My Data Privacy Was Breached By Lloyds Bank, Could I Claim Compensation?
Have you been impacted financially or emotionally due to a data breach by Lloyds Bank? Whether the breach of data protection relates to a human error, the mismanagement of your data, or a malicious act, it could affect you in different ways. Whether you’ve experienced identity theft, fraud or anxiety due to a data breach, you could be eligible to claim compensation if you can prove it was caused by the breach.
We have created this guide to focus specifically on what you need to prove to make a Lloyds Bank data breach claim. In the sections below, you will find a definition as to what a Lloyds data protection breach is, as well as information about a data security incident that affected Lloyds Bank’s systems.
We also provide information on the types of compensation you could be eligible to claim, as well as how the claims process works. If you’d like to ask us anything about your case or check your eligibility to claim, we’d be glad to help you.
You can reach our expert advisors on 0161 696 9685. We could even help you start a claim with a data breach lawyer under No Win No Fee terms, which would mean you don’t have to pay anything upfront to start your claim.
Select A Section
- A Guide On Data Protection Breach Claims Against Lloyds Bank
- What Are Data Protection Breach Claims Against Lloyds Bank?
- Data Which Banks Can Share With Third Parties Under The GDPR?
- What UK Banks Have Been Affected By Data Protection Breaches?
- Calculating Compensation Amounts For A Data Breach By Lloyds Bank
- What Compensation Could Be Awarded To Data Breach Victims?
- Do I Need To Report The Data Breach To The ICO?
- Make A Data Protection Breach Claim Against Lloyds Bank With A No Win No Fee Solicitor
- How Do I Get Help From A Data Protection Breach Lawyer?
- Steps To Take After A Data Protection Breach
- Contact A Data Protection Solicitor
- Data Protection FAQs
- How Can I Learn More About Making A Claim
A Guide On Data Protection Breach Claims Against Lloyds Bank
When you use a service with Lloyds bank, or you apply to work for the organisation, you would usually provide them with your personal information, including your name, address and contact details. You could also provide them with your email address, telephone number and even some sensitive information such as financial information, ethnicity, and religion, to name but a few examples.
As a data controller, Lloyds bank has a legal duty to protect the personal data of its employees, customers and other data subjects it has data relating to. A failure to protect such data could breach data protection legislation, including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. It could also mean victims of a data breach have the right to claim compensation for any financial or mental harm they suffer as a result.
In this guide, we explain what you may need to know in order to make a claim for a data breach by Lloyds Bank. There are sections that cover the laws relating to data sharing, an explanation of what constitutes a data breach, and information relating to the damages you could claim. Further to this, we explain how to complain about a Lloyds data protection breach, and how a data breach solicitor could assist you with a claim.
How Long Would I Have To Claim For A Data Breach By Lloyds Bank?
Like many other compensation claims, there are time limits in which you must claim, in order to avoid your claim becoming time-barred. You would have 6 years to claim for a bank breach from the date you obtained knowledge of the breach. However, if you’re claiming for a breach of your human rights, you could only have one year to claim.
No matter whether you’re nearing the end of the limitation period or the breach has just occurred, we could connect you with a No Win No Fee data breach solicitor, meaning you don’t pay legal fees until your claim ends. You can read more about this in the later sections of this guide.
What Are Data Protection Breach Claims Against Lloyds Bank?
Before we explain the types of damage you could claim for following a data breach by Lloyds Bank, let us first offer a definition of a data breach. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) describes such a breach as a data security incident that results in personal data being:
- Made unavailable
- Transmitted, altered, disclosed, deleted, stored, processed or accessed illegally or without authorisation
- Stolen
- Lost
What Could Cause A Data Breach By Lloyds Bank?
Data breaches could be accidental, or they could be the result of employee errors or negligence. Examples could include:
- A Hacking – Hackers could exploit vulnerabilities within computer systems, even if they have cybersecurity software, such as a firewall installed. They could breach cloud databases or other systems too. Once they have gained access, they could use ransomware, malware, DDoS programs, a virus or spyware to effectively steal information, hold it for ransom, or cause system disruption.
- A Mistake – Employees of Lloyds bank could make mistakes when sending out documents or sending e-mails. If they accidentally send your personal data to an unauthorised recipient, this could also be a breach of your data. Even the failure to lock filing cabinets containing personal information could lead to a breach if someone accesses the files within.
- Negligence – If Lloyds are negligent in protecting personal data by failing to secure data online, for example, or not encrypting financial information before sending it, this could lead to a breach.
How Lloyds Could Take Steps To Prevent Data Breaches
Organisations should be aware of their legal obligations under data protection law. Banks, for instance, could do so by employing a data protection officer, who could help shape data protection policy to ensure that all staff are aware of the responsibilities they have to protect personal data.
The Lloyds bank data protection officer could also work with the IT departments to ensure robust computer security protocols are in place. This could help them mitigate the risks of data breaches.
Data Which Banks Can Share With Third Parties Under The GDPR?
Under GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, data controllers need your consent to share your data, unless they do so for a valid reason. Reasons they could share your data with third parties without your consent are:
- Contract – If Lloyds needs to share your data with a third party to fulfil a contract with your, they could do so.
- Legal Obligations – Should Lloyds need to share your information to comply with their legal obligations, they could do so.
- Public Tasks – The bank could share your personal data to perform tasks in the public interest.
- Vital interests – They could also share data to protect someone’s life, including your own.
- Legitimate interests – These are ways in which you could reasonably expect them to share your data, for example, if they store your contact details as an emergency contact for someone else.
If you believe that Lloyds have shared your data with a third party for non-valid reasons, and without consent, you could make a subject access request to find out what data they have on you and whether they have shared that data.
If you find evidence that they have breached your personal data and you suffer financial or mental damage as a result, you could get legal advice on your situation.
What UK Banks Have Been Affected By Data Protection Breaches?
In 2017, Lloyds Banking Group were reported to have blocked a cyber attack. The online security breach in question lasted for around 48 hours and was caused by hackers who made millions of fake requests to the system.
This caused the systems to become overwhelmed and led to a denial of service. Usually, cybercriminals request a ransom to halt the attack. In this case, Lloyds did not pay a ransom, as their IT security team were able to control the effects of the attack. While this cyber attack was blocked, later on in that year, third-party partners of Lloyds—British Airways and Ticketmaster —were hacked, experiencing problems with Lloyds online payment systems.
While the first hack didn’t have any consequences in regards to personal data, the British Airways and Ticketmaster incidents led to personal data, including payment information, being stolen.
Source: https://hostreviews.co.uk/biggest-uk-data-breaches/
Calculating Compensation Amounts For A Data Breach By Lloyds Bank
If Lloyds Bank has breached your personal data, lawyers and courts would need to assess the impact of the breach when determining what compensation payout could be appropriate for your case.
No two cases are precisely the same, and one victim of a data breach may suffer very different effects from another, even if they were affected by the same breach.
One type of compensation some victims of a data breach could be eligible to claim is for the psychological impact of a breach.
If you have suffered anxiety, loss of sleep, distress or depression, you might be interested to know that a legal precedent was set in 2015 that could allow you to claim for such injuries.
This is because in Vidal-Hall and others v Google Inc [2015], the Court of Appeal held that compensation could be sought for psychological damage in the absence of any financial harm, a departure from the previous legal position which required financial damage in order to claim for the likes of distress, anxiety and depression.
How Much Psychological Injury Compensation Could I Get For A Data Breach By Lloyds Bank?
To work out how much psychological injury compensation could be appropriate, data breach lawyers and solicitors would need to assess medical evidence. During your claim, you’d need to see an independent medic for an assessment of your psychological injuries. They would write a report detailing your injuries and prognosis.
Courts and lawyers could use this, along with the Judicial College Guidelines to come to an appropriate valuation. We have created the table below to illustrate what the Judicial College Guidelines say could be an appropriate payout amount for different levels of psychological injuries. This could give you a rough idea of how much you could be eligible for.
| Condition/Injury | Severity | JCG Bracket for Compensation |
|---|---|---|
| Post-traumatic stress/PTSD | Severe | £56,180 to £94,470 |
| Post-traumatic stress/PTSD | Moderately severe | £21,730 to £56,180 |
| Post-traumatic stress/PTSD | Moderate | £7,680 to £21,730 |
| Post-traumatic stress/PTSD | Less severe | Up to £7,680 |
| Psychological (General) Injury | Severe | £51,460 to £108,620 |
| Psychological (General) Injury | Moderately severe | £17,900 to £51,460 |
| Psychological (General) Injury | Moderate | £5,500 to £17,900 |
| Psychological (General) Injury | Less severe | Up to £5,500 |
For a more precise estimate, please get in touch with our team.
What Compensation Could Be Awarded To Data Breach Victims?
We have already explained that GDPR allows for victims of a data breach by Lloyds Bank to claim non-material and material damages. We explain more about they are below:
- Material – Material damages could include any financial harm you’ve incurred due to the breach. They could relate to theft, fraud, or identity theft, for example.
- Non-Material – We have already illustrated some of the non-material damages in the section above.
If you would like us to assess what damages you could claim for, please don’t hesitate to call our team. We’d be glad to offer you a free assessment to see what you could claim. If you’d like, we could also connect you with a data breach lawyer from our panel who could begin your claim for you.
Do I Need To Report The Data Breach To The ICO?
The Information Commissioner’s Office, or ICO, enforces data protection law here in the UK. It is an independent body and could investigate and fine organisations that breach data protection legislation.
Does The ICO Enforce GDPR?
The ICO enforces lots of data protection legislation, including GDPR. ICO fines for GDPR infringements could reach up to £17.5m or 4% of the organisation’s global annual turnover. Other legislation it enforces includes:
- Environmental Information Regulations
- INSPIRE Regulations
- Data Protection Act
- The Re-use of Public Sector Information Regulations
- Freedom of Information Act
- Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR)
Reporting Data Breaches
The ICO advises that if you believe you’ve been affected by a data breach, you should initially take the matter up with the organisation. You could write to the Lloyds Bank data protection officer, including details of the breach and how it has impacted you.
The Lloyds Banking Group data protection officer should work with you to resolve the incident. However, if they don’t, you could report the breach to the Information Commissioner’s Office.
You don’t need to report a data breach to the ICO to claim compensation, however. If there have been three months since you’ve received any meaningful contact from the organisation, you could seek help from a data breach solicitor, who could help you claim the compensation you deserve.
Make A Data Protection Breach Claim Against Lloyds Bank With A No Win No Fee Solicitor
When you think about making a data breach claim with a solicitor, you might want to consider the payment terms they work to. A No Win No Fee data breach solicitor would not require any payment upfront to begin your claim. This could be beneficial to you.
How Do No Win No Fee Breach Of Data Claims Work?
The process of making a No Win No Fee claim generally works as follows:
- Your chosen lawyer sends you a No Win No Fee Agreement containing details of the success fee you’d pay when your payout comes through. This is a small percentage of the total payout. It is also legally capped. You’d need to sign the agreement before the lawyer could begin work on your case.
- When your lawyer receives the agreement, they would be able to start putting your case together and negotiating a settlement for you.
- Once your payout comes through, they deduct the agreed success fee, leaving the rest for your benefit. If they can’t arrange a payout, you don’t pay the success fee. You don’t have to cover their costs either.
Want To Know More?
You can learn more about No Win No Fee claims in our handy guide. Alternatively, we’d be happy to talk to you about making a claim under these terms. All you need to do is get in touch.
How Do I Get Help From A Data Protection Breach Lawyer?
It could be possible for you to make a claim for a data breach by Lloyds Bank without a lawyer. However, many claimants prefer to have a data breach lawyer help them with claims. The benefits of doing so could include:
- Not having to complete all the legal paperwork on your own
- The lawyer could negotiate compensation for you, and would fight for the maximum payout possible
- You’d have support if your case went to court
- Your lawyer would make sure you could claim for all the damages you’d be eligible for
If you’re looking for a data breach solicitor to help you with your claim, you’ll find there are plenty of law firms and legal professionals out there who could help you. So how do you find the right one for you? You could:
- Ask relatives and friends for their recommendations
- Take a look at independent review sites
- Select a few firms from an online search and call them to ask them about their services
- Or, you could simply call our team.
We have lots of experience helping claimants start their journey to compensation. Our team could assess your case for free, and give you information on data breach lawyers who could assist you. We could connect you with the No Win No Fee solicitors from our panel that could help you get the compensation you deserve.
Steps To Take After A Data Protection Breach
There are certain steps you may want to take if you’ve been the victim of a data breach. You could:
- Report the breach to Lloyds Bank. A data protection request could be made to Lloyds asking for them to investigate the breach.
- If they don’t respond in a satisfactory manner, you could escalate your complaint to the ICO. They could add Lloyds to the ICO data breach register if they believe there has been a breach. They could also enforce data protection law by fining Lloyds for a data breach.
- Find a data breach lawyer to help you make a claim. As we have mentioned, we could quickly and easily help you get the legal support you’re looking for.
Contact A Data Protection Solicitor
To get in touch with us about a data breach by Lloyds Bank, all you’d need to do is:
- Call: 0161 696 9685
- E-mail [email protected]
- Use our contact form
- Use Live Chat
We’re ready to help you.
Data Protection FAQs
In this section, we’ve included some answers to questions about data protection claims.
What Are The Legal Requirements For Data Protection?
Data protection law requires organisations that process personal data to only use it transparently, lawfully and fairly. They must also only use it for explicitly specified purposes, and ensure it is accurate and up to date. Additionally, they should only use it in an adequate, relevant way and ensure its use is limited to what is necessary. They should also limit the length of storage.
What Is Covered By Data Protection?
The Data Protection Act covers data relating to living people. It covers data that is stored in physical formats, such as documents in filing cabinets and in notebooks, for example. It also covers data held on computers.
What Is The Difference Between The GDPR And Data Protection Act?
GDPR is Europe’s strictest and most wide-reaching data security and privacy law. The Data Protection Act 2018 enshrines into law the UK’s application of GDPR.
How Can I Learn More About Making A Claim
In this last section, we’ve included some extra resources you may find useful.
How Can I Protect My Data? – If you’re interested in learning how to protect your data and devices, this guide could be useful.
Anxiety Sufferers – The NHS resource could help you deal with anxiety.
Victims Of Identity Theft – This guide from Action Fraud could help you if you’ve fallen victim to identity fraud.
The Blackbaud Breach – One well-known data breach incident is the Blackbaud Hack. This guide explains what victims of this breach could do about it.
Banking Data Breaches– You can find out what to do about a bank’s data breach in this guide.
The Post Office Breached My Data – Post Office data breaches are covered in this guide.
Thank you for reading our guide on what to do if you fall victim to a data breach by Lloyds Bank.
Guide by JJ
Edited by REB