Section 45 of the Data Protection Act 2018 allows you to request your data from a company via a Data Subject Access Request (DSAR). However, for legal action on an enforcement breach, it is more effective to issue a notice under Rule 6 of the Pre-Action Conduct and Protocol.

This method has shorter deadlines and imposes heavier financial penalties on the bailiff company for non-compliance.

Section 47 of the Data Protection Act 2018 allows you to instruct the bailiff company to cease processing your data and destroy it immediately.

Bailiff companies often misconstrue a Rule 6 Notice to be a DSAR; however, this is inconsequential. The court will recognise that the bailiff company is trying to evade liability for any breach and will consider this behaviour when awarding your damages and costs.

Penalties for non-compliance with a DSAR are relatively weak, and the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) faces long delays in handling complaints.

Conversely, a bailiff company's failure to adhere to a Rule 6 Notice gives the court the power to impose punitive measures when determining damages in your claim for an enforcement breach against the creditor or council.