How To Claim If Disciplinary Paperwork Was Sent To The Wrong Address

Disciplinary paperwork can contain an array of personal information. As a data controller, your employer has a responsibility to protect your personal data. A data controller decides on the purpose for processing your personal data and sometimes will process it themselves.

Disciplinary paperwork

Disciplinary paperwork claims guide

The responsibility they have is set out in data protection law, which includes the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and an updated version of the Data Protection Act 2018. This guide will explore when it might be possible to make a data breach claim after your personal data has been compromised due to a data controller’s failure to adhere to data protection law.

Additionally, this guide will explore the steps you can take following a breach of your personal data. For example, you may find it beneficial to contact the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). This is an independent authority that upholds the rights and freedoms of data subjects. They can also take enforcement action such as issuing fines. In some cases, they might launch an investigation into the organisation who is responsible for a potential breach.

Furthermore, you may be wondering how much compensation you could receive should you put forward a successful claim. This guide will look at what each data breach settlement may comprise and the resources often used to calculate claims.

if you’d like to discuss your potential claim in more detail, you can use the details below to get in touch:

  • Phone – 020 3870 4868
  • Live chat – You can speak with an advisor using the function below
  • Online – Fill out our online claim form.

Select A Section

  1. What Is A Data Breach Involving Disciplinary Paperwork?
  2. What Data Could Be Disclosed In An Unauthorised Way?
  3. Data Breach Examples
  4. What Could You Claim If Your Disciplinary Paperwork Was Sent To The Wrong Address?
  5. How We Could Help With Workplace Data Breach Claims

What Is A Data Breach Involving Disciplinary Paperwork?

As per data protection law, data controller’s such as an employer, have a responsibility to take reasonable steps to protect your personal data.

Personal data is information that can be used to identify you directly or when processed alongside other information. It can include your name, postal address, email address, credit card details, phone number or IP address. Additionally, there is special category data which is considered as sensitive and therefore needs more protection. This could include data relating to your health, religious beliefs, trade union membership, sexual orientation and other information.

Disciplinary paperwork may contain various types of personal data, including sensitive information. As such, your employer, as a data controller, must ensure they adhere to data protection law and safeguard your personal information.

However, if they fail to do so, it could result in a breach of your personal data due to their wrongful conduct. In cases where you have experienced psychological harm or damage to your finances, you may be able to seek data breach compensation.

If you are eligible to seek compensation, you should be aware of the time limit in place for doing so. Generally, you have 6 years to claim or 1 year if the claim is against a public body.

For more information on whether you’re eligible to make a disciplinary paperwork claim, get in touch with our team on the number above.

What Data Could Be Disclosed In An Unauthorised Way?

A personal data breach involves a security incident that affects the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of your personal data. This can include when your personal data is disclosed of or accessed to without authorisation.

A number of personal details could be disclosed through disciplinary paperwork being disclosed in an authorised way, such as:

  • Political views
  • Religious/racial or ethnic details
  • Trade Union member
  • Name
  • Address
  • Date of birth
  • Email address
  • Phone number

Below, we have provided some data breach examples that could lead to your personal information becoming compromised. However, if you would like to discuss your case in more detail, call our team.

Data Breach Examples

There are various ways in which a breach of your personal data could happen involving disciplinary paperwork. For example:

  • Your employer may have failed to ensure they locked away or secured paperwork containing information on disciplinary action. As a result, a member of staff may have accessed it without authorisation.
  • Your employer may have sent over your disciplinary paperwork via fax. However, they may have sent it to the wrong fax machine, meaning it was disclosed to the wrong person. As a result, your personal data was compromised in a fax data breach.
  • The disciplinary paperwork containing sensitive information relating to your religious beliefs, may have been sent to the wrong email address. 

It’s important to note that not all incidents of a data breach could lead to a claim. You would need to prove that an organisation’s failings caused you psychological harm or financial damage as a result of a data breach compromising your personal data.

Call our team to find out when you might be eligible to claim.

What Could You Claim If Your Disciplinary Paperwork Was Sent To The Wrong Address?

Data breach settlements may comprise material damages and non-material damages. Each of these heads of claim aims to compensate you for the different ways in which a personal data breach could affect your life.

For instance, non-material damages compensate for the psychological harm a personal data breach has caused you, such as depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and stress. Consideration is given to the impact these mental health issues have impacted different aspects of your life.

Whereas, material damages seeks to reimburse you for any financial losses caused by the personal data breach.

You can claim non-material damages without having experienced any material damages. Legal professionals can calculate the value of non-material damages with help from the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). The JCG contains guideline compensation amounts that relate to psychological injuries of varying severity.

We have used these figures to create the table below. The figures in the table are based on past court cases but are not necessarily reflective of what you will receive following a successful claim.

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Claim Severity Range Notes
General pyschiatric injuries Severe £54,830 to £115,730 A significant impact on day to day life with regards to factors such as relationships with others and vulnerability in the future.
General pyschiatric injuries Moderately Severe £19,070 to £54,830 A significant impact on factors such as relationships with others and vulnerability in the future, but with a slightly better prognosis than in more serious cases.
General pyschiatric injuries Moderate £5,860 to £19,070 The sort of problems relating to factors such as relationships with others and vulnerability in the future. Symptoms show improvement. Good prognosis.
General pyschiatric injuries Less Severe £1,540 to £5,860 Consideration is given to the length of remaining symptoms, such as the effect on sleep or remaining phobias.
PTSD Severe £59,860 to £100,670 No ability to function at the pre-trauma level. All aspects of life are affected negatively.
PTSD Moderately Severe £23,150 to £59,860 Effects will still cause disability. However, the prognosis anticipates some recovery with professional help.
PTSD Moderate £8,180 to £23,150 Cases where a largely complete recovery has occurred, with no disabling effects that remain.
PTSD Less Severe £3,950 to £8,180 A full recovery within 1-2 years, with only minor symptoms that remain.

For more information on what your settlement could comprise following a successful claim after a disciplinary paperwork data breach, call our team.

How We Could Help With Workplace Data Breach Claims

There are several steps you may wish to take when making a data breach claim, such as gathering evidence. This could include any communication you have had with the organisation or any findings from investigations the ICO has carried out.

Additionally, you may find it beneficial to seek legal advice. Our team of advisors could assign a data breach solicitor from our panel to represent your claim. The solicitors on our panel work on a No Win No Fee basis. As such, they can offer to represent claims under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA).

As per the agreement, you will pay a success fee from your compensation if your claim is a success. However, if your claim is unsuccessful, you will not pay for the services your solicitor provides. There are also no upfront or ongoing costs during the course of your claim.

For more information on making a claim following a breach involving disciplinary paperwork, get in touch. An advisor can also assess whether they can connect you with a solicitor from our panel.

To get in touch, you can:

Compensation Claims Against Employers

We hope this guide on making a disciplinary paperwork claim has helped. However, if you need any other information, call our team.