Electoral roll "edited register". Experian selling information > Criminal offence?

Edited_Register

Hi everyone, this seems to be the only area that discusses electoral roll so.......

I personally received unsolicited post from the Energy Saving Trust inviting me to take part in a free prize draw. ie my name matched to an address.

I normally do not receive any named Direct Marketing (junk) mail at that particular address due to being registered with MPS(Mailing Preference Service), unfortunately it transpires that I had not re-registered within a 5 year period with MPS and therefore they automatically removed the address from the list. I have immediately re-registered but I expect it to take a few weeks for this registration to become effective.

So I was surprised to receive this junk mail addressed to me in person. I contacted the Marketing Dept of the Energy Saving Trust which happens to be a part Government run body, after an explanation of my concerns about privacy, I obtained the contact details of the private company contracted to provide the mailing list. The Managing Director explained that my details for that contract had been purchased by him from Experian: the data gathering arm of Credit Expert.

At this point I will explain that I have no need or desire to be on any list compiled by Experian, I understand from my research that it it more normal for persons to complain that they have "not" been data profiled by Experian.

Be that as it may, There is a statutory provision that requires all eligible persons to register on the Electoral Roll and for those that fail to do so a fine of up to £1000 or possible imprisonment. There are two registers and I quote

the full register and the edited register. Your name and address will appear on the full register, but you can choose whether or not your details appear on the edited register by ticking the box on the form.

The full register contains the names and addresses of everyone who is registered to vote. You can view the full register at any area electoral office. Only certain organisations are allowed to have copies of the full register. It can only be used for: electoral purposes, crime prevention and detection, and the vetting of applicants for credit. It is a criminal offence to use it for any unauthorised purpose or to pass it on to anyone else.

The edited register is available for general sale and can be used for any purpose, including commercial activities such as marketing. It excludes the names and addresses of people who have opted out by ticking a box on the registration form.

I know I have always elected to not appear on the edited register, and this I had confirmed when I contacted the local council where I am registered to vote. They also confirmed that they provide the full register (as they are obliged to do so ) to Experian for a fee.

So effectively the government undertakes to protect my personal data, but actually sells it to a succession of private companies who then sell it back to the government who then junk mails me to enter a free prize draw.

Now consider that it was only as a result of the MPS list that this has been highlighted.

I am of the opinion that the government (by me signing the form to which the conditions above were printed) have undertaken to protect my data.


Where does anybody guess the criminal offence, to which the provision refers, took place.









..

PlutoinCapricorn

If I have understood all this correctly, the council sold the full register to EXPERIAN, who are entitled to get it as they check credit.

EXPERIAN looked to see if you were on the MPS, and as your registration had expired, sent you the mailing.

This does not look like a criminal offence to me.

bert&ernie

Have you considered that Experian obtained your address from somewhere other than the electoral register?

jonesMUFCforever

Criminal offence no way.

PlutoinCapricorn

Assuming that EXPERIAN did use the electoral roll, did they check MPS before passing on the details, or did they assume that the organisation they sold it to would do that? If the latter, then they have done something wrong. When the council pass on the full register, does this include an indication of which ones do not want to appear on the full listing?

I did not know that MPS registrations could elapse, I had better check my own! It is ridiculous the way that addresses are bought and sold and go around from company to company. Charities do it too. The problem is that it is an opt out system: you need to inform all of them not to pass on your data, MPS helps too.

Edited_Register

@Plutoincapricorn

Thanks for both your replies; I sense you are getting up to speed in your second more considered post.


@jonesMUFCforever

The criminal offence was created under The Representation of the Peoples Act 2000 statutory instrument. Please read the following interpretation that you will find on your voter registration form and forms the basis of my original post:

It can only be used for: electoral purposes, crime prevention and detection, and the vetting of applicants for credit. It is a criminal offence to use it for any unauthorised purpose or to pass it on to anyone else.

It is already agreed informally by an Electoral services Officer after discussion of the actual worded relevant clauses in the above ACT that the direct marketing of a free prize draw would indeed constitute an unauthorised use of the full register.

I am intrigued and grateful for the all the feedback so far.



rgds

bert&ernie

Experian could have obtained your address from any number of sources other than the edited register. When you give your address to an organisation you are often asked to give permission for the data to be used for marketing purposes and/or shared with third parties. Its possible that you inadvertently gave permission or one of these companies erroneously recorded it as such and has shared the data with Experian.

Edited_Register

bert&ernie wrote: »

Experian could have obtained your address from any number of sources other than the edited register. When you give your address to an organisation you are often asked to give permission for the data to be used for marketing purposes and/or shared with third parties. Its possible that you inadvertently gave permission or one of these companies erroneously recorded it as such and has shared the data with Experian.

The address is not used for any pupose of the type you are suggesting.

When you give your address to an organisation

the assumtion is that I give that particular name matched address out to anyone.

To save time the services at that property are invoiced under another name and furthermore it was not that name that appeared on the direct mail. To clarify the name on the mailshot is the name stated on the electoral register. Just as it was not addressed to a " Mrs Edited Register" , of somewhere, someplace etc etc

I only have to stay overnight on a single given day annually to fulfill my obligations to the above ACT, and thus prevent myself incurring a £1000 fine or possible inprisonment.

Experian should have been put on notice that I had signed a legal document preventing my private data being used to enter a free prize draw.

MPS is purely a little known voluntary opt-in non-government organisation with no statutory standing. Therefore it should not be possible to override a legally signed document.
Does anybody think it can? could you then explain under what authority.

As a note, it was the government that requisitioned the data, albiet via private companies.

____

bert&ernie

I'm having a bit of trouble following this. Most people register to vote at the address where they they live i.e. their home. Most people also find it necessary to provide this name and address to other organisations in order to receive goods and services. The situation you describe seems to be a little unusual.

Are you saying that you have never provided that name and address to any organisation other than the local authority for electoral registration?

Incidentally, in your OP you say that your MPS registration had lapsed, so Experian had no obligation to cleanse that address from its lists.

This still hinges on your assumption that Experian have used the edited register for illegal purposes. You haven't actually provided any evidence to prove that this is the case.

Almost_In_The_Black

I'm also having a little troubling following all this, but I would add the following points;

1. Experian collect data from a lot of other sources and not just the electoral role (edited or otherwise).
2. The rules governing use of this data are extremely tight and (in my experience) audited closely - having worked with Experian myself in the DM industry it's been my experience that they are very careful to follow guidelines (doesn't stop someone making a mistake of course).
3. If you contact Experian they should be able to provide more information - it shouldn't be a problem to confirm if your details appear on their commercially available list for example (as opposed to the lists they use for credit checking from the full electoral role).

jonnyb

Dear Mr Register,

do you have any credit accounts at the address in question ?
and if you don't actually live there, who does ? it might help us understand a bit better.