12th October 2025
A Lincolnshire resident has formally accused the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) of failing to comply with data protection law after the regulator allegedly ignored a lawful Subject Access Request (SAR).
Mr. Alan M. Dransfield has written to Richard Bailey, Senior Legal Officer at the ICO’s headquarters in Wilmslow, Cheshire, reminding the organisation of its legal duty under Articles 12 and 15 of the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
In his correspondence, Mr. Dransfield claims that the ICO has failed to process or respond to his request for personal data despite repeated attempts to obtain a response. He states that the statutory one-month deadline for such requests has now expired, and that no lawful exemption or explanation has been provided.
Mr. Dransfield further confirmed that he has lodged an application with Manchester County Court, which was acknowledged on 6 October 2025. He intends to rely on the ICO’s continued failure to comply as part of his legal argument.
“Given that the ICO itself is the statutory regulator for data protection, their failure to comply is both unacceptable and unlawful,” Mr. Dransfield wrote.
In his letter, Mr. Dransfield calls on the ICO to:
- Confirm immediate processing of his SAR;
- Provide a complete disclosure of all personal data held; and
- Explain the reasons for the delay.
He has requested a substantive response within seven days, warning that further non-compliance will be presented to the Court as evidence.
The Information Commissioner’s Office, based at Wycliffe House in Wilmslow, is responsible for enforcing the UK’s data protection laws and ensuring that organisations handle personal information fairly and lawfully.
At the time of publication, the ICO had been approached for comment but had not provided a response.
