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Hi all. Long story so please bear with me!
Towards the end of July I applied for a personal loan with A&L online. I was very careful to read all the info and when it came to the bit where it said that if my application was unsuccessful would it be ok to give my details to other institutions, I ticked the box to say it was not ok.
The day after I applied I checked my credit file online and saw that A&L had done a search on me on the day I applied for the loan - no problem there. But on the day after that, Welcome Financial Services did a credit search as well!
I phoned A&L in a rage and asked what the hell did they think they were doing passing my details to a third party after I had said no. The girl checked the records and said that yes, I had indeed ticked the box and they had made an error passing my details on. She then said that she would remove my name from the system to avoid it being passed on to anyone else. I said that alone wasnt good enough and I wanted the search by WFS removed from my file immediately. She said that the department that dealt with that sort of thing was closed for the day but she would e-mail them the details and make sure they phoned me the next day. Needless to say no-one phoned.
So I sent them a stroppy letter to the complaints department explaining the situation and even threatening them with court action if they didnt remove the search within 7 days. All I got back was a letter saying they were looking into it and they could take upto 56 days to investigate. I gave them until last Thursday when I phoned again to see what the progress was as the search had still not been removed. The girl said she would personally look into it and send me her findings immediately in writing. I havent recieved anything yet and I wont hold my breath.
I`m thinking about sending them an lba and asking for compensation.
Does anybody have any views on this? I am assuming they have flouted the Data Protection Act - or am I wrong?
Re: Alliance & Leicester flout Data Protection Act
On the face of it, yes they have. However, breaching the Act is a criminal offence. To make a civil claim, you would need to proof that you have suffered a loss due to their unlawful actions.
What you are asking is effectively impossible. The search took place - instituted by Welcome. A&L have no authority to even request the removal. They did not action the search, nor are they the CRA
The fact is that the search took place - authorised or not - and this fact stands as far as the CRA is concerned
Re: Alliance & Leicester flout Data Protection Act
Might be useful to independently contact WFS so seek clarification on their search and who authorised them to do so. Their response could be quite helpful.
Re: Alliance & Leicester flout Data Protection Act
As I've posted in your other thread, you'd need to prove in Court that you've suffered actual damage as a result - such as being refused a financial product or having to pay a higher interest rate.
I appreciate you're annoyed at A&L, rightly so, but I simply cannot see a case for compensation.
Barclays:WON!!! It took four months but was totally worth it!
Cabot: I'm still waiting for an enforcable agreement, more than a year after requesting it. Go on, Uncle Ken, take me to court if you dare. You know you want to!
Elephant.co.uk: VICTORY - they admitted there was no debt!
Ashbourne Management (gym membership): Finally got my default removed and out-of-court settlement; I'm not finished with them yet!
<--- If I've been helpful please remember the scales
Alliance & Leicester flout Data Protection Act
and asking for compensation.
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