Alan Dransfield's Blog

The following letter is from the ICO and 4 days later the Chester West and Chester Council initiated custodial sentence action against Rob Pickthall.

Subject: Data Protection Complaint – Cheshire West and Chester (SAR 11.3.19)[Ref. RFA0841076]

11 July 2019

Case Reference Number RFA0841076

Dear Mr Pickthall,
 
Thank you for your complaint against Cheshire West and Chester Council. This case has been given the following reference number RFA0841076.
 
Your complaint states that the Council have failed to respond to you subject access request of 11 March 2019.
 
The ICO’s role 

Part of our role is to consider complaints from individuals who believe there has been an infringement of their data protection rights.
 
The law says we must investigate data protection complaints to an appropriate extent. We will put most of our effort into dealing with matters we think give us the best opportunity to make a significant difference to an organisation’s information rights practices.
 
Depending on the circumstances, we will decide whether or not to take action against the organisation and what form our action will take. We do this by taking an overview of all concerns that are raised about that organisation with a view to improving their compliance with the data protection framework. Our decision will not affect your ability to enforce your rights through the courts.
 
Our View
 
We have considered the information available in relation to this complaint and we are of the view that the Council has not complied with their Data Protection obligations in this instance.
 
As such, we have now asked the Council to respond to you directly as a matter of priority.
 
Further Action
 
We do not consider that any further action from the ICO is necessary at this time and we do not intend to pursue this complaint any further. However, please be advised that we keep a record of all the complaints raised with us about the way organisations process personal information. The information we gather from complaints may form the basis for action in the future where appropriate.
 
Right to judicial remedy and compensation [GDPR Articles 79 & 82]
 
Individuals have the right to take proceedings to court if they believe their information rights have been infringed. This means that if a court is satisfied that the individual’s rights have been infringed it may order the controller or processor in question to take steps to comply with its Data protection obligations. Individuals who have suffered material or non-material damage (such as distress) as a result of an infringement may also be able to receive compensation from the controller or processor.
 
Please be advised that this is not a process with which the Information Commissioner’s Office is able to assist and we recommend that you seek independent legal advice if you wish to pursue this course of action.
 
Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention.
 
Yours sincerely,
 
 
 
Amy Higginson
Lead Case Officer