The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada has opened an investigation into allegations that some Loblaw customers have been unable to delete their PC Optimum accounts.
The office has received several such complaints, spokesman Vito Pilieci said in an email Tuesday.
He said the office can’t comment further due to the active investigation.
Loblaw spokeswoman Catherine Thomas said in an email Tuesday that the company has processes to respond to account deletion requests in a timely manner, and that it will fully co-operate with the privacy commissioner’s office.
In an email to one complainant viewed by The Canadian Press, an investigator for the commissioner’s office said they have received “a high number of complaints” regarding attempts to cancel PC Optimum accounts.
Several complainants allege they have tried several times to delete their accounts, and that Loblaw has been unresponsive to their queries, the investigator wrote.
Loblaw did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday regarding the specifics in the email.
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The PC Optimum loyalty program has more than 16 million active users, according to Loblaw’s 2023 annual report.
The Office of the Privacy Commissioner oversees compliance with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) as well as the Privacy Act.
According to their website, PIPEDA “sets the ground rules for how private-sector organizations collect, use, and disclose personal information in the course of for-profit, commercial activities across Canada.”
Personal information under PIPEDA includes details such as a person’s name, age, income or ID number.