ICO Response to DVLA complaint on GDPR compliance (After 4 years wait)

daveyjp

It really isn't difficult for DVLA to sort it.

All it needs as part of KADOE is for them to pass the onus on the PPC to carry out due diligence.

'As PPC we confirm the keeper has no legal rights of ownership or legal interest by way of lease or licence of the land where the vehicle was parked'

MothballsWallet

daveyjp said:

It really isn't difficult for DVLA to sort it.

All it needs as part of KADOE is for them to pass the onus on the PPC to carry out due diligence.

'As PPC we confirm the keeper has no legal rights of ownership or legal interest by way of lease or licence of the land where the vehicle was parked'

And they should have to provide evidence of the checks they have done to confirm this, or get hit with fines so large, the PPC owners have to liquidate their personal and company assets to pay it and then get banned from running a company for a minimim period of 20 years.

Umkomaas

Castle said:

Umkomaas said:

Mouse007 said:

Pages 25 and 26 of this may be of interest

https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/400114/response/976926/attach/2/FOIR6015 MIS546.pdf?cookie_passthrough=1

I will re read, digest and consider before making any comments myself.

A quick skim. Seems to be linked to paper requests for keeper data. The KADOE contract eases the burden to provide the DVLA with the information shown in the table each time a request is made. PPCs are required to have that available to DVLA auditors at audit. Hmmm, I wonder how many physical audits have been undertaken since March 2020? 🤔

The so called DVLA audits are worthless anyway, because they don't go to any of the car parks to check the actual physical signs; instead, they rely on photos of the signs provided by the PPC's when they visit their offices.

I recognise the lack of any true audit process, I was interested more in whether the DVLA had downed tools citing Covid and had yet to restart. 

1505grandad

Just checking  -  does this make sense/already known? Is a "seemingly" overseas entity (who are Valcon?) seemingly involved with our data held by DVLA?:-

"You are reminded of the conditions of the KADOE (Keeper At Date Of Event) agreement signed between DVLA and your company, and the contract signed between your company and VALCON."

https://kadoe.co.uk/dvlaimportantinfo/

pinkelephant12

I have been in correspondence with the DVLA over whether they would allow my objection to my data being released to a PPC regarding my car parked in my parking space which had been formally opted out of the PPC's permit scheme.  

DVLA made the following points:

1. Their right to refuse an objection on the basis of 'the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims' applies to legal claims of the data controller AND 3rd parties (e.g. parking companies).

2. They will not consider individual situations (despite recital 69) - they can use the legal claims argument above as a blanket approach to deny all objection requests.

3. If a PPC breaches the KADOE contract, it is entirely the fault of the PPC and nothing to do with DVLA

4. I raised the issue of Article 8 European Convention on Human Rights which protects the right to privacy, home and family life - potentially relevant in residential situations.   

They quoted the case of Farrer v Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions [2002] EWHC 1917 (Admin) which they say states that their disclosure is compatible with data protection law and Article 8.  I cannot locate this case.  Is anyone able to find it and post a link?  I would be interested to know whether it applies to residential situations.

5. They also spouted the usual rubbish about seeking reassurances from the PPC if they find that they have wrongly applied for data and the ATA's role in enforcing their code of practice.  They also acknowledge the new Code of Practice being drafted which rather destroys this argument!

I hope Keller Postman (formerly Keller Lenkner) will include DVLA's failure to allow objections as part of their class action.

Coupon-mad

I can't find Farrer v Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions [2002] EWHC 1917 (Admin) either.

Reply back to the DVLA and say if they are going to spout purported case law, kindly supply a court transcript because the Farrer case they mention in their template fob-off response is not in the public domain.

Secondly, you wish to escalate this complaint to the DFT, as a formal complaint to the top (not Robert Toft - you want it escalated to the DFT because the DVLA constantly confirm the position observed by the public, that they are in the pocket of the parking industry). 

Specifically, you take absolute issue with this excuse which makes no legal sense in a case where the consumer has a legal right and there can be no exercise of any 'legal claim' by anyone except the consumer who owns the bay.  And THAT right is what the DVLA should be defending:

"The right to refuse an objection on the basis of 'the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims' applies to legal claims of the data controller AND 3rd parties (e.g. parking companies)."

pinkelephant12

@Coupon-mad Thanks for the advice which was duly followed.

Information obtained from DVLA's Data Protection Policy Manager and added here to help anyone else who wants to pursue this.

Complaints to the Department for Transport about DVLA's refusal to allow objections to the processing of keeper details should be emailed to DataProtectionOfficer@dft.gov.uk or sent by snail mail to Data Protection Office, Department for Transport, 3rd Floor, One Priory Square, Hasting, East Sussex, TN34 1EA.

I have also received the court transcript for the case of Farrer v Secretary of State for Transport [2002] EWHC (Admin) which I can post a link to if anyone is interested.

DVLA are relying on this case to justify releasing keeper details to anyone who wants it, but admit that the law has changed significantly since then.

Of more significance is that this case involved keeper details being obtained by a detective agency/debt collector who acted for Local Authorities and Magistrates' Courts when collecting unpaid fines following a court order.  

Judge Pitchford considered that the information released was essentially too insignificant to breach human rights and that, even if DVLA behaved unreasonably, there are lots of remedies available to us e.g. suing for breaches of data protection law.

I intend to make a complaint to the Department for Transport about DVLA's failure to allow objections to the processing of keeper details in 'own space' cases.  Has anyone dealt with the DfT?  Which arguments are likely to work best with them?  All suggestions gratefully received.

patient_dream

I intend to make a complaint to the Department for Transport about DVLA's failure to allow objections to the processing of keeper details in 'own space' cases.  Has anyone dealt with the DfT?  Which arguments are likely to work best with them?  All suggestions gratefully received.

Grant Shapps was Secretary of State for Transport and was sacked by Liz Truss. 
We do not know her reasons but we can guess

Anne-Marie Trevelyan was appointed Secretary of State for Transport on 6 September 2022 ......... A new broom to contact

pinkelephant12

@patient_dream My complaint to the Department for Transport will probably reach ministerial level in due course.  I have an excellent constituency MP who will be more than happy to contact the relevant minister.  In the meantime, each letter they write reveals more information and they dig themselves a bigger hole!

patient_dream

pinkelephant12 said:

@patient_dream My complaint to the Department for Transport will probably reach ministerial level in due course.  I have an excellent constituency MP who will be more than happy to contact the relevant minister.  In the meantime, each letter they write reveals more information and they dig themselves a bigger hole!

I agree the hole gets bigger every time.

Until the ICO accepts that the Data Protection Act refers to EVERYONE, very little will change and the hole will become a sink hole