GDPR and vehicle tracking
by Fiona Taylor
What is GDPR and how will affect you and your fleet?
You may have heard about GDPR, which is the General Data Protection Regulation. It is a regulation that is being introduced to strengthen data protection rights for all individuals within the European Union. The primary aim is to give control back to citizens and residents over their personal data. And to simplify the regulatory environment for businesses by unifying regulation across the EU.
You might think that this won’t make a difference to us here in the UK after we have voted for Brexit. So, do you really need to worry about GDPR? Well, the UK will still be part of the EU in May 2018 and therefore will need to adhere to these regulations. Also, the UK Government has indicated that it will implement an equivalent legal mechanism to the GDPR once the formal split from the EU occurs. It is expected that any such regulation will largely follow the GDPR.
Basically, if you process data about individuals then you need to be aware of the regulations.
How does GDPR affect fleet data?
On 25 May 2018 the General Data Protection Regulation will replace the Data Protection Act. This is the biggest shake up of data protection regulation for 20 years.
The use of telematics within the fleet industry generates information on employees from their vehicles. This information will fall under the new regulation.
Moving forward, it will be essential for any business that runs a fleet of vehicles to keep audit trails to evidence that specific, non-ambiguous, consent was freely given by the drivers.
What kind of consent do you need for GDPR?
All documentation says that you need to collect specific consent. This means that the consent cannot be ambiguous and cover a whole range of different situations. Consent should be in the form of a written statement. The old fashioned way of collecting opt-ins via a pre-filled tick box will not be acceptable. The inaction of a person does not imply consent.
Without a written agreement from the driver the data gathered will not be actionable. Therefore if you wanted to use the information from the vehicle tracking unit in a disciplinary situation the driver MUST have agreed to the use of the data beforehand. You cannot covertly install a unit and then use the covert data against the driver.
Consent must also be separate from other terms and conditions, and you will need to provide simple ways for people to withdraw consent. Employers will need to take particular care to ensure that consent is freely given.
Justin Pickles, head of IT at Satmo said;
The data that we gather is anonymous, in as much as you cannot identify a person just from the data the unit sends back. However fleet operators need to be fully aware of the new rules that are coming into place.
Drivers are likely to be happy for you to collect data from the vehicle that will help you become more efficient as a business, or allow you to diagnose technical faults with the vehicle. However they are unlikely to be happy about you collecting data about how they drive, or where they are sometimes. These objections can be overcome by the way that you roll out the installation of the vehicle tracking. Why not look at our other blog post for some ideas.
What do you need to do for GDPR?
Many of the main principles of GDPR are the same as those in the current Data Protection Act. However there are some new areas to consider.
The Information Commissioners Office have devised a getting ready for GDPR checklist to allow you to see what you need to do.
- Firstly you should make sure that people in all areas of your business are aware of the new law
- Document what data you hold, where it came from, and who you share it with
- Review how you request, record and manage consent from individuals
- Recruit someone in your company as the person responsible for data protection compliance
If you haven’t thought about the importance of GDPR before, then now is the time to start thinking about it, this blog post is not legal advice, but if you are unsure you should contact someone who will be able to advise and help you.
Fiona Taylor
Fiona Taylor is the Sales Manager at award winning Satmo Vehicle Tracking. If you feel you need help with your fleet, want to gain back control, save some money and time then please get in touch.
