A KENT man was horrified to find another man’s medical history sent to him by a government department.

Richard Zurek, from Minster, near Sheerness, had been asked to send to the Department for Work and Pensions evidence to back up his claim for Disability Living Allowance, because a leg operation will mean he will be housebound for three months.

When his documents were returned to him by registered post last Saturday, there was an extra item in the envelope containing another patient’s personal details.

Mr Zurek said: “I checked through to make sure all my letters were there and then I noticed something at the back that didn’t belong to me.

“I couldn’t believe it. I’m sure it was just an admin error, but that’s not the point. There’s a much bigger picture here.

“It makes me so angry this has happened and I feel very strongly about it. There’s all this legislation about shredding things and then I get this by registered mail.”

Information on the other man, Royston Williamson, from Plumstead, included his full name and postal address, date of birth, national insurance number, details of his condition and how and when he had been treated.

The four-page document included a request for information from the DWP’s Disability and Carers Service in Sutton, Surrey, to Mr Williamson’s consultant at Guy’s Hospital in London and also the consultant’s detailed response, faxed on September 8.

Mr Williamson’s son Matthew said his father was very angry at the error and added: “It’s disgusting that this has happened. The DWP should be more professional.”

A spokesman from the Department for Work and Pensions said: “We apologise for any distress caused to Mr Zurek. We have spoken to Mr Zurek to explain the circumstances which resulted in his receiving another customer’s medical details. This was due to human error.

“The department will be writing to Mr Zurek to offer a formal apology. We will also be contacting the other customer involved.”