Equita No Responce To Sar Requests.

[popperdom]

By finding CAG and the helpful advice given, I recently discovered that Equita Bailiffs had removed £290 from my council tax arrears payments without explanation. I sent a subject access request on 11/04/2010. I then noticed that Equita had changed the account number on their threat-o-grams

 

So I requested a further SAR for details of this account on 20/04/2010. I then sent a further SAR requesting details of both accounts and enclosing a cheque for £10 this time. I do not know if the cheque has been cashed.

 

I also sent a formal complaint to the chief executive of the council on 7/04/2010 asking where my money had got to.

 

To date the local council have not even had the manners or grace to acknowlege my letter. I received a letter from Equita dated 26/04/2010 informing me that they have been instructed by their client to close the file, and that all further enquires regarding this account should be sent to the council.

 

I have never had any correspondance from Equita other than their standard 'we're coming to get you' threat-o-grams sent by post.

 

I have more information which I do not want to divulge on a public forum at this moment in time for obvious reasons.

 

Would I now be right to send the council a small claim form to recover the money as I am not being told what it is for? The long windedness of their replying to my letter is delaying my recovery of these funds. The information commissioner is toothless and I want the money back. There is no walking posession order, no vehicle nearby that they could assume was mine. I have never seen a bailiff.

 

I do not want to leave the matter to become out of time to make a claim.

 

Any advice would be most welcome.

[banker_rhymes_with]

Hello Popperdom!

 

Firstly, you only need to send one s7 S-A-R (i.e. s7 Data Subject Access Request served under The Data Protection Act 1998 ) and one £10 fee.

 

You do not need to send one per Account, because the Request is for all Data that relates to you, i.e. the Data Subject. So it covers everything they have about you, irrespective of any Account Number changes.

 

Secondly, they have 40 Calendar Days in which to respond, starting on the day they receive your Request along with the £10 fee and any other reasonable details they may have asked for in order to verify that you are who you say you are. They are entitled to ask for additional details under s7(3) of The Data Protection Act 1998, but the request has to be reasonable. It's not an excuse for them to go fishing for additional details or Data about you. If you gave them all reasonable details along with the Request itself, such as your Name and Address etc, then they should not hide behind s7(3) just to delay their response.

 

So, the big question therefore is when did they receive the Request, and do you have any proof, such as Special or Recorded Delivery, or evidence that the £10 Cheque/Payment was cashed.

 

If you can prove they received your Request, and in the absence of any contact from them to you for additional details, then they have just 40 Calendar Days to respond, after which they are in default of their Statutory obligations and you can take appropriate action to push them along.

 

Allow +2 Working Days for Post, so the time would be 40 Calendar Days + 2 Working Days on top just to be sure. After the expiry of that, then you have a Right to start complaining.

 

Do remember the 40 Calendar Days + 2 WD starts not from when you send the Request, but from when they receive it, so Special or Recorded Delivery is highly recommended if not essential.

 

The first step should be a Complaint to the ICO, sending them the evidence that your Request was delivered and the fee presented to them and/or cashed (cashing it is not essential, the key is you presented the fee to them, cashing it is just useful additional evidence).

 

If paying by Cheque or Postal Order (PO), it is always a good idea to Scan the Cheque or PO before sending it, to be able to show that payment was made out to them. Always cross Postal Orders (with two lines and AC Payee Only written between them), to ensure the PO can only be paid into a bank Account in their name.

 

Then, the next step should be to also send them a Letter Before Action (LBA) giving them, say, 7 Calendar Days to respond with the details you have Requested. If they do not respond, then I would make a Claim against them via your County Court, asking that they be Ordered to comply, and to ask the Court for your Costs for having to make the Claim, plus any Damages if their failure to respond has caused you any financial or other harm.

 

I hope this helps.

 

Cheers,

BRW

Edited May 18, 2010 by banker_rhymes_with
Smiley Zap!

[popperdom]

Thank you for that information. What about their letter dated 26/42010 which says all enquiries should be directed to the council?

[banker_rhymes_with]

Hello Popperdom!

 

What about their letter dated 26/42010 which says all enquiries should be directed to the council?

 

That's another issue.

 

A S-A-R is wholly independent of anything else. Assuming they are a Data Controller, then they are obliged to respond to any s7 Request.

 

They can't duck that obligation just because they happen to be acting on behalf of a Client.

 

The Request is from you to them, asking them to let you see what Data they hold about you, i.e. the Data Subject.

 

Cheers,

BRW

[popperdom]

Thanks BRW

[hallowitch]

as you are dealing with Equita you should be made aware that most councils do not administrate there own council tax some councils use a company called capita who own Equita bailiffs

 

so any complaint you make regarding administration. bailiffs ect could be going to the company that administrate the council tax not the council

 

the way round this is it to make a Formal complaint addressed to the Chief Executive of your council his/her name should be on there web site

[popperdom]

Thanks Hallowitch but I wrote to the council before I contacted Equita, the chief exec has not replied to me five weeks later.

[ploddertom]

Thanks Hallowitch but I wrote to the council before I contacted Equita, the chief exec has not replied to me five weeks later.

 

In that case you need to chase them. Contact your local Councillor ASAP this evening - OK in my view up until 9pm.

 

PT

[popperdom]

I will do that thanks PT