Privacy Policy
At Aughtersons, we are committed to protecting your privacy in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth). This Privacy Policy describes our current policies and practices in relation to the handling and use of personal information.
What information do we collect and how do we use it?
When we arrange insurance on your behalf, we ask you for the information we need to advise you about your insurance needs and management of your risks. We provide any information that the insurers or intermediaries who we ask to quote for your insurances and premium funding require to enable them to decide whether to insure you and on what terms. Insurers may in turn pass on this information to their reinsurers. Some of these companies are located outside Australia.
When you make a claim under your policy, we assist you by collecting information about your claim. Sometimes we also need to collect information about you from others. We provide this information to your insurer (or anyone your insurer has appointed to assist it to consider your claim, eg loss adjusters, medical advisers etc) to enable it to consider your claim. Again this information may be passed on to reinsurers.
When you ask us to provide financial planning services including superannuation and/or investment advice, we collect information about your financial circumstances to enable us to advise you. If we assist you to implement your financial plan, we pass this information on to the financial services companies with whom you decide to deal.
Anonymous data - We use technology to collect anonymous information about the use of our website, for example when you browse our website our service provider logs your server address, the date and time of your visit, the pages and links accessed and the type of browser used. It does not identify you personally and we only use this information for statistical purposes and to improve the content and functionality of our website, to better understand our customers and markets and to improve our services.
We also use your information to send you requested product information and promotional material and to enable us to manage your ongoing requirements, eg renewals, and our relationship with you, eg invoicing, customer surveys etc.
We use information you provide to us on the website to provide you with requested product information or to advise you about your insurance needs and management of your risks. We provide any information that the insurers or intermediaries who we ask to quote for your insurances and premium funding require to enable them to decide whether to insure you and on what terms. Insurers may in turn pass on this information to their reinsurers.
We may occasionally notify you about new services and special offers, events or articles we think will be of interest to you. We may send you regular updates by email or by post on insurance and financial planning matters. If you would rather not receive this information, email or write to us.
We may use your information internally to help us improve our services and help resolve any problems.
What if you don't provide some information to us?
We can only fully advise you if we have all relevant information. The insurance laws also require you to provide your insurers with all the information they need in order to be able to decide whether to insure you and on what terms.
How do we hold and protect your information?
We strive to maintain the reliability, accuracy, completeness and currency of the personal information we hold and to protect its privacy and security. We keep personal information only for as long as is reasonably necessary for the purpose for which it was collected or to comply with any applicable legal or ethical reporting or document retention requirements.
We hold the information we collect from you stored in an alarmed enclosure. Access is available only to authorised personnel. Interview and staff records are kept under lock and key and accessible only by authorised managerial personnel.
We ensure that your information is safe by the use of firewall systems that protect us against unauthorised external access to our computer systems. Authorised access is enabled by a dial-in modem that is equipped with caller id, and access is permitted only by the use of approved passwords and login id's. External access is logged and audited for unauthorised activity. Virus checkers are updated routinely. Internally at the desktop, access is limited to authorised personnel through the use of passwords.
Will we disclose the information we collect to anyone?
We do not sell, trade, or rent your personal information to others.
We may need to provide your information to contractors who supply services to us, eg to handle mailings on our behalf or to other companies in the event of a corporate sale, merger, reorganisation, dissolution or similar event. However, we will do our best to ensure that they protect your information in the same way that we do.
We may provide your information to others if we are required to do so by law or under some unusual other circumstances which the Privacy Act permits.
How can you check, update or change the information we are holding?
Upon receipt of your written request and enough information to allow us to identify the information, we will disclose to you the personal information we hold about you. We will also correct, amend or delete any personal information that we agree is inaccurate.
If you wish to access or correct your personal information please write to our Privacy Officer, Mr Dale Collins.
We do not charge for receiving a request for access to personal information or for complying with a correction request, unless any analysis of the information is required. If this is required, a fee of $55 per hour will be incurred, and will be applicable to staff costs of locating and collating information, reproduction costs and the cost of having someone explain information.
Your consent
By asking us to assist with your insurance and financial planning needs, you consent to the collection and use of the information you have provided to us for the purposes described above.
Tell us what you think
We welcome your questions and comments about privacy. If you have any concerns or complaints, our Privacy Officer, Mr Dale Collins, can be contacted as follows:
Tel 03 9879 7699 | Fax 03 9879 7155