Parking enforcement CCTV capturing kitchens and bedrooms

AlCapwn

Hello

I received a ticket from a parking contractor which uses CCTV across the estate to monitor parking. The landlord is a social housing provider. The images captured clearly shows residents moving around in their kitchen and bedrooms. My parents live on the estate and although their private areas were not recorded, we were assured that private areas would be blanked out.

What responsibility does the parking contractor have to blank out these areas? What responsibility does the landlord have? 

user1977

The operator of the CCTV should be ensuring any private property is masked from view from the cameras (there are electronic ways of doing this).

ReadingTim

The tenant may be able to complain to the parking contractor direct, or might have to go via their landlord.  In the meantime, if they are worried, they may want to consider net curtains.  

But none of that will invalidate your parking ticket, if that's what you're getting at...

[Deleted User]

How long has this been going on for? Sounds like a massive, long term invasion of privacy. You should be looking at significant compensation. For a one off and relatively minor breech with few consequences beyond stress and hassle, £750 used to be the baseline but these days it's usually around £1000 if it gets to court.

This may have been going on for a long time though, meaning hundreds or thousands of incidents, and who-knows-who watching the cameras. They may have also given those video screen captures to other people when sending them fines. All that greatly adds to the amount you should expect.

First thing to do is determine the scale of this privacy invasion. Get your parents to send them a Data Subject Access Request, asking for how long the recording system has been in operation, how many times they were captured on it, how many times images showing them and their private property were given to other people, and how many people had access to the video since it was turned on.

Let us know what they say.

theartfullodger

So all occupants are tenants of the "social housing provider"? Do you mean a Housing Association? Or Council? Or housing co-operative?

What does the tenancy and/or leasehold documentation state about CCTV or similar, please?

AlCapwn

ReadingTim said:

But none of that will invalidate your parking ticket, if that's what you're getting at...

No, that's not my intention. We were assured at the time cameras went up they would blackout private areas and they haven't. 

rigolith said:

How long has this been going on for? Sounds like a massive, long term invasion of privacy. You should be looking at significant compensation. For a one off and relatively minor breech with few consequences beyond stress and hassle, £750 used to be the baseline but these days it's usually around £1000 if it gets to court.

This may have been going on for a long time though, meaning hundreds or thousands of incidents, and who-knows-who watching the cameras. They may have also given those video screen captures to other people when sending them fines. All that greatly adds to the amount you should expect.

First thing to do is determine the scale of this privacy invasion. Get your parents to send them a Data Subject Access Request, asking for how long the recording system has been in operation, how many times they were captured on it, how many times images showing them and their private property were given to other people, and how many people had access to the video since it was turned on.

Let us know what they say.

It wasn't our property recorded, but I think I will get in touch with the resident and make them aware of what happened. I'm quite disgusted they didn't implement blackout zones like they said they would. Even though my ticket images are from night time, I can see the resident quite clearly. In day time and with zoom capability, it would be a privacy nightmare

theartfullodger said:

So all occupants are tenants of the "social housing provider"? Do you mean a Housing Association? Or Council? Or housing co-operative?

What does the tenancy and/or leasehold documentation state about CCTV or similar, please?

Housing Association. The individual whose property was recorded, I am not sure if they are tenant or leaseholder. CCTV for parking enforcement was installed in 2021. I will have to check the tenancy agreement. 

Alderbank

AlCapwn said:

Hello

I received a ticket from a parking contractor which uses CCTV across the estate to monitor parking. The landlord is a social housing provider. The images captured clearly shows residents moving around in their kitchen and bedrooms. My parents live on the estate and although their private areas were not recorded, we were assured that private areas would be blanked out.

What responsibility does the parking contractor have to blank out these areas? What responsibility does the landlord have? 

Here is chapter and verse of the Home Office's Surveillance Camera Code of Practice:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1055736/SurveillanceCameraCodePractice.pdf

It is very long winded and I have only skimmed it.

Do the cameras show more than you or I would be able to observe while standing on the highway?

newsgroupmonkey_

I know this was a platform rather than cameras, but isn't this similar to the Tate Modern's issue?
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2023/feb/01/tate-modern-viewing-platform-invades-privacy-of-flats-supreme-court-rules

user1977

newsgroupmonkey_ said:

I know this was a platform rather than cameras, but isn't this similar to the Tate Modern's issue?
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2023/feb/01/tate-modern-viewing-platform-invades-privacy-of-flats-supreme-court-rules

Not really as CCTV brings in all of the data protection aspects, which are a bit clearer than the arguments which the Tate's neighbours had to make.

newsgroupmonkey_

user1977 said:

newsgroupmonkey_ said:

I know this was a platform rather than cameras, but isn't this similar to the Tate Modern's issue?
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2023/feb/01/tate-modern-viewing-platform-invades-privacy-of-flats-supreme-court-rules

Not really as CCTV brings in all of the data protection aspects, which are a bit clearer than the arguments which the Tate's neighbours had to make.

Yup, that's true.
I was thinking with CCTV, they have an even stronger case.

Alderbank

The Tate viewing gallery is 100ft in the air and apparently has a continuous stream of rubbernecking visitors during opening hours.
Properly managed CCTV has a small controlled number of persons who are permitted to see the live images.

The Tate judge did stress this was a specific case, as the Tate’s decision to open a viewing gallery was “a very particular and exceptional use of land”.

Some cynical commentators have observed that the residents who brought the case are of exceptionally high net worth.