Pharmacy Data Breach Compensation Claims

By Cat Reeves. Last Updated 27th July 2023. If you have suffered harm as a result of a pharmacy data breach, you may be wondering if you can claim.

Pharmacy data breach claims guide

Pharmacy data breach claims guide

Under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA), there are certain steps that pharmacies must take when they collect the personal data of UK residents.

This guide will explain some of these steps, as well as the types of personal data that a pharmacy could collect. It will also address how a pharmacy could breach your personal data and who could be eligible to make a compensation claim.

If you are interested in making a claim, our advisors could help. They can offer free legal advice, and if your pharmacy data breach claim is valid, they may put you in contact with a solicitor from our panel. To learn more:

Select A Section

  1. What Is A Pharmacy Data Breach?
  2. Healthcare Data Breach Statistics
  3. How A Pharmacy Could Breach Patient’s Data
  4. How To Claim For A Pharmacy Data Breach
  5. Pharmacy Data Breach Compensation Payouts
  6. Start Your Pharmacy Data Breach Compensation Claim

What Is A Pharmacy Data Breach?

Your personal data is any information that can identify you. For example, this could include your:

Pharmacies also collect and process special category data. This is a kind of personal data that needs extra protection under the UK GDPR because it is more sensitive in nature. Some examples of special category data include:

  • Health data, such as your medical records or prescriptions
  • Information regarding your sexuality or sex life
  • Your racial or ethnic origin

If a pharmacy suffers a security incident that affects the availability, the integrity, or the confidentiality of this data, then this is a personal data breach. However, in order to claim, then the breach has to cause you harm, and it must also be the fault of the data controller or processor.

A data controller is in control of establishing how and why they need to use your data. A data processor then follows the instructions laid out by the controller to process this data. If the data refers to you, then you are the data subject.

To learn more about making a claim, read on or get in touch with our team.

Healthcare Data Breach Statistics

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) publishes data security incident trends based on reports they receive from various industry sectors. According to these reports, the health sector has suffered the most data security incidents every year since 2019. In 2021, approximately 20% of all incidents reported to the ICO occurred within the health sector.

The ICO is an independent organisation based in the UK. They are responsible for enforcing data protection law, and they also have the power to investigate and fine organisations found to be non-compliant.

If you have suffered harm as a result of a pharmacy data breach, get in touch with our team today.

How A Pharmacy Could Breach Patient’s Data

As we have already mentioned, you can only make a claim for a personal data breach if it is caused by the failings of the data controller or the data processor. With this in mind, some examples of how wrongful conduct could lead to a breach at a pharmacy can include:

  • Data misdelivery: Data misdelivery can be a form of human error, and can occur if a member of staff at a pharmacy sends an email containing your prescription to the wrong email address.
  • Failure to redact: In some cases, your pharmacist may need to share your documents with third parties. if they fail to redact your personal data, and this causes a data breach, then you may be able to make a claim.
  • Cyberattacks: Pharmacies, GP surgeries, and hospitals should ensure that they have adequate cybersecurity systems if they process data digitally. If they don’t, and this allows cybercriminals to access your personal data, then you could be eligible to claim.

Our advisors can provide free legal advice and more help when you get in contact. Follow the information at the top of the page to learn more.

How To Claim For A Pharmacy Data Breach

If a pharmacy data breach has caused you harm, then you may be wondering how to make a claim.

You can make a complaint to the pharmacy responsible if you receive a data breach notice letter, or if you believe that they have suffered a breach that has affected your personal data. If they do not provide a satisfactory response, then you can make a complaint to the ICO.

You can also begin to gather evidence to help support your claim. For example, medical evidence may be able to prove that you have suffered mental harm, such as stress due to the breach, or your bank statements may be able to show financial losses.

Finally, you may wish to seek legal advice. Our advisors can offer free legal advice and more guidance on the claiming process when you contact them today.

 Pharmacy Data Breach Compensation Payouts

If your pharmacy data breach claim succeeds, you could receive up to two heads of claim. The first is non-material damage compensation. Non-material damage refers to the harm you suffer to your mental health as a result of the personal data breach. For example, a medical data breach could cause anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or general psychological distress.

When solicitors, lawyers, and other legal professionals assess this head of claim, they often refer to the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). The JCG provides guideline settlement awards for a variety of psychological injuries. In the table below, we have included some of the figures listed in the 16th edition of the JCG. Please note that these figures are not guaranteed amounts, and your actual compensation may vary.

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Mental Health Injury And Severity Level Of Award Notes
General psychiatric damage – Severe £54,830 to £115,730 This person may face marked problems in coping with areas of life such as work, education, and relationships. They have a poor prognosis.
General psychiatric damage – Moderately severe £19,070 to £54,830 There is a better prognosis here than the bracket above, despite symptoms being similar.
General psychiatric damage – Moderate £5,860 to £19,070 By the time the case goes to trial, there is a marked improvement in symptoms.
General psychiatric damage – Less severe £1,540 to £5,860 This bracket will consider how daily life is affected by symptoms and how long symptoms last.
PTSD – Severe £59,860 to £100,670 There will be significant impacts on all areas of life, and they will not be able to function at their pre-trauma level.
PTSD – Moderately severe £23,150 to £59,860 There is a chance for recovery with professional help, leading to a more optimistic prognosis.
PTSD – Moderate £8,180 to £23,150 The person will be largely recovered. Any effects should not be significantly disabling.
PTSD – Less severe £3,950 to £8,180 The person should make a mostly full recovery in around 1 – 2 years. They will only have minor symptoms after this.

The second head of claim you could receive is material damage compensation. Material damage refers to the financial losses caused by the breach. For example, if you pay for your prescriptions by credit card and this information is compromised in a data breach, this could result in criminals making fraudulent purchases in your name. The debt accrued because of this could be covered by material damage compensation.

To learn more about what you could claim for under data breach compensation, contact our team of friendly advisors today.

Start Your Pharmacy Data Breach Compensation Claim

It may seem daunting to begin a pharmacy data breach claim. However, our panel of solicitors could be able to help. If your claim is eligible, a data protection solicitor from our panel may be able to offer you a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). Under this type of No Win No Fee arrangement, you can access legal representation and advice, usually without paying any upfront fees or ongoing costs to your solicitor.

The only fee your solicitor will take for their services is a success fee if the claim succeeds. This legally-capped percentage is taken from your final award. However, if your claim doesn’t go on to succeed, then your solicitor will not take this fee.

To see if you can begin your No Win No Fee claim, please get in contact with us today:

More Information On Data Breach Claims

To discover more about claiming compensation for a data breach:

Or, for more resources:

Thank you for reading our guide to claiming compensation for a pharmacy data breach.

Writer AL

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