Although not a matter of our normal business content we felt clients may like to be aware of the requirements of local authorities collecting information for the Electoral Roll.

You, like virtually everyone else in the land probably wonders where people get information for direct mailing.

One of the sources is the Electoral Roll.

There are two versions, the ‘full’ register and the ‘edited’ register. The full register is updated every month.

It can be used by electoral registration officers, political parties, MP’s and public libraries also have an edition.

Local authorities and other crime agencies can use it for law enforcement. Credit reference agencies can buy it to help stop money laundering as well as just checking identities. It is an offence to pass information from the full register to others without lawful reason.

It is not compulsory to have your details on the edited register, which can be purchased by anyone. You have the right to opt out when you receive your voter registration form once per year. You can also opt out of the edited register by writing to the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO).

It is not widely known that if a person considers they are at risk they can now request an anonymous registration, again by writing to the ERO.

  • Visit www.lawgistics.co.uk or call 0870 26 77 118 for more information.