Award-winning commercial vehicle dealer David Spear, which is based in Tredegar, has appointed Sarah Spear as its data protection officer in compliance with the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation.

GDPR comes into force in the UK on May 25 and as an industry which relies on and values customer data, the new legislation is particularly relevant.

Sarah Spear said: “GDPR sets new rules for how companies will govern the storage and processing of sensitive data belonging to both customers and staff members. In light of this, the automotive industry is forced to rethink and evaluate how customer’s driving records, payment details, personal information and other details are stored and used."

As company secretary, Sarah brings more than two decades of automotive knowledge and strategic leadership to her new role.

She will provide alignment and coverage across David Spear Commercials on all GDPR activity.

She said: “There is a lot of publicity surrounding GDPR, therefore it is important to take away any uncertainty from our customers and members of staff while reassuring both parties that their personal data is fully protected. My appointment will assist the company’s effort to become GDPR prepared as we approach May 25.

"New processes will be adopted to continue fine tuning policies until David Spear Commercials meets the needs to be GDPR compliant,” said Sarah.