News

The Freedom of Information Act 2000 is starting to have some impact on the secrecy that often surrounds benefit decisions and administration. It was used recently to get the Department for Work and Pensions's Disability Handbook made public and the DWP's Personal Information Policy (PIP) is also now available on-line, following its disclosure as a result of a Freedom of Information Act request by an advice organisation.

Using PIP should make it easier for you to advocate on your clients' behalf. It provides DWP staff with an overview of the principles to be considered before disclosing information about a claimant to a third party such as social workers or advice workers.


The DWP often has a tricky balancing act when it comes to third-party intervention. On the one hand, it must protect privacy and confidentiality. On the other, it shouldn't unnecessarily obstruct people acting on behalf of often vulnerable clients. As PIP says: "We need to strike a balance between the duties placed upon us all to protect customer information and to disclose that information where it is appropriate to do so. This policy document sets out the principles underpinning any decision to disclose personal information and will enable you to strike that balance.

"Following these principles will help protect you from making unlawful disclosures, as well as ensuring that the department adequately protects the vast amounts of personal information it holds."

The document warns DWP staff that the caller may not be who they say they are. Unscrupulous debt collectors, for example, have been known to pose as social workers to get relevant personal information about a person in debt. So "calling-back" is encouraged - but is that effective when most of us have direct lines and mobiles?

Once you have established who you are, the next hurdle is proving you have the client's consent to obtaininformation. That consent could be explicit such as an authorisation letter or implicit because of who you work for. DWP staff are told that they can disclose information without the client's consent if the person concerned is a danger to themselves or others, or a child or adult is at risk (appendix 1, para 5.2).


Appendix 3 of PIP is the most relevant to representatives because it covers "implicit" consent: "Information should not be disclosed to an enquirer just because they work for an advice or welfare organisation".

But consent can be established by accepting that there is implicit consent: "Where a representative is able to quote details of a particular benefit application and asks for the reasons why a decision was made, it will usually be quite clear that the customer has given them details of the claim and that they are acting on the customer's behalf".

In other words, verbal or written authorisation is not always required. The guidance even says clearly: "Offices should not apply blanket policies in disclosing to representatives [that is always insisting on faxed or written authority from the customer]".

So there you have it. With a bit of negotiating skill, you ought to be able to represent your clients effectively and honestly without going outside of the DWP's policies on disclosure, even if you haven't got a written authorisation from the client.

Gary Vaux is head of money advice, Hertfordshire Council. He is unable to answer queries by post or telephone. If you have a question to be answered please write to him c/o Community Care