How Much NHS Data Breach Compensation Can I Claim?

An NHS data breach could expose patients sensitive, personal and medical data. It could lead to serious unlawful use of your personal data, causing distress and other psychological symptoms. If your medical records have been improperly accessed, shared or destroyed or otherwise used without a lawful basis, you could make a claim for NHS data breach compensation.

In this guide you can find out how medical data breaches could happen, their consequences and how to make a data breach claim as well as the role of data protection law. If you believe that your data protection rights have been violated, you could make a claim. A data breach solicitor from our panel could help to explain your legal options.

To get in touch,

• Phoning us on 0333 000 0729.
• Contact us online here.
• Chat to our team live.

Frequently Asked Questions

• What Is An NHS Data Breach?
• What Are The Consequences Of Medical Data Being Breached?
• Can I Claim For NHS Data Breach Compensation?
• How Much Medical Data Compensation Could I Claim For?
• Will A Claim Made Against The NHS Impact On Healthcare Services?
• How To Start A Claim For NHS Data Breach Compensation?
• Can I Claim For Data Breach Compensation With A No Win No Fee Solicitor?
• Learn More

What Is An NHS Data Breach?

A data breach in the NHS may happen when a security incident leads to the unauthorised access, loss, disclosure, destruction or alteration of patients’ personal data. This can be through human error or deliberate intentions.

In the UK, personal data must be protected in line with regulations set out in the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA).

Cybersecurity breaches are a growing concern in healthcare. According to the Cyber Security Breaches Survey, 41% of businesses in the health and social care sector reported a cyber attack or security breach in the 12 months prior to the publication of the report. This highlights the potential risks facing both private and NHS service providers.

The Common Types Of Medical Data Breaches

The most common types of cybersecurity data breaches, as highlighted in the Cyber Security Breaches Survey include:

• Phishing attacks where fraudulent emails, designed to steal patients data are sent out.
• Others impersonating an organisation either online or in emails.
• Organisations devices being targeted with viruses.
• Takeover of social media/ email accounts or a website.
• Organisations devices being targeted with ransomware or malware.

Examples of human error data breaches could occur may include,

• The loss or theft of personal data – Such as medication data stored physically or electronically.
• Misdirected communication – For example, a letter may be sent by a sexual health clinic to the wrong person or wrong address.
• Unauthorised access to personal data – Where medical staff view patient records without a lawful basis.

These and other security threats (such as those highlighted in the aforementioned survey) highlight the need for strong protection of patients’ medical data. You can learn more about when you could make a data breach claim by contacting our team.

What Are The Consequences Of Medical Data Being Breached?

The consequences of your medical data being breached could include psychological distress, and financial harm. Cybersecurity breaches could also expose your medical or other personal data, leading to identity theft.

According to the Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2025, ransomware and malware attacks are some of the most common causes of data breaches. These types of breach could further increase the risk to those affected.

Additionally, breaches involving medical data could have serious implications:

• Certain Illness data breaches could lead to discrimination.
• An HIV data breach could result in severe psychological distress, and could impact personal relationships.

Our team could assess both the incident in which your data was involved and whether you could sue for NHS data breach compensation.

Can I Claim For NHS Data Breach Compensation?

You could make a claim for data breach compensation on behalf of yourself or someone else if you can demonstrate that either the NHS or an associated data processor/ data controller failed to properly protect your personal data, leading to emotional distress or financial loss.

In the healthcare sector, data controllers and/or data processors may be responsible for protecting your data. In the context of the healthcare sector,

• A data controller determines how a patient’s data may lawfully be used. A data controller may be your GP surgery, a hospital or an NHS trust.
• A data processor handles data on behalf of the data controller. They may be a third party organisation providing IT services to a healthcare provider.

In some instances, a single party may be both the data controller and processor. Those handling personal data must comply with the DPA and UK GDPR as previously outlined in this guide. If they fail to do so and you suffer psychological or financial harm, you may have grounds to claim compensation.

You may claim on behalf of someone else if they are unable to do so themselves. Medical data breach claims may be made on behalf of,

• Vulnerable persons – such as those who lack the mental capacity to claim themselves.
• Children – minors, under 18 years of age.

In either instance, a litigation friend may make a claim on behalf of the affected person. If you believe that you or a loved one have been affected by an NHS data protection breach, contact us today. A solicitor from our panel could assess your case.

How Much Medical Data Compensation Could I Claim For?

Severe psychiatric damage caused by a medical data breach could be valued at between £66,920 and £141,240. This figure comes from the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) and is provided only as an illustration of what may be awarded.

How much you could claim in NHS data breach compensation can depend on the long-term impact a breach has had on your mental health and daily life. The JCG provides guideline compensation brackets for different types of harm and may be used by the courts as well as solicitors when assessing compensation for the non-material harm suffered by a claimant.

Below, we present further figures from the JCG relevant to medical data breach compensation claims. Please note that the first entry of this table is not a JCG figure, and is purely illustrative.

Non-Material Damage

Non-material damage refers to psychological harm as well as emotional distress caused by a data breach. This part of a compensation settlement takes account of the impact the breach has had on the claimant’s psychological and mental well-being.

Compensation may take account of short, medium and long-term psychological effects such as depression, anxiety and stress.

Material Damage

Material damage refers to certain financial losses caused by a data breach. Examples of material damage may include,

• The cost of therapy for psychological or psychiatric harm caused by a breach.
• Lost earnings and income caused by taking time of work due to the impact of personal data breach.
• The cost of relocating due to fearing for your safety after a data protection breach.
• The cost of home security if your safety has been affected.

You must provide evidence of any material damage suffered, such as by providing wage slips or invoices for medical care. One of our panel of data breach solicitors could help to value your data breach claim. Please get in touch for more information.

Will A Claim Made Against The NHS Impact On Healthcare Services?

Compensation claims made against the NHS will not impact your healthcare services. Claims related to an NHS data security breach are handled separately to patient care and do not influence the care you are entitled to or provided.

Key points:

• NHS staff can not refuse to provide treatment to you based on you making a compensation claim.
• Making a medical data breach claim could help to improve both accountability and data protection within the organisation responsible for the breach. This may reduce the risk of future breaches of patient data.

Making a claim for NHS data breach compensation will not impact the nature or standard of care you receive. For more information on data breach claims, please contact our team.

How To Start A Claim For NHS Data Breach Compensation?

To start a claim for data breach compensation you collect evidence showing that the breach occurred and how you were harmed by it.

This evidence must show that you were impacted by the data breach incident, having suffered material or non-material damage.

Examples of evidence:

• Data breach notice letter – official communication from the data controller, such as a data breach notification, confirming how your data has been impacted can help support your claim.
• Medical records – these may show psychiatric harm, such as stress or anxiety due to a data breach.
• Financial records – bank, credit card or credit reference agency statements which show financial losses.

A solicitor from our panel could help you to gather evidence in support of your data breach compensation claim.

Can I Claim For Data Breach Compensation With A No Win No Fee Solicitor?

You could claim for NHS data breach compensation with a No Win No Fee solicitor if you meet the eligibility criteria set out in this guide. We work with an expert panel of solicitors who are experienced at helping people to make successful medical data breach claims.

A solicitor from our panel could help by,

• Providing services through a Conditional Fee Agreement, also known as a No Win No Fee agreement. This means you only pay the solicitors fee if and when you win your case.
• Take you through the claims process, explaining any legal terminology, ensuring you fully understand the process.
• Negotiating a settlement, including compensation for material damage related to your case.

Our panel of solicitors have years of experience in helping people successfully claim for data protection breaches.

Contact Our Advisors To Start Your Claim

Contact our team to start your claim for compensation by:

• Calling 0333 000 0729
• Clicking and completing our contact us form.
• Talking to an advisor online.

Learn More

You can learn more about data breach claims and data protection rights in the following resources.

• In this guide you can learn more about dealing with a safeguarding data protection breach.
• If your data privacy was breached by a GP surgery you can find out if you could claim in this guide.
• Here we look at who could make a claim for data breaches caused by human error.

References.

• Learn more about citizen data breaches in this resource from the National Cyber Security Centre.
• Learn more about health data in this resource from the ICO.
• Find out how the NHS and care services use your information in this resource.

Through this guide we have provided information on when and how to claim NHS data breach compensation. To find out more, please contact our team.