Doreen - I gather you have already had some replies to this, but hope the
following random thoughts may be useful in building on what previous
respondents said.
The trustees of an occupational pension scheme (i.e. one sponsored by an
employer) will be a data controller (distinct from the sponsoring employer)
in relation to personal data processed for the purposes of the scheme. This
is regardless of who the trustees are: they may be employed or independent,
and may even be the same individuals who run / own the sponsoring employer.
Trustees have a distinct role at law, which is - broadly speaking - to
represent the best interests of the members and beneficiaries of the scheme.
Occupational pension schemes usually make provision for death benefits, as
well as retirement pensions - in this case, the notification and other
compliance by the trustees will cover both benefits. If an employer has a
pension scheme and a separate death benefit arrangement also set up under
trust, I guess the trustee board of each arrangement will need to notify and
comply with the Act separately.
Where much of the pensions admin is carried out by the employer's HR
department, it may be difficult to distinguish in any practical way between
personal data processed by the HR department as a data processor for the
trustees, and personal data processed by the HR department as part of the
employer as data controller. Some of the information may well overlap (such
as health information and details of dependants / next of kin). The
distinction may be important in some cases. For example, under the governing
rules of the pension scheme, the trustees (alone) may have discretion to
award certain benefits (such as an ill health early retirement pension, or
death benefits). If they exercise their discretion in a way which a member
or beneficiary dislikes, s/he may use the Act to gain access to the
documents showing how the decision was reached so as to challenge it. The
access request would need to be directed to the trustees - rather than the
employer - as the relevant data controller, and the internal HR / pensions
records will need to be organised so as to distinguish between personal data
processed for the trustees on the one hand and the employer on the other. I
would be interested to know how employers are dealing with this, and whether
HR departments are already organised in this way.
François Barker
Solicitor, Pensions Unit
Hammond Suddards Edge
Email [log in to unmask]
Website www.hammondsuddardsedge.com
Telephone +44 (0) 121 222 3584
Fax +44 (0) 121 222 3001
-----Original Message-----
From: Broom, Doreen [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 12 February 2002 4:15 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Trustees of Death Benefit Scheme
All
This local authority now has one notification. Unbeknown to me, someone in
another Department has notified the Commissioner of the above system (a
separate notification). Is there some basis for this separate notification
or only if the Trustees are not members of staff - I include Councillors as
members of staff? or have I missed some part of the Act? Who knows we might
even get a rebate.......
Doreen Broom
Data Administrator
Scottish Borders Council
Council HQ
Newtown St.Boswells
Melrose
Borders TD6 0SA
Tel: 01835 826516
e-mail: [log in to unmask]
**********************************************************************
This email is privileged, confidential and subject to copyright.
Any unauthorised use or disclosure of its content is prohibited.
The views expressed in this communication may not necessarily
be the views held by Scottish Borders Council
**********************************************************************
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
All archives of messages are stored permanently and are
available to the world wide web community at large at
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/data-protection.html
If you wish to leave this list please send the command
leave data-protection to [log in to unmask]
All user commands can be found at : -
www.jiscmail.ac.uk/user-manual/summary-user-commands.htm
(all commands go to [log in to unmask] not the list please)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
#~#
This message is confidential and may be legally privileged or
otherwise protected from disclosure. If you are not the intended
recipient, please telephone or email the sender and delete this
message and any attachment from your system; you must not
copy or disclose the contents of this message or any attachment
to any other person.
Copyright in documents created by or on behalf of this firm remains
vested in the firm, and we assert our moral rights, unless the terms
of our relevant client's engagement provide otherwise.
Hammond Suddards Edge is regulated in the United Kingdom by
the Law Society and has offices in Berlin, Birmingham, Bradford,
Brussels, Hong Kong, Leeds, Lloyd's, London, Manchester,
Munich and Paris. The partners in the firm are either solicitors or
registered foreign lawyers and a list of their names and professional
qualifications can be inspected at 7 Devonshire Square Cutlers Gardens
London EC2M 4YH or at any of our other offices, the addresses of which
can be found at http://www.hammondsuddardsedge.com.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
All archives of messages are stored permanently and are
available to the world wide web community at large at
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/data-protection.html
If you wish to leave this list please send the command
leave data-protection to [log in to unmask]
All user commands can be found at : -
www.jiscmail.ac.uk/user-manual/summary-user-commands.htm
(all commands go to [log in to unmask] not the list please)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
|