The following blog article was written for estate agents, but has implications for holiday let owners who take bookings and hold the personal details of guests.
Are you breaking the Data Protection Laws?
By Chris Wood
I am prepared to bet that you are breaking the Law because the odds are stacked totally in my favour. The shocking statistic is that around two-thirds** of estate, letting and property management agents are currently open to criminal prosecution by failing to register with the ICO (Information Commissioners Office). I would also wager that a great many other businesses that hold information about customers have failed to register as well.
You may think that you don’t need to register or, be totally unaware of the need to but, if you hold data about a living person/persons as part of your business then you almost certainly ‘process data’ under the Law and, consequently, must register a Data Controller with the ICO. If you haven’t registered, you need to get a move on; the ICO are getting tough!
In 2010, the ICO issued a press release warning agents about their need to register. At the time, the ICO held records for just 1,416 UK Lettings agents, 3,734 Estate Agents and 5,245 Property Service Management Companies. Following the warning, a few more agents did join, but not many. The latest figures (as of 1st of July 2011) show that just over 300 more lettings agents registered, 627 more agents thought it might be a good idea and, just under 250 property service management companies decided that they had better try to avoid a criminal record too. Which still leaves an awful lot of you out there owing me £1,000 and, facing prosecution from an ICO that is looking to flex its muscles.
Whilst only two agents have been prosecuted between September and July, I have spoken with the ICO and they have assured me that many more are to follow if agents ignore warnings to register. Offending agents will receive a warning reminder to register from the ICO but if it is ignored or, simply thrown away as junk mail, the result could be a fine and a criminal record.
Whilst the ICO may undertake a simple cross-referencing with TPOS and RICS SOS to bag a big, and quick, list of potential offenders it is unlikely that many agents will receive a complaint from a member of the public before they have a chance to register. However, if you are not currently registered and you receive a complaint, it will be too late.
Good luck, and don’t forget to check your registration is still in date if you are registered; even the best of us can get caught out occasionally… ahem.
Chris Wood
You can follow Chris Wood on his blog - http://pzwoody.wordpress.com or on Twitter http://twitter.com/#!/PDQProperty.
