killamarsh

Due to seeing a posting made today I thought I would put this on.

Prior to moving to Oz and packing up I would fully recommend getting a copy of your records from key organisations in the UK.

The main organisations will be government agencies, prior employers and doctors/hospitals.

You need to bare in mind that you may not need the information immediately, but you may well in the future and it is a lot more difficult requesting a copy of your information once you are on the other side of the world.

Two main areas are health and pensions.

Health may have to do with your kids and their immunization record. Pensions will have to do with current/former employers and HM Customs and Revenue (formerly known as Inland Revenue)

Firstly, it may be a few years before your retirement but if you need to claim a pension from overseas you need all the information you can get.( It took my dad a year to get it sorted as he has been there 30years) Think about it private employers may change ownership over and over before you are entitled to your Pension.

The public sector are undergoing massive reductions and changes, particularly in IT and you want to make sure that in 20 years plus, that you will have more information that just your NINO, should they not recognise you on their system when you go to claim you state/public service pension.

Under the Data Protection Act 1998 all individuals have the right of ' Subject Access Request'. This is where you have the legal right to a copy or to view a copy of records held by any organisation that holds personal data on individuals, ie banks , Inland Revenue, Doctors, Hospitals, etc.

A request has to be made in writing. This is defined as being on paper, by fax and accepted by some organisations, by email.

Paper is best.

Organisations, both public and private that hold personal data are governed by the Data Protection Act 1998. Don't let them tell you otherwise - they don't have a choice, as it is legislation.

HOW TO MAKE A REQUEST

Put the request in writing (paper). Sign it - although it is not legally required, some are funny about this. Ensure you provide enough personal info for the oganisation to confidently id you. For example I would recommend proving at least three pieces of personal id, name, ref number, National Insurance number, date of birth and where to send the info.

State that you want a copy of the information. (Don't let them make you view it as you have a legal right to a copy.

Ensure you clearly state what information that you want. Don't say, " I want everything you have that relates to me" some might reject it and ask for further info from you, hence a delay.

For example, I request that you provide me with all copies of electronic inclusive of telephony systems data bases, email and electronic databases/systems and clerical data but not excluding other forms of personal records that you hold that relate and/or are personal to me.

Please note that these people only have 40 CALENDER DAYS to process your request from the date the organisation receives it.

FOR EXAMPLE: It does not matter that you put your request into a Jobcentre in central London, even though you live in Scotland. That organisation has received it and provided you have provided enough id for them to confidently id you, enough info to understand what you want the 40 days starts then, not when it gets to your local Jobcentre in Scotland.

If you do not receive a response and you are having problems with that organisation be it public or private, The Information Commissioner is there to monitor compliance with the Act. As the Commissioner can impose sanctions etc, organisations tend to listen to them when they ask why they haven't dealt with a request within the statutory time limit. It speeds things up when you have put your request in but haven't got anything back. –There is a internet site for the commissioner that provides info and numbers.

Please note that some organisations do charge for the luxury of getting a copy of your documents, but not all. They have to advise this in writing.

As I said at the beginning I made this post due to a new post and because I am doing this now, and specialize in this area for a very large public organisation and have seen the difficulty experienced for people trying to sort out pensions etc.

I hope you find this useful, sorry about the length of the post. Any further questions about subject access request can be made through this posting.

Bordy

Good advice. You may never need it but better safe than sorry.

Watty'n'Arls

[QUOTE=killamarsh]Due to seeing a posting made today I thought I would put this on.

Prior to moving to Oz and packing up I would fully recommend getting a copy of your records from key organisations in the UK.

The main organisations will be government agencies, prior employers and doctors/hospitals.

Good post - This is something i have been wondering about as i have paid into a part time and then full time pension with Tesco when i was younger. This probably in all adds up to about 10yrs contributions but dont know how to go about either freezing or transfering or leaving till i retire ?????? ( still got 35+yrs to go yet) its all so confusing!!!! I have also paid into a large company pansion full time for the last 8 yrs with large contributions made by both parties and dont know what to do with that when i leave - any advise much appreciated!!!!!

thanks

killamarsh

I am in the same position with Boots. Not sure where to start but I know I have to get some sort of statement from them otherwise those years I worked for them are lost.

good luck.

geordie mandy

very useful information , very timely for us as we are hoping to apply next april (hubby will have 2 years left of his contract) but are wanting to gain as much advice as possible before we start on paperwork etc
thanks Mandy

Watty'n'Arls

Let me know if find anything out - im going to start looking into it myself so ill let you know if i find anything out!!!!

regards

Budgie

I'd also recommend taking a letter from your car insurance company stating how many years no claim you have - you'll usually need this in order to get the coveted "Rating 1" status when you get insurance or auto membership over here.

robos

top thread mate

thanks fer all that info really helpful

jan xx

killamarsh

Have you had any luck into finding out who to contact for boots - previous work history pension contibutions etc?

Poppy

Hi

Just thought I would let you know about a company called Global Destiny that
sorts all pension stuff out for you when you emigrate. I haven't met them yet, I have an appointment in a couple of weeks. Their details are:

Global Destiny
29 Ely Place
London
EC1N 6TD

Direct Dial: 020 7611 4723
Main Office: 020 7611 4777
Fax: 020 7611 4701

www.globaldestiny.co.uk

They can hopefully answer some questions for you.

Cheers