By Danielle Griffin. Last Updated 17th November 2023. In this article, we look at when you might be eligible to make a claim for compensation following a credit card data breach that compromised your personal data and caused you to suffer financial loss and/or damage to your mental health. Companies offering financial services, including credit cards, have a legal obligation to protect your personal data.
This article will look at the legislation in place to protect your personal information as well as what personal data a credit card company may process. As we move through the article, we’ll look at how a data breach could occur. We’ll also look at what evidence you could submit to support a claim for data breach compensation. Additionally, we explain how compensation could be awarded in a successful data breach claim.
If you meet the eligibility requirements to make a claim following the compromisation of your personal data, you may wish to have the support of a solicitor. We conclude the article with a look at how you could instruct a solicitor specialising in data breach claims on a No Win No Fee basis.
One of the advisors from our team could answer any questions you may have about what to do if your credit card details were compromised in a breach. They’re available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, with free advice about claiming data breach compensation.
To speak with an advisor:
- Fill in our ‘start claim’ form and an advisor will call you.
- Call 0800 073 8801
- Connect using our live chat.
Advice for making a credit card data breach claim
Select A Section
- A Guide On Credit Card Data Breach Claims
- Financial Data A Credit Card Company Could Hold About You
- How Could A Credit Card Data Breach Occur?
- What Evidence Could Support Your Claim For A Data Protection Breach?
- Calculating Compensation For A Credit Card Data Breach
- Credit Card Data Breach Claims With A No Win No Fee Solicitor
- Related Guides
Could I Claim For A Credit Card Breach?
The personal data of UK residents is protected by the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UKGDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA). These two pieces of legislation also outline how data controllers and data protectors should handle your personal information.
A data controller decides how and why to use your personal data. Then, the data processor processes it on their behalf. If either party fails to comply with the legislation above, this is known as wrongful conduct which could lead to a personal data breach. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) provides a definition of a personal data breach. They state it’s a security incident involving your personal data’s confidentiality, integrity, and availability being affected.
If your credit card details were affected in a data breach and you have been harmed as a result, you may be able to claim compensation. However, there are strict eligibility criteria that apply to such claims.
To claim for a credit card breach, you must be able to prove that:
- The data controller or processor engaged in wrongful conduct
- This caused a data breach that affected your personal data
- As a result, you suffered emotional harm and/or financial losses
If you would like to check your eligibility to claim for a credit card data breach, please do not hesitate to contact an advisor. They would be happy to check your case to see whether you could start a claim with one of our solicitors.
Financial Data A Credit Card Company Could Hold About You
When you sign your credit agreement with your card provider, you will need to supply a lot of personal information. This information can be retained to manage your account. It could also be added to while you remain a customer. So what information could a credit card company hold about you? Well, it might include:
- Your full name.
- Credit card number.
- Telephone or mobile number.
- Home address.
- Email address.
- Previous addresses.
- Website credentials.
- Credit history.
- Transaction history.
- Missed payment history.
A lot of the information listed here is protected by the GDPR. That’s because it could help to identify you. If this type of information was to be leaked accidentally, it might be embarrassing or cause you to become anxious. Furthermore, if it were to be stolen by criminals, they could use it in crimes that could cost you money.
As well as protecting this type of information about you, your credit card company is not allowed to share it with others without your permission. Therefore, if you were to be contacted by a company because they’d been given your details by your card provider, then a breach may have happened.
How Could A Credit Card Data Breach Occur?
Here are some examples of where a credit card data breach could happen. However, remember that you could only claim if the breach exposed your data and caused you to suffer financially, psychologically or both:
- If your card statement is sent out to the wrong customer.
- Where the credit card provider’s website is accessed, exposing your account details, due to insufficient security measures.
- Where somebody is able to get information about your account over the phone because the operator failed to identify them correctly.
If you are interested in making a credit card data breach claim, please get in contact with our team today.
What Evidence Could Support Your Claim For A Data Protection Breach?
When seeking compensation, it is important that you are able to demonstrate how you have been affected. To do this you will need to supply evidence. In data breach claims, that could take the form of:
- Proof of financial losses. This could come from bank statements, credit card statements or other financial documents.
- Evidence that the breach took place. As part of any data breach investigation, data subjects must be contacted if they are put at risk. Therefore, that letter or email could be used as evidence. Failing that, an ICO investigation could be requested.
- Medical evidence. To prove that you have suffered in the way that you claim you have, evidence is needed. This could be in the form of medical records and a report following a medical assessment. If you could prove psychological injuries resulted from a breach, you could claim.
Our advisors can review your evidence for you to see if you have the grounds to continue. If it appears that you do, they’ll advise you of the process and could pass your claim to one of our data breach lawyers.
Calculating Compensation For A Credit Card Data Breach
If your claim for a credit card data breach is successful, your settlement could include compensation for two types of damage. These are known as material and non-material damage.
Non-material damage refers to the emotional distress caused by the personal data breach. To help value compensation for a psychological injury, those responsible for evaluating data breach claims may refer to a document called the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). The JCG supplies a list of guideline compensation brackets for various types of mental health injuries.
In our table below, we look at a few figures for mental health injuries from the 16th edition of the JCG. We’ve only provided it as guidance because every claim is different.
| Type of Harm | Severity | Details | JCG Bracket |
|---|---|---|---|
| General Psychiatric Damage | Severe | In general family life, work and education, the claimant cannot cope. At this severity, the prognosis is very poor. | £54,830 to £115,730 |
| Moderately Severe | Although there is a much more positive prognosis than in more severe cases, the claimant experiences significant problems with their relationships and coping in life. | £19,070 to £54,830 | |
| Moderate | The claimant has experienced marked improvements from similar suffering to the above categories. | £5,860 to £19,070 | |
| Less Severe | This level of severity considers how long the claimant was disabled and what impact this had on their daily life. | £1,540 to £5,860 | |
| Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) | Severe | At this severity, the claimant suffers symptoms that badly impact all areas of life. These are permanent in nature. | £59,860 to £100,670 |
| Moderately Severe | In this category, the claimant suffers from a significant disability with symptoms lasting into the future. However, professional help can result in some recovery. | £23,150 to £59,860 | |
| Moderate | If the claimant has any continuing symptoms, these won’t have a major impact. | £8,180 to £23,150 | |
| Less Severe | The claimant may experience some minor symptoms beyond 2 years, but they’ve made nearly a full recovery. | £3,950 to £8,180 |
You could also receive compensation for your material damage. This refers to the financial losses you experienced because of the personal data breach.
For example, if criminals gain access to your credit card details, your credit score could be negatively impacted. They may also make purchases using your credit card. However, these funds may be recovered.
In order to claim compensation for your material damage, you should submit evidence, such as your credit card and bank statements.
One of our advisors can provide you with a free, personalised claim valuation and advise you on what evidence you would need to submit to claim for your material damage. Use the details at the top of the screen to get in touch.
Credit Card Data Breach Claims With A No Win No Fee Solicitor
Working with our team of data breach solicitors could make the claim far less stressful. That’s because if your case is accepted, you’ll benefit from a No Win No Fee service. As a result, you won’t need to worry about losing money for the solicitor’s fees if the claim doesn’t work out.
At the start, a solicitor will need to check if your claim is suitable to proceed. If they agree to take you on as a client, you’ll be given a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) to read. This explains what your solicitor needs to do before they will be paid. It will also show you that:
- No money needs to be paid for the solicitor’s work upfront.
- You don’t need to cover any solicitor’s fees as the case progresses.
- If the claim doesn’t work out, you’re not liable to pay your solicitor’s fees at all.
Should there be a positive result in your case, meaning you are compensated, you will have a success fee deducted from your settlement. This is a percentage of your damages used to cover the solicitor’s efforts. So that you know how much you’ll pay, the success fee (which is capped) is listed in the CFA.
To learn whether your claim is suitable for a No Win No Fee service, please contact our team today. Please get in touch with our team by:
- Calling our 24/7 free advice line on 0800 073 8801.
- Emailing details about how you’ve suffered to office@accidentclaims.co.uk.
- Asking to be called back at a suitable time using our online claims form.
- Using our live chat to discuss why you’d like to claim.
Related Guides
Thank you for reading our article on credit card data breaches. In our final section, we have supplied a few more articles that might come in handy. Should you need anything further, please call our advisors.
The Financial Conduct Authority: The FCA regulates over 60,000 financial service providers in the UK.
About Anxiety: Information on the physical and psychological symptoms of anxiety.
Data Protection Officers: Details of the role played by data protection officers in organisations.
Finally, you will find a few more of our articles listed below for your reference.
Medical Data Breach: Details about how to claim if you suffer following a medical data breach.
GP Surgery Data Breach: Advice on your rights if you suffer because of you’re GP’s data breach.
Dismissed While Off With Stress: Data breaches can lead to stress. Here, we provide information on what to do if you’re sacked while off work stressed.
Thank you for reading our guide to making a credit card data breach.
