Data dominates DM Commission complaints

Breaches of UK data protection laws during 2016 attracted 35 fines totalling £3,245,500, almost double the fines in 2015.

The Commission investigated 39 cases involving existing members of the Direct Marketing Association (DMA); of these, 69% related to data, privacy and quality.

These cases often related to complex supply chains where insufficient due diligence meant the original consent or lack of consent had been overlooked, in breach of the DMA Code. The remaining complaints were split between contractual ( 21%) and customer service ( 10%) issues.

George Kidd, chief commissioner of the DM Commission, said: “While the volume of complaints remains low, the challenges with data and consents across lengthy value-chains are a cause for concern.

“We seek to balance our responsibility for dealing with the behaviours with individual businesses with the need to look at where and why there is an issue, and to work with the DMA on policy responses across the board, and not just the individual complaint and member company.”