AHS v Roads and Maritime Services

Administrative Decisions Tribunal

New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation:	AHS v Roads and Maritime Services [2012] NSWADT 116
Hearing dates:	On the papers
Decision date:	15 June 2012
Jurisdiction:	General Division
Before:	N Isenberg, Judicial member
Decision:	Order under subsection 55(2) of the Privacy Act to take no action on this matter.
Catchwords:	Demerit points – collection of information – use by agency
Legislation Cited:	Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act 1998 Road Transport (Driver Licensing) Regulations 2008
Cases Cited:	JD v Department of Health (GD) [2005] NSWADTAP 44 JD v NSW Medical Board [2005] NSWADT 247 MT v Department of Education and Training [2004]NSWADT 194
Category:	Principal judgment
Parties:	AHS (Applicant) Roads and Maritime Services (Respondent)
Representation:	AHS (Applicant in person) Henry Davis York (Respondent)
File Number(s):	113346

REASONS FOR DECISION

Background

1. The applicant, 'AHS', is a citizen of Egypt. Upon his arrival in Australia he drove using his overseas licence, until, in October 2010 he began to take steps to obtain a NSW licence. In November 2010 he passed the driving test. Shortly thereafter he sought advice from the RTA (as the relevant part of the respondent was then known) about the effect of accumulated demerit points on an international licence, but received conflicting advice. Ultimately, the 18 demerit points he had acquired in the preceding 3 years while driving on his international licence were transferred to his new NSW licence, which was, as a result, suspended.

1. The applicant submitted that the respondent breached the Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act 1998 (the Privacy Act ) by its collection of information about the demerit points acquired while on his international licence, by its failure to check the accuracy of that information, and the use and disclosure of that information.

1. The applicant seeks a review of the respondent's conduct pursuant to section 55(1) of the Privacy Act.

Collection of personal information

1. The applicant submitted that the respondent had contravened s.8 of the Privacy Act, alleging that his personal information has been unlawfully collected. There was no dispute that demerit point information constitutes "personal information" for the purposes of the definition in section 4 of the Privacy Act.

1. The applicant submitted that the collection of demerit point information was prohibited under cl.99(4)(a) Road Transport (Driver Licensing) Regulations 2008 (the Licensing Regulations), and therefore the respondent had contravened s.8 of the Privacy Act which prohibits a public sector agency from collecting personal information unless the information is collected for a lawful purpose that is directly related to a function or activity of the agency, and the collection of the information is reasonably necessary for that purpose. Further, as a public sector agency must not collect personal information by any unlawful means, the applicant submitted, somewhat circuitously, that the collection of demerit points was unlawfully collected.

1. Clause 99(1)(b) of the Licensing Regulations authorises a visiting driver who holds a current foreign driver licence and international driving permit to drive a motor vehicle and provides for that driver to be (generally) exempt…