Bailiff went round the house taking photographs.

Bailiffs roam the property without discrimination, capturing images of valuable items and documents. You have the right to demand the destruction of these photographs.

Your vulnerability to burglary or potential compromise of your bank accounts is grave.

The purpose behind bailiffs acquiring images of your possessions and documents appears dubious, likely intended for illicit acquisition of your banking information or facilitating a burglary.

If police class bailiff crime as a civil matter, exercise added vigilance as police protection against crime is forfeited, potentially leaving you uninsured due to the absence of a crime report. This elevates bailiffs above legal accountability in the eyes of the authorities.

It's imperative to notify the police through the non-emergency 101 hotline regarding the bailiffs' visit and the photographing of your valuables and jewellery, providing comprehensive descriptions. Keep a detailed record of the conversation, including the name of the individual spoken to and the details exchanged.

Inform your bank, specifying which accounts might be compromised.

Serve the bailiff company with a notice revoking consent for processing your data and requesting erasure under Article 17 of the GDPR or section 47 of the Data Protection Act 2018.

Secure your valuables elsewhere within the property.

Document the valuables, including diamonds and jewellery, photographed by the bailiffs; this may serve as evidence in the event of burglary.

Failure by the bailiff company to adhere to your Article 17 notice enables you to pursue legal action for both tangible and intangible damages, encompassing loss or theft of the photographed valuables, under Article 82 of the GDPR or Section 168 of the Data Protection Act 2018.

You should capture new images of all your valuable possessions, including diamonds and jewellery, and document their respective worth.

In the unfortunate event of a burglary and the subsequent theft of your valuables, these photographs serve as proof of their presence and value. This documentation not only provides evidence of the items but also establishes a suspect, supported by the initial police report filed through your call to 101 following the bailiff's visit.

Procedure:

Go online and conduct a search for the name and location of the bailiff company. Then, delve into the public registry of certified enforcement agents to find information on the bailiff himself.

Inform your bank that your account details may have been compromised due to someone photographing documents within your home.

Contact the police via the non-emergency 101 hotline to report that a bailiff has entered your premises without seizing goods, or if the debtor does not reside there, and that they have taken photographs of your valuables and sensitive documents, thereby elevating the risk of burglary now that their whereabouts are known. Make a note of the police incident reference number and the name of the individual you communicated with.

Photograph all jewellery and valuables that were captured by the bailiff, along with documenting the rooms accessed by the bailiff and photographing all potential items they interacted with.

Search the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) Register of Fee Payers to get the name and address of the data controller for the bailiff company.

Issue a Notice to the data controller, requesting the deletion of the photographs of your valuables as you are withdrawing consent for their processing, and demand confirmation of the destruction of the images taken by the bailiff.

Allow a period of 30 days to elapse.

Should the bailiff company fail to comply or provide satisfactory explanations, proceed to report your concern online to the ICO.

The ICO will then reach out to the data controller to enforce the notice, impose additional sanctions, or address your complaint accordingly.

Expect a processing period of approximately 10 weeks for the ICO to handle your concern.

You retain the right to seek damages under Article 82 of the GDPR or Section 168 of the Data Protection Act 2018, including compensation for both tangible and intangible losses, such as the theft or loss of the photographed valuables.

The Law:

Article 17 of the GDPR states:

"Right to erasure ('right to be forgotten')"

1. The data subject shall have the right to obtain from the controller the erasure of personal data concerning him or her without undue delay and the controller shall have the obligation to erase personal data without undue delay where one of the following grounds applies:

(a) the personal data are no longer necessary in relation to the purposes for which they were collected or otherwise processed;

(b) the data subject withdraws consent on which the processing is based according to point (a) of Article 6(1), or point (a) of Article 9(2), and where there is no other legal ground for the processing;

(c) the data subject objects to the processing pursuant to Article 21(1) and there are no overriding legitimate grounds for the processing, or the data subject objects to the processing pursuant to Article 21(2);

(d) the personal data have been unlawfully processed;

(e) the personal data have to be erased for compliance with a legal obligation in Union or Member State law to which the controller is subject;

(f) the personal data have been collected in relation to the offer of information society services referred to in Article 8(1).

2. Where the controller has made the personal data public and is obliged pursuant to paragraph 1 to erase the personal data, the controller, taking account of available technology and the cost of implementation, shall take reasonable steps, including technical measures, to inform controllers which are processing the personal data that the data subject has requested the erasure by such controllers of any links to, or copy or replication of, those personal data.

3. Paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply to the extent that processing is necessary:

(a) for exercising the right of freedom of expression and information;

(b) for compliance with a legal obligation which requires processing by Union or Member State law to which the controller is subject or for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority vested in the controller;

(c) for reasons of public interest in the area of public health in accordance with points (h) and (i) of Article 9(2) as well as Article 9(3);

(d) for archiving purposes in the public interest, scientific or historical research purposes or statistical purposes in accordance with Article 89(1) in so far as the right referred to in paragraph 1 is likely to render impossible or seriously impair the achievement of the objectives of that processing; or

(e) for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims.

Section 47 of the Data Protection Act 2018 states:

Right to erasure or restriction of processing

(1) The controller must erase personal data without undue delay where—

(a) the processing of the personal data would infringe section 35, 36(1) to (3), 37, 38(1), 39(1), 40, 41 or 42, or

(b) the controller has a legal obligation to erase the data.

(2) Where the controller would be required to erase personal data under subsection (1) but the personal data must be maintained for the purposes of evidence, the controller must (instead of erasing the personal data) restrict its processing.

(3) Where a data subject contests the accuracy of personal data (whether in making a request under this section or section 46 or in any other way), but it is not possible to ascertain whether it is accurate or not, the controller must restrict its processing.

(4) A data subject may request the controller to erase personal data or to restrict its processing (but the duties of the controller under this section apply whether or not such a request is made).

Article 82 of the GDPR states:

"Right to compensation and liability"

1. Any person who has suffered material or non-material damage as a result of an infringement of this Regulation shall have the right to receive compensation from the controller or processor for the damage suffered.

2. Any controller involved in processing shall be liable for the damage caused by processing which infringes this Regulation. A processor shall be liable for the damage caused by processing only where it has not complied with obligations of this Regulation specifically directed to processors or where it has acted outside or contrary to lawful instructions of the controller.

3. A controller or processor shall be exempt from liability under paragraph 2 if it proves that it is not in any way responsible for the event giving rise to the damage.

4. Where more than one controller or processor, or both a controller and a processor, are involved in the same processing and where they are, under paragraphs 2 and 3, responsible for any damage caused by processing, each controller or processor shall be held liable for the entire damage in order to ensure effective compensation of the data subject.

5. Where a controller or processor has, in accordance with paragraph 4, paid full compensation for the damage suffered, that controller or processor shall be entitled to claim back from the other controllers or processors involved in the same processing that part of the compensation corresponding to their part of responsibility for the damage, in accordance with the conditions set out in paragraph 2.

6. Court proceedings for exercising the right to receive compensation shall be brought before the courts competent under the law of the Member State referred to in Article 79(2).

Section 168 of the Data Protection Act 2018 states:

Compensation for contravention of the GDPR

(1)In Article 82 of the GDPR (right to compensation for material or non-material damage), “non-material damage” includes distress.

(2)Subsection (3) applies where—

(a)in accordance with rules of court, proceedings under Article 82 of the GDPR are brought by a representative body on behalf of a person, and

(b)a court orders the payment of compensation.

(3)The court may make an order providing for the compensation to be paid on behalf of the person to—

(a)the representative body, or

(b)such other person as the court thinks fit.

Template: A "Notice to Erase" is necessitated, compelling the data controller of the bailiff company to verify the destruction of the photographs captured at your home or premises.