Privacy Policy for Mortgage Broker

We respect your personal information, and this Privacy Policy explains how we handle it in accordance with data protection regulations. The policy covers Brendon Harbert Buyers Choice.

This Policy also includes our credit reporting policy, detailing how we manage your personal information collected in connection with a credit application or credit facility. We refer to this credit-related information below as credit information.

If you are in a country that is a member of the European Economic Area (EEA), the EU General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679 (‘GDPR’) governs the way we collect, use, hold, process, and disclose your personal information. Under the GDPR, we act as a data controller, which means we make decisions regarding how and why your personal information is processed.

What personal information do we collect and hold?

General information

The types of information that we collect and hold about you could include:

• ID information such as your name, postal or email address, telephone numbers, and date of birth;

• other contact details such as social media handles;

• financial details like your tax file number; and

• any other information we deem necessary.

When the law authorizes or requires us to collect information

We may collect personal information about you because we are mandated or authorized by law to do so, including the collection of necessary data to verify your identity under Australian Anti-Money Laundering law.

What do we collect via your website activity?

If you are an internet customer of ours, we monitor your use of our internet services to verify you, to receive information from us, and to identify areas for improvement in our services.

If you start but don’t submit an online application, we may reach out using any of the contact details you’ve provided to assist you in completing it. The information in applications will be kept temporarily and destroyed if the application is not completed.

We recognize that some customers prefer to engage with us through social media. We may collect information about you through these platforms, but for all confidential matters, we ensure communication through secure forums.

To enhance our services and products, we may collect de-identified information from web users, which may include IP addresses or geographical data to ensure the security of your use of our web applications.

How do we collect your personal information?

How we collect and hold your information

Unless it’s unreasonable or impracticable, we will aim to collect personal information directly from you (referred to as ‘solicited information’). Therefore, it’s crucial that you keep your contact details updated.

There are several ways we may request information from you—when you fill out a form, call us, or use our website. Electronic means, such as email or SMS, are often convenient ways for us to communicate and verify your details.

How we collect your information from other sources

Sometimes, we may collect information about you from other sources as permitted by the Privacy Act 1988. This may happen when:

• we obtain information from third parties about loans or leases available to you related to the services we provide;

• we cannot reach you, and we rely on public information (e.g., from public registers or social media) or data from third parties to update your contact details; or

• we exchange information with your legal or financial advisors or other representatives.

What if you don’t want to provide us with your personal information?

If you choose not to provide your information, it may affect:

• our ability to give you the credit assistance you seek;

• our capacity to assist you in finding a loan or lease relevant to your circumstances;

• our ability to verify your identity or guard against fraud; or

• our ability to inform you about other products or services suited to your financial needs.

How we collect and hold your credit information

We will gather your credit information during inquiries regarding the credit assistance you request. In addition to the aforementioned sources, major sources for collecting credit information include:

• your co-loan applicants or co-borrowers;

• your guarantors or proposed guarantors;

• your employer, accountant, real estate agent, or other referees;

• your agents and representatives, including those referring you to us, as well as solicitors, conveyancers, and settlement agents;

• organizations that help us process credit applications;

• entities that verify the security you are offering, such as valuers;

• bodies issuing identification documents to assist in checking your identity; and

• our service providers involved in processing any credit applications you submit through us.

What do we do when we receive unsolicited information?

Sometimes, we might receive unsolicited personal information about you. If the information is reasonably necessary for our functions or activities, we will handle it in the same manner as other information we collect from you. If it’s not necessary, we will ensure it’s destroyed or de-identified.

When will we notify you that we have received your information?

When we receive personal information directly from you, we will take reasonable steps to inform you about how and why we collected it, to whom we may disclose it, and how you can access, correct it, or make a complaint.

Occasionally, we collects personal information from third parties, and you may not be aware that this has happened. If we gather identifiable information about you, we will notify you of that collection.

How do we safeguard your personal information?

We store information in various forms, including paper and electronic. Protecting your personal information is important, and we employ reasonable measures to safeguard it from misuse, interference, loss, unauthorized access, modification, or disclosure. Our strategies include:

• document storage security policies;

• security measures for system access; and

• restricting access to personal information to verified individuals.

We may store personal information physically or electronically with third-party data storage providers, using contractual arrangements to guarantee that those providers implement appropriate protection measures and limit the use of that information.

What happens when we no longer need your information?

We will retain your information only as long as necessary for our purposes and may be required by law to keep some information for specific periods. Once we no longer need your information, we ensure it’s either destroyed or de-identified.

How we use your personal information

Why do we collect, hold, and use your information?

Collecting your personal information enables us to provide the products and services you’ve requested. This allows us to:

• provide you with credit assistance;

• offer information about loan products or related services, including guidance and advice;

• assess your eligibility for a loan or lease or any related services you requested, which includes identifying or verifying details about you;

• assist you in preparing a loan or lease application;

• administer services, such as responding to requests or managing complaints; and

• handle payments received or made related to your loan or lease.

Can we use your information for marketing our products and services?

We may use or disclose your personal information to inform you about additional products or services that we or a third party offer and that may interest you. We will always notify you about the option to opt out of receiving marketing offers.

With your consent, we may share your personal information with third parties to connect you with other businesses or customers. You may request at any time that we stop doing so. We will not sell your personal information to any third party.

Yes, You Can Opt-Out

You can inform us anytime if you no longer wish to receive direct marketing offers from us, and we will process your request promptly.

What are other uses of your information?

We’ve just shared the key reasons we collect your information, but here’s further insight into how we use your personal information:

• informing you of other available products or services that may interest you unless you instruct us otherwise;

• identifying opportunities to enhance our service to you;

• allowing for efficient business operations and administrative tasks;

• preventing fraud or crimes or investigating any suspected fraud or crime;

• fulfilling legal obligations, regulations, or codes binding us; and

• carrying out any purpose to which you have consented.

What are the grounds for processing your personal information under the GDPR?

Under the GDPR, we must have a valid legal ground to process your personal information. These grounds may include:

• performance of our contract with you;

• compliance with a legal obligation;

• instances where you have provided your consent; and

• our legitimate interests, which primarily include fraud prevention, security, due diligence, business operations, and direct marketing.

How long do you keep your information?

We are required to retain certain information for designated periods according to laws such as the Corporations Act, the Anti-Money Laundering & Counter-Terrorism Financing Act, and the Financial Transaction Reports Act, among others. 

We must keep your information for seven years after account closure or for as long as required for business operations or under applicable laws.

We may need to retain specific personal information even after ceasing to provide products or services to enforce our terms, prevent fraud, identify, address, or resolve legal claims, and maintain proper records.

Who do we share your personal information with?

To effectively meet your needs and for the purposes outlined in ‘How we use your personal information’, we may share your personal information with other organizations. This sharing may occur for any purpose ascribed above.

Sharing Your Information

We may use and share your information with other organizations for the reasons described earlier.

Sharing with your representatives and referees

We may share your information with:

• your representative or anyone acting on your behalf (including lawyers, settlement agents, accountants, or real estate agents); and

• your referees, such as your employer, to verify details about you.

Sharing with third parties

We may share your information with third parties pertinent to the services we offer you. These third parties might include:

• the mortgage aggregator submitting loan or lease applications to lenders or lessors within their panel;

• the Australian Credit Licence holder licensing us to engage in credit activities;

• referrers who directed your business to us;

• valuers;

• lenders, lessors, lender’s mortgage insurers, and other loan or lease intermediaries;

• organizations like fraud reporting agencies that may identify, investigate, or prevent fraud, suspected fraud, crimes, or other misconduct;

• governmental or regulatory bodies (including ASIC and the Australian Taxation Office) as required by law; and

• any organization that you consent to us sharing your information with.

Sharing outside Australia

We may utilize overseas organizations to assist in conducting our business, which could necessitate sharing some of your information (including credit information) with organizations located outside Australia. 

Details about those countries are not specified at the moment.

We might store your data in cloud services or networked electronic storage systems. As these systems can be accessible from various countries via the internet, it may not always be feasible to determine where your information resides. If your data is stored in this manner, disclosures may happen in countries other than those listed.

Overseas organizations might be legally required to disclose the information we share with them under foreign law. In such cases, we are not accountable for such disclosures.

When transferring your information from the EEA to non-EEA recipients, we ensure that adequate protection measures are implemented to safeguard your personal information, such as contractual protections ensuring data security.

How do you access your personal information?

How you can generally access your information

We will always provide access to your personal information unless specific legal reasons prevent us from doing so. You can request in writing to access your personal information that we hold. In certain instances, we may be able to fulfill your request over the phone.

We will provide you access in your preferred format as long as it is reasonable and practical. A small fee may be charged to cover access costs, which we will confirm with you beforehand.

Under some circumstances, we are not obligated to grant access to your personal information. Situations where access may be denied include instances where:

• there is a perceived threat to life or public safety;

• it would unreasonably impact other individuals;

• the request is deemed frivolous;

• the information is not ordinarily accessible due to legal proceedings;

• it would harm negotiations with you;

• it is unlawful;

• it may jeopardize action against serious misconduct on your part;

• it may negatively affect law enforcement activities (e.g., the police); or

• it may compromise the confidentiality of our commercial information.

If we are unable to provide your information in your requested format, we will explain the reasons in writing. If you have concerns, you may lodge a complaint. Refer to ‘Contact Us’ for additional information.

How do you correct your personal information?

How we correct your information

Contact us if you believe that the information we maintain about you is inaccurate, outdated, incomplete, irrelevant, or misleading, and we will strive to correct it.

If you feel we shared incorrect information with others, you can request we inform them of the correction. We’ll assist where feasible but will notify you if we can’t.

What additional steps must we take to correct your credit information?

If you request a correction for your credit information, we will facilitate the process as stipulated. 

Helping you manage corrections

Regardless of who made the error, we are obliged to assist you in requesting a correction. This may involve communicating with other parties. However, the simplest route for you is to reach out to the organization that originated the error.

Where we correct information

If we successfully correct the information, we will notify you within five business days of our decision. Additionally, we will inform the relevant third parties and any others you specify.

If we cannot correct the information, we will provide you with an explanation in writing.

Where we can’t correct information

Should we be unable to amend your information, we will explain the reasons in writing within five business days. If you have further concerns, you can utilize our external dispute resolution scheme or contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner.

Time frame for correcting information

If we agree to correct your information, we will do so within 30 days of your request, or within a longer period as agreed upon.

If we cannot complete corrections within the stipulated period, we must:

• notify you of the delay, its reasons, and our estimated resolution time;

• request your agreement in writing for an extension of time; and

• inform you that you have the option to complain to our external dispute resolution scheme or the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner.

How do you file a complaint?

How do you generally make a complaint?

If you have a complaint regarding how we manage your personal information, we invite you to contact us.

You can reach out using the following details:

Brendon Harbert 0416 258 443

We are dedicated to resolving your complaint and acting responsibly on behalf of our customers. Most complaints can be resolved quickly, with a response provided within five business days.

Need more assistance?

If you believe your issue has not been resolved satisfactorily, you may escalate it to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner:

• Online: www.oaic.gov.au/privacy

• Phone: 1300 363 992

• Email: enquiries@oaic.gov.au

• Fax: +61 2 9284 9666

• Mail: GPO Box 5218 Sydney NSW 2001 or GPO Box 2999 Canberra ACT 2601

If you reside in the EEA, please contact the appropriate data protection authority where you live or where you believe your rights have been violated. For example, the Office of the UK Information Commissioner:

Office of the UK Information Commissioner

• Online: www.ico.gov.uk

• Phone: 0303 123 1113

• Live chat: https://ico.org.uk/global/contact-us/live-chat

What extra steps do we take to manage your complaints about credit information?

With complaints related to how we managed your access and correction requests, you may address these directly to our external dispute resolution scheme or the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner without requiring us to resolve it first.

For all other complaints concerning credit information

We will inform you within seven days how we will manage your complaint, provided it relates to issues other than access or correction requests.

Requesting additional time if we can’t resolve issues within 30 days

Should we be unable to address your complaint within 30 days, we will communicate the reasons for the delay and our estimated timeframe for resolution. We will also seek your agreement for an extension, and notify you that you can file a complaint with the external dispute resolution scheme or the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner.

Notifying you of our decision

We will inform you of our decision within 30 days or any mutually agreed-upon timeframe. You retain the right to complain to the external dispute resolution scheme or the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner if you have further concerns.

Your Rights under GDPR

If you reside in the EEA, you also have the right to:

• object to the processing of your personal information or request deletion, restriction, or cessation of its use. Certain circumstances may require us to retain or continue processing your data.

• withdraw your consent for our processing. We may still process the information if another legitimate ground applies.

• request an electronic copy of your personal information, including forwarding it to another organization.

Please reach out if you wish to exercise these rights. Refer to ‘Contact Us’ for more details. If we deny any of your requests, we will provide a written explanation and inform you on how to file a complaint regarding our decision.

Contact Us

We value your privacy. Please reach out with any questions or feedback regarding our privacy policies and procedures.

You can contact us using the following details:

brendon.harbert@buyerschoice.com.au

What if you want to interact with us anonymously or use a pseudonym?

For general inquiry-type questions, you can choose to engage with us anonymously or under a pseudonym. This may not always be feasible due to regulatory requirements mandating us to know who we are dealing with. Typically, we cannot engage with you anonymously or under a pseudonym when:

• it’s impractical, or

• we are legally or court-mandated to deal with you personally.

What do we do with government-related identifiers?

In certain cases, we are required to collect government-related identifiers, such as your tax file number. We will not disclose or use this information unless authorized by law.

Changes to this Privacy Policy

This Policy is subject to change, and we will notify you of any updates by posting a notification on our website.