New rules to prevent personal information provided in confidence to the Garda Síochána and insurance companies being misused are to be put in place by the end of the year. Paul Cullen, Consumer Affairs Correspondent, reports.
Data Protection Commissioner Billy Hawkes yesterday promised a code of practice on the protection of data within the Garda would be finalised shortly, and a separate code for data protection within the insurance industry would be agreed by the end of the year.
Mr Hawkes said he took very seriously recent allegations that confidential personal information had been provided illegally to insurance companies, in some cases through private investigators, by sources within the Garda and the Department of Social and Family Affairs.
The Sunday Tribunehas alleged that a leading insurer, Quinn Direct, recruited serving and retired gardaí to investigate and settle claims. It has also claimed another company, Axa Ireland, used private investigators who were able to access confidential Garda and department data.
Quinn Direct is suing the newspaper over its allegations and says the document that contains the allegations, which purports to be an internal company memo, is a forgery. Axa said it employed private investigators in good faith and said their work methodologies were a matter of individual practices.
Asked last night about Quinn Direct's assertion, Sunday Tribuneeditor Noirín Hegarty responded: "Our position hasn't changed".
In his statement yesterday, Mr Hawkes said compliance by the insurance industry with data protection rules may need to be improved in a number of areas.
His office had received similar allegations about illegal access to Garda data and these now formed the basis of a "comprehensive work programme" involving all the concerned parties.
He had already met Assistant Garda Commissioner Eddie Rock, who is conducting a separate Garda investigation into the allegations.
Mr Hawkes said the department had also promised a thorough investigation of the allegations. Following an audit by commission officials in 2006, the department had tightened up its procedures and taken action against employees found to have improperly accessed private information about a social welfare recipient.
In 2006, department officials were reprimanded after they were found to have accessed the social welfare history of EuroMillions lottery winner Dolores McNamara.
Mr Hawkes said he would be meeting insurance industry representatives next week and planned to carry out audits of a number of companies, including Axa and Quinn Direct, over the coming months.
"I am aware that some insurance companies use private investigators to investigate claims which they suspect are fraudulent or exaggerated. Private investigators are bound by the Data Protection Acts. I intend to work closely with the Private Insurance Authority on the licensing requirement that will shortly apply to this sector.
"Data protection is about respecting people's rights to protection of their personal information . . . I am determined to use the powers given to me by law to ensure that people's rights are respected by all the organisations involved," Mr Hawkes said.