident, your personal data is protected by the UK GDPR and DPA.

A college can act as both a data controller and a data processor.  This means that they make the decisions on how your data is used and that they also process this data. Data controllers and processors have to follow the steps outlined by this legislation when they handle your personal data. If they don’t, this could result in a personal data breach, which is a security incident that affects your personal data’s integrity, security, or confidentiality.

However, you cannot claim for any personal data breach. In order to make a claim, you have to be able to show that the breach caused you harm and that it occurred because of wrongful conduct on behalf of the processor or controller.

We will discuss the types of harm that you could sustain as a result of a personal data breach later on in this article. To find out if you could be eligible to make a college data breach claim, contact our team today.

Potential Examples Of A College Data Breach

There are many different types of data breaches that you could make a compensation claim for. However, in order to claim, your case must meet the criteria mentioned in the section above. Some examples of how a college data breach could occur include:

Our advisors are on hand to help you understand whether or not you could be eligible to claim. Get in touch with our team today for more information.

What Compensation Could You Receive For A College Data Breach?

When calculating compensation for a college data breach claim, solicitors will asses two areas of damage. Non-material damage looks at the extent, length of recovery and severity of mental injuries caused by the data breach. This can be issues like stress, anxiety and general emotional distress caused by the breach.

Solicitors and other legal professionals can use the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) to help calculate how much non-material damage compensation you could receive for your claim. The JCG contains a list of injuries, both physical and psychological, that come with guideline settlement brackets. While these can be used when calculating settlement awards, please note that they are not guaranteed figures. 

Type of InjurySeverityAward AmountDetails
Psychological Harm(a) Severe£54,830 to £115,730A very poor prognosis and impact noticed across all areas of the person's life
Psychological Harm(b) Moderately Severe£19,070 to £54,830Similar significant issues as the bracket above but a better prognosis indicated
Psychological Harm(c) Moderate£5,860 to £19,070An improvement in symptoms is seen by the time of trial, indicating a better prognosis
Psychological Harm(d) Less Severe£1,540 to £5,860Awards reflect the length of time affected by symptoms, and how these symptoms affect daily life
PTSD(a) Severe£59,860 to £100,670An acute trauma response that permanently impacts all areas of the person's life
PTSD(b) Moderately Severe£23,150 to £59,860Although a substantive level of injury, a better prognosis is indicated after professional counselling takes place
PTSD(c) Moderate£8,180 to £23,150The injured person will largely recover with persisting symptoms being manageable
PTSD(d) Less Severe£3,950 to £8,180Virtually a full recovery made with a 2 year period and only minor issues going beyond this timeframe.

Could You Receive Data Breach Compensation For Material Damage?

The financial impacts of a college data breach can be assessed as material damage. A personal data breach can have a big impact on your finances. Material damage compensation could help address expenses such as:

  • Money that was stolen from your bank account
  • Fraudulent purchases on your credit card or debit card
  • The costs of any psychological counselling needed
  • Damage to your credit score

If you would like to know more about data breach compensation, our advisors can help. Contact our team today to get an estimate of what you could potentially receive.

What Evidence Could Help You When Claiming For A Data Breach?

You may be wondering what steps you could take if you intend to start a claim for a college data breach. Collecting evidence can be very helpful, and can be done alone or with the help of a solicitor. Evidence can help strengthen your claim, so it can be helpful to gather documents such as:

  • A notification letter or email from the college, stating that a breach has occurred
  • Medical records or reports that illustrate how the breach has affected your mental health
  • Bank statements or credit reports that show how the breach has affected your finances
  • Correspondence with the ICO, such as the findings of an investigation or a complaint lodged against the college

A solicitor from our panel could help you strengthen your claim. To learn more about how to claim compensation, get in touch with our team today.

Our Panel Of Solicitors Can Help You Claim For A Data Breach On A No Win No Fee Basis

Our advisors can take you through a brief and free assessment of eligibility. If your college data breach claim is valid, one of our advisors could connect you with one of our panel’s solicitors.

Our panel offer their services under Conditional Fee Agreements (CFA), which are a kind of No Win No Fee arrangement. Under this kind of agreement, a solicitor will work on your case, typically without requiring an upfront fee. You also typically won’t be asked to pay any ongoing fees to your solicitor.

Claims with a successful outcome require a small and legally-capped percentage to be deducted from their payout as a success fee. However, unsuccessful claimants will not pay this fee.

Want To Know If You Can Make A Data Breach Claim? – Contact Us For Free Today

To find out if a solicitor from our panel could represent you on a No Win No Fee basis, get in touch with our advisors today. In a free consultation, they can tell you if you could have a valid claim, and can also give free legal advice. Following this, if your case is eligible, they may put you in contact with one of our panel’s expert solicitors.

Get in touch today for more information:

Learn More About How To Claim For A College Data Breach

For more helpful guides surrounding the data breach claims process:

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Contact us today to start your college data breach claim.

Writer Jeff Wilders

Editor Cat Hunt