Subject access requests

You are entitled to be told if the Money and Pensions Service holds any information about you and if so, to be provided with a copy of that information. This is called the ‘right of subject access’. These rights are governed by Data Protection legislation. 

Please note that information is subject to the Money and Pensions Service data retention policy and can only be provided if we still hold any information relating to you and exemptions do not apply. 

Subject access requests are free; however, we reserve the right to charge a reasonable fee if a request is particularly excessive or repetitive.

For more information on the right of subject access, please go to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) websiteOpens in a new window

To access the personal information we hold about you please either contact the Data Protection Officer (DPO) directly via email [email protected]Opens in a new window or via post to: Data Protection Officer, The Money and Pensions Service, Bedford Borough Hall, 138 Cauldwell Street, Bedford, MK42 9AB.

Otherwise, please complete a Subject Access Request (SAR) formOpens in a new window (PDF, 162KB) and return this to us.

If you make a valid application for subject access to the us, we will;

• tell you whether we hold any data on you
• give you a copy of this data.

We will aim to fulfil your request within one month of receiving the following;

• a valid subject access application
• enough documentation to verify your identity.

Information we may hold is likely to be dependent on whether you;

• have contacted the Money and Pensions Service through our website and our telephone service and/or
  
• have received Debt Advice through a Money and Pensions Service funded service.

In addition to a copy of your data, you will also receive guidance from the Money and Pensions Service advising you what to do if you believe that any information is incorrect.

Before we can release any of your data, we must be sure of your identity. 

You must send a minimum of two original pieces of official identity documentation with your application which between them provide enough information to prove your name, date of birth, current address and signature.

Examples of this are:

Document 1

• current, valid photo-card driving licence*
• birth/adoption certificate
• passport.

* please note that we are unable to accept paper counterpart driving licences issued after 1998, in line with changes introduced by the DVLA from 8 June 2015, as they no longer have any legal status. We are also unable to accept expired photo-card driving licences.

Document 2

• utility bill i.e. gas/electricity/telephone bill 
• official document i.e. correspondence from bank/building society.

The above should be no more than three months old. All documents must be originals. We will not accept photocopies. We advise that you send in your identity documents by secure means. Your documents will be held securely by the MaPs and sent back to you by secure delivery as soon as we have verified your identity. 

Data Protection Officer  

Money and Pensions Service  

Bedford Borough Hall  

138 Cauldwell Street 

Bedford 

MK42 9AB

If you have any questions, please direct these to [email protected]Opens in a new window.

Alternatively, you may call 020 7943 0192Opens in a new window.

If you are dissatisfied with the way your subject access request application has been processed and/or wish to challenge the results, you can raise a concern with the MaPs Data Protection Officer using the contact details above.

If you feel that we have not satisfactorily addressed your concerns, you can then escalate it to the Information Commissioner’s OfficeOpens in a new window via their website or in writing to;

Customer Contact

Information Commissioner’s Office

Wycliffe House

Water Lane

Wilmslow

SK9 5AF

Please note – we retain subject access information for a maximum of six months in case of any concerns raised. After those six months the copy of the subject access information is securely destroyed.