UK Landlord Forum / Life

I think I might have hidden cam in my rented property, do anyone have any experience with those?

I want to find it call the cops and claim massive compensation/ let people know which landlord/letting agency to avoid

Thanks for advice ✌️

It can't be well hidden if you find it.

Mine never get found.

Quote from: lordmauser on July 26, 2024, 08:00:07 PMI think I might have hidden cam in my rented property

What makes you think that?

Quote from: lordmauser on July 26, 2024, 08:00:07 PMlet people know which landlord/letting agency to avoid

This will be helpful to us, get on it and report back.

If there's a working camera in your home that you don't know about it doesn't matter how well hidden it is.
Report it to the police, worry about compensation later.

Quote from: lordmauser on July 26, 2024, 08:00:07 PMI want to find it...

The OP must be putting two and two together for some reason. I'm not saying there isn't one, but I'm saying they do not know that there is.

This has happened with AirBnB but it is far less likely for a proper domestic tenancy, I have come across it but it was not covert, it was done to harass.

First of all they would need to be able to provide it with Wi-fi or an SD-Card, the latter could be stolen.

A Landlord is treated as a business in terms of GDPR, so it must have a lawful basis and it would be required to provide the footage if a Subject Access Request is made by the Tenant.  I do not see any lawful basis for a Landlord to have CCTV in your home, even in communal areas of an HMO where there is access to a bathroom I think it would be incredibly risky and beyond proportionate.

Many HA's have CCTV in communal areas for prevention of crime and protection of vulnerable Tenants.

Even for individuals it must be proportionate, a video doorbell is probably going to be fine for a Tenant to install but not for a Landlord to install without providing access and control to the Tenant.

There was a lovely case in 2021 of a neighbour using CCTV and not being lawful or proportionate but rather to overhear conversations and allegedly stalk, it cost the Defendant around £100k including costs.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-58911296

This led to the ICO issuing guidance for domestic CCTV

https://ico.org.uk/for-the-public/domestic-cctv-systems/

You do not seem to be sure, but there are plenty of covert devices and devices to detect them

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h77un7ry5bY

I doubt the Police in UK would be interested, except perhaps for the purpose of gathering the evidence if there was a domestic incident and/or stalking.

If you had evidence then it could come under stalking

Protection from Harassment Act 1997

(3)The following are examples of acts or omissions which, in particular circumstances, are ones associated with stalking—
(a)following a person,
(b)contacting, or attempting to contact, a person by any means,
(c)publishing any statement or other material—
(i)relating or purporting to relate to a person, or
(ii)purporting to originate from a person,
(d)monitoring the use by a person of the internet, email or any other form of electronic communication,
(e)loitering in any place (whether public or private),
(f)interfering with any property in the possession of a person,
(g)watching or spying on a person.


https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1997/40/section/2A

This is a criminal offence so it is important to inform the Police of this as they sometimes forget if you say harassment rather than stalking.

Quote from: lordmauser on July 26, 2024, 08:00:07 PMI think I might have hidden cam in my rented property, do anyone have any experience with those?

I want to find it call the cops and claim massive compensation/ let people know which landlord/letting agency to avoid

Thanks for advice ✌️