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GDPR - One Rule For Us & One For Them?

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GDPR - One Rule For Us & One For Them?

At the AGM we covered GDPR in some detail (the new General Data Protection Regulation) and how it applies to landlords. If you have not yet registered with the ICO or worked through the steps to enable you to create a privacy notice you do need to get started as soon as possible. However, we might ask whether any Local Authorities or Universities have complied...

 

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For a landlord t be fully compliant, all tenants, guarantors and others whose data you hold need to have a copy of the privacy notice already (the deadline was 25th May), but don"t worry -the important step is to be able to show you are 'on the path to compliance" - it is far more important that you understand what data you have, how you use it, where you store it and how you minimise data breaches and ensure you can continue to operate if the data were lost for some reason than it is to GDPRPantsproduce the documentation intended to confirm this.

If you are struggling, we again recommend the RLA guides, documentation and help line and of course, the presentation our chairman gave after the AGM - find it here.

And remember, the rules are aimed at stopping the big users of data from continuing to abuse the data they hold and to force them to protect it better, so in some respects whilst this is a useful reminder to us to ensure we are as professional as possible, we perhaps should be asking why no HMO licensees have received Privacy Notices or any other GDPR documentation from the relevant local authorities (we have seen nothing from Portsmouth, Havant or Fareham) or why StudentPad users have seen nothing from the University of Portsmouth - a far bigger potential breach than any of the data we each hold….

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About the author

Martin Silman

Martin began his landlord journey 30 years ago, while working in an international role for a global telecommunications company. Since retiring he has extended his portfolio, which he manages with his wife, but has always focussed on the ‘small student HMO’ sector preferring to offer homes in the community for small groups to the more common ‘pack them in and take the money’ mentality. He has chaired the PDPLA for the past 12 years and has overseen the Associations transition from small local self-help group to a much larger and more professional institution which is recognised and listened to nationally. Alongside his PDPLA role, he also has leadership roles in a number of other local organisations – bringing his unique perspective, driving for change and increased use of technology while respecting the history that brought us here.

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