For the purpose of this Privacy Policy “you” or “your” means any end user accessing or receiving our services or our Website (as defined below), “we” or “us”, “our” or “Asserson” means Asserson Law Offices, a partnership operating under the laws of England and Wales with its head office at Central Court, 25 Southampton Buildings, Holborn, London, WC2A.
We are a law firm registered in England and Wales and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (number 549779). This website has been set up to allow claimants to instruct us in respect of a claim against their university.
This Privacy Policy and any other documents referred to in it, sets out the basis on which any personal data we collect from you, or that you provide to us, will be processed by us. This Privacy Policy also sets out how you can instruct us if you prefer to limit the use of that personal data and the procedures that we have in place to safeguard your privacy.
Please read the following carefully to understand our views and practices regarding your personal data and how we will treat it.
For the purposes of this Privacy Policy, Data Protection Legislation means, the Data Protection Act 2018 (the “DPA”) and the General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679 (the “GDPR”). For the purposes of the Data Protection Legislation we are the data controller. By using or accessing our Website at www.studentgroupclaim.co.uk (the “Website”) or using our services you signify your consent to our collection, use and disclosure of your personal information in accordance with this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree with this Privacy Policy, you must not use our services, access the Website or submit information to us through or in connection with our services, the Website or otherwise.
1.1 Information you give us (Submitted Information):
1.1.1 This includes information that you provide by filling in forms and submitting information to us, by email or through our services or the Website, when you register to use our services, subscribe to any one of our services, through surveys, or by requesting further services.
1.1.2 The information you give us may include:
(a) your name, date of birth, address and telephone number,
(b) your email address,
(c) your student ID number;
(d) whether you are an EU student or not;
(e) the identity of your university and information about courses you are enrolled in and your tuition fees, and your experiences during the provision of your education by your university.
1.1.3 Records of communications between you and us relating to services provided by us to you. If you contact us, whether through our services, the Website, our call centre or otherwise we may keep a record of that correspondence or conversation. For example, if you submit a query, a complaint, report a problem with our service, Website, or otherwise liaise with our customer service, technical support or any other department in our company we may keep a record.
1.1.4 We may contact you if we need further information or if the information you submit on a form is incomplete.
1.1.5 We may also ask you to complete surveys that we use for research purposes, although you do not have to respond to them.
2.1 Each time you visit our Website or use our services we may collect the following information:
2.1.1 Details of your use and your visits to our Website including, but not limited to traffic data, weblogs and other communication data, whether this is required for our own billing purposes or otherwise (“Log Information”).
2.1.2 Your contact details such us your address, email address, forename, surname and phone number (“Contact Details Information”).
2.1.3 Information we receive from other sources (“Third Party Information”). We are working closely with third parties (including, for example, business partners, legal counsel, sub-contractors in technical, payment and delivery services, advertising networks, analytics providers, search information providers and credit reference agencies, etc).
2.2 We may check some of the information that you provide against third party databases to confirm that it is accurate.
3.1 We may process this information for the purpose of:
3.1.1 Administering registration records;
3.1.2 Contacting you regarding the proposed claim against your university;
3.1.3 Providing you access to all parts or features of our services, or the Website;
3.1.4 Dealing with your enquiries and requests, including contacting you where necessary;
3.1.5 Carrying out our obligations arising from any contracts entered into between you and us;
3.1.6 Contacting you for your views on our services and notifying you occasionally about important changes or developments to our services, or to the Website;
3.1.7 Improving and developing our services, or the Website;
3.1.8 Ensuring that content from our Website is presented in the most effective manner for you and for your computer or mobile device; and
3.1.9 Crime, fraud and money laundering compliance.
3.2 If you do not want us to use your information in this way, or to pass your details on to third parties, please email us using the address info@asserson.co.uk to withdraw your consent.
3.3 We may also gather information and statistics for the purposes of monitoring the usage of the Website and our services and may provide such anonymised information to third parties. These statistics will not include information that can be used to identify you.
3.4 If you stop using our services or our Website, or your permission to use the Website or our services is terminated, we may continue to use and disclose your personal information in accordance with this Privacy Policy (as amended from time to time) and as permitted by the Data Protection Legislation. However, if you wish us to stop emailing you with information in connection with the Website or our services, please send your request to us by email to info@asserson.co.uk.
4.1 The Internet is not a secure medium. However, we have put in place various security procedures with regards to the Website and your electronic communications with us, as set out in this Privacy Policy.
4.2 Where you have been allocated a user admin area (an “Account”), this area is protected by your user name and password, which you should never divulge to anyone else. You are responsible for keeping this password confidential. We ask you not to share a password with anyone.
4.3 Please be aware that communications over the Internet such as emails are not secure unless they have been encrypted. Your communications may route through a number of countries before being delivered – this is the nature of the World Wide Web/Internet.
4.4 We cannot accept responsibility for any unauthorised access or loss of personal information that is beyond our control.
4.5 We believe that we have appropriate policies, rules and technical measures to protect the personal data that we have under our control (having regard to the type and amount of that data) from unauthorised access, improper use or disclosure, unauthorised modification, unlawful destruction or accidental loss.
4.6 All of our employees and data processors that have access to, and are associated with, the processing of your personal information are obliged to respect the confidentiality of our users’ information.
4.7 We ensure that your information will not be disclosed to government institutions or authorities except if required by law or when requested to by regulatory bodies or law enforcement organisations.
4.8 Certain of our Services may include social networking, chat room or forum features. When using these features please ensure that you do not submit any personal data that you do not want to be seen, collected or used by other users.
5.1 Your information may, for the purposes set out in this Privacy Policy, be disclosed for processing to:
5.1.1 Our employees;
5.1.2 Third party consultants, contractors or other service providers who may access your personal information when providing services (including but not limited to IT support services) to us;
5.1.3 Government bodies and law enforcement agencies and in response to other legal and regulatory requests, if we are under a duty to disclose or share your personal data in order to comply with any legal or regulatory obligation or request;
5.1.4 Auditors or contractors or other advisers auditing, assisting with or advising on any of our business purposes or processes;
5.1.5 To any third party where such disclosure is required in order to enforce or apply our end user terms, and/or other agreements; or to protect the rights, property, or safety of our company, our customers, or others but always in accordance with applicable laws;
5.1.6 In the context of a possible claim, we may share your information with counsel or other third parties such as funders or other partners with which we may work.
6.1 You can write to us at any time to obtain a copy of your information and to have any inaccuracies corrected. Please write to: info@asserson.co.uk. Where appropriate under Data Protection Legislation, you may have your personal information erased, rectified, amended or completed as specified below:
(a) Access: you are entitled to be provided with a copy of the information we hold about you.
(b) Deletion: you have the right to ask us to delete personal information we hold about you though please bear in mind that we may need to keep all or part of your data in accordance with applicable Data Protection Legislation (e.g. if we need to keep all or part of your data to comply with our legal obligations, for record keeping or to keep providing you any of our services).
(c) Rectification: you are entitled to have any inaccuracies in the information we hold about you corrected.
(d) Withdraw consent: you have the right to withdraw your consent to any particular use of your data.
(e) Information: you have the right to be informed of the use to which your personal data is put.
(f) Restriction: under certain circumstances specified by Data Protection Legislation, you have the right to request us to restrict the processing of your personal data, or we may restrict the processing of your data (e.g. if you claim your data is inaccurate, you object to the processing of your personal data and we are considering your request, if processing is unlawful and you oppose erasure and request restriction instead, etc.)
(g) Object: you have the right to object to our processing of your personal data based: (i) on our legitimate interests or the performance of a task in the public interest; (ii) direct marketing (including profiling); (ii) processing for purposes of scientific/historical research and statistics.
(h) Portability: you have the right to request us to provide you with your personal data in a structured, commonly used and machine readable form and to ask us to transmit the data directly to another organisation if this is technically feasible.
6.2 Please quote your name and address. We should be grateful if you would also provide brief details of the information of which you would like a copy or which you would like to be corrected (this helps us to more readily locate your data).
6.3 We will require proof of your identity before providing you with details of any personal information we may hold about you.
6.4 We may only request a reasonable fee from you when your request is manifestly unfounded or excessive or repetitive or we receive a request to provide further copies of the same information.
7.1 The data that we collect from you may be transferred to, and stored at, a destination outside the European Economic Area (“EEA”). It may also be processed by staff operating outside the EEA who work for us or for one of our suppliers or affiliates. Such staff maybe engaged in, among other things, in the provision of support services. By submitting your personal data, you agree to this transfer, storing or processing. We will take all steps reasonably necessary to ensure that your data is treated securely and in accordance with this Privacy Policy and the Data Protection Legislation.
8.1 By submitting any personal information (including, without limitation, your payment details) to us you consent to the use of information as set out in this Privacy Policy. We reserve the right to amend or modify this Privacy Policy and if we do so we will post the changes on our Website. It is your responsibility to check the Privacy Policy every time you submit information to us. Your use of the Website or our services will signify that you agree to any such changes.
8.2 In the event the purposes for which we process personal information changes, then we will contact you as soon as practicable and seek your consent, where such notification relates to a new additional purpose for processing which is not compatible with, or similar to, the originally specified purposes.
9.1 We are not responsible for the privacy policies and practices of other apps or websites even if you accessed the third party website or app using links from our Website or by means of our services.
9.2 We recommend that you check the policy of each website or app you visit and contact the owner or operator of such website or app if you have concerns or questions.
10.1 We will keep your data for as long as: (i) you have consented to it; or (ii) it is necessary for us to provide you with our services or to comply with our obligations under applicable law (such us tax and accounting rules), this Privacy Policy, or under our end user terms; (iii) is required in respect to the purposes for which such information was provided to us, including where you have given us permission to use it to contact you in the future for marketing purposes.
11.1 For complaints or for requesting further information from us on data protection and privacy or any requests concerning your personal information please email us at info@asserson.co.uk.
11.2 You can also contact the Information Commissioner’s Office if you have a complaint regarding your personal data that we cannot resolve. Their website address is: www.ico.org.uk .
The Compensation Calculator is intended to give you an approximate estimated value for your claim based on basic information and assumptions; it does not necessarily reflect what your claim is actually worth, which could be more or less than the sum shown by the calculator.
Your university agreed to provide you with education services in exchange for tuition fees. Under English law, where only part of the agreed services were provided, the service provider must pay compensation – the difference between the market value of (a) the agreed services; and (b) the services actually provided.
The Calculator assumes that the market value of an average course in your faculty is the price charged for it on the open market, i.e. the price charged to an international student, which is not artificially capped by the Government.
To estimate claims for cancelled teaching due to strikes, we assume that 50% of tuition fees relate to teaching and 50% to other services such as libraries, laboratories, workshops and leisure spaces.
For the period when teaching moved online, we looked at the difference in price between traditional versus online courses for undergraduate and graduate courses at a range of UK universities to calculate the average difference.
Please read the full terms of engagement set out below which will govern our work for you and your participation in the group claim for compensation against your university.
However, please note the following main points:
Asserson Law Offices (“Asserson”, “we” “us”) is a firm of solicitors in England and Wales regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority with registration number 549779. Asserson operates from offices in London and Tel Aviv. Its head office is at Central Court, 25 Southampton Buildings, Holborn, London, WC2A.
By agreeing to these terms and conditions you are instructing Asserson to act as your solicitors in relation to your claim for compensation from your university in respect of the disruption to your studies caused by industrial action and Covid-19 during the period 2018 to 2021 (the “Dispute”). The Dispute forms part of a group claim (the “Group Claim”) in which many other students at your university (the “Group Claim Clients”) have disputes with the university similar to the Dispute.
You agree that the information you provide to us is true to the best of your knowledge. You agree that we may present such information to a court.
You understand that you are required by the court rules to preserve copies of all electronic or paper documents you have which are or might be relevant to the Dispute.
You agree that we can correspond with you using the email address you provide to us.
If you wish to change the email address we use to contact you, you must confirm the new email address in writing to us.
For all purposes, you must write to us using the email address enquiries.studentclaim@studentgroupclaim.co.uk
You agree to exercise your right to give us instructions in respect of the Dispute and the Group Claim solely through the Representative Committee as per the Annex below, which forms part of these terms and conditions.
By agreeing to these terms you are entering into a Damages Based Agreement with us for the purposes of section 58AA of the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990. This Damages Based Agreement applies to our work for you in respect of the Dispute and the Group Claim including any appeals by either side in respect of the Dispute and/or the Group Claim.
By instructing us you are agreeing to be liable for a fair share of our fees and our expenses, for example barrister fees and expert witness fees. The amount of those fees and expenses will be agreed on your behalf by the Representative Committee. However, the fees and expenses are only payable by you in the circumstances set out below.
If you do not succeed in the Dispute, i.e. you do not obtain damages or similar compensation from your university, then you do not need to pay us anything, although you remain liable for our costs to the extent that the university is ordered to pay any costs to you, and you agree to allow us to retain any costs which the university is ordered to pay you at any stage in the Dispute and the Group Claim.
If you succeed in the Dispute, i.e. you obtain damages or similar compensation from your university, then you allow us to retain any costs which the university is ordered to pay you in respect of our fees and barrister fees, together with a further sum to make a total of 30% of the damages or compensation you obtain (inclusive of VAT). You also allow us to retain any costs which the university is ordered to pay you in respect of non-barrister expenses, for example expert witness fees.
The reason for setting the amount of your contribution at this level is that we are taking a material risk by carrying out work on the Dispute and incurring expenses in respect of the Dispute without charge to you as the Dispute progresses. It is not certain that you will succeed in the Dispute by obtaining damages; we are bearing the risk of you not succeeding in the Dispute, in which case we will not get paid our full normal hourly rates. You contribution level is intended to reflect that risk.
You agree that any money payable to you as a result of the Dispute or the Group Claim (whether in the form of damages, costs or otherwise) is to be paid in the first instance into our client account to be held on your behalf so that we can meet any liabilities you have under these terms before paying the remaining balance to you.
You can terminate your instruction of Asserson by giving us notice in writing 7 days in advance. After such termination, clauses 6 and 7 above will continue to apply, and you may continue to be bound by agreements entered into when you were a Group Claim Client. This will depend on the specific terms of such agreements.
We can terminate your instruction of us at any time by providing you with written notice of termination 7 days in advance. If that happens, you will no longer be a Group Claim Client and these terms will no longer apply to you.
We may wish to amend or vary these terms of engagement after you first agree to them. In that case we will write to you setting out the proposed amendment or variation. If you do not respond to the proposed amendment or variation within 7 days in writing, you will be deemed to have agreed to the proposed amendment or variation. If you do not agree with the proposed amendment or variation, you may terminate the engagement in accordance with clause 8 above.
These terms and conditions and your relationship with Asserson generally shall be governed by the laws of England and Wales.
Any dispute arising out of these terms and conditions or your relationship with Asserson generally shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.
We anticipate that our relationship will be successful and problem free. However, should you have any cause for concern, please write to us with your complaint.
Should you not be satisfied with the way in which Asserson deals with your complaint, you have a right to complain to the Legal Ombudsman. You can find out more about this right at the Legal Ombudsman’s site, www.legalombudsman.org.uk.
A committee of representatives (the “Representative Committee”) will be elected from among the Group Claim Clients.
There are to be five members of the Representative Committee.
We will, at a time we deem reasonable, write to all Group Claim Clients to invite volunteers to form the Representative Committee. If more than five Group Claim Clients volunteer, an election will take place to determine the membership of the Representative Committee.
Election of the members of the Representative Committee will take place as follows. We will send voting instructions to each Group Claim Client, including details of each of the candidates. Each Group Claim Client will be allowed five votes, each of which much be used for a different candidate. The five candidates to receive the most votes will be duly elected as members of the Representative Committee.
The members of the Representative Committee will serve as members for the entire duration of the Group Claim unless they are removed in accordance with these terms and conditions.
A member of the Representative Committee may be removed if a “Removal Event” as defined below occurs, and in a subsequent vote by the Group Claim Clients, a simple majority of those who voted are in favour of removal.
A Removal Event is defined as either: (a) we propose a member’s removal in writing to all of the Group Claim Clients; (b) at least 10% of the Group Claim Clients propose a member’s removal in writing to us within the space of 28 days; or (c) a member confirms their resignation in writing to us.
You agree to the Representative Committee members acting as your agents in respect of your instruction of Asserson, the Dispute and the Group Claim. This is regardless of whether you participate/participated in the election of the Representative Committee members, and regardless of whether the Representative Committee members were elected before you agree to these terms and conditions. You agree not to revoke this agency under any circumstances other than via the removal of a member under the terms above regarding removal.
The Representative Committee will carry out all functions on your behalf in respect of the Dispute and Group Claim except for in respect of Major Issues (as defined below). For the avoidance of doubt, this includes, by way of example only:
In the event of a disagreement amongst the members of the Representative Committee regarding any matter, the view of the majority of its members shall prevail.
The Group Claim Clients will retain the right to decide whether certain actions should be taken, regardless of the view of the Representative Committee. These actions are defined as “Major Issues”. The following is a comprehensive list of the actions which constitute Major Issues:
The view of the simple majority of those who vote regarding a Major Issue will prevail.
In respect of discontinuance of claims and settlement offers, only those Group Claim Members affected by the proposed discontinuance or settlement will be entitled to vote in respect of the relevant issue.
Before the election of the Representative Committee, you agree not to give us any instructions in respect of the Dispute or the Group Claim.