Privacy Policy
This Privacy Policy applies to Everest Project Developments Pty Ltd (ACN 094 703 661), Everest on Miller Pty Ltd (ACN 111 961 132), Werrington Everest Pty Ltd (ACN 115 570 244), French Street Everest Pty Ltd (ACN 115 570 128), Woniora Everest Pty Ltd (ACN 115 569 929), Everest on Hunter Pty Ltd (ACN 115 141 510), Everest at Wallsend Pty Ltd (ACN 115 182 842), Karinya Apartments Pty Ltd (ACN 111 093 335), Everest at Shortland Pty Ltd (ACN 115 182 753), High Tower Investments Pty Ltd (ACN 114 348 220), Wrights Road Pty Ltd (ACN 098 624 125), Larkin Developments Pty Ltd (ACN 085 515 180) and Everest Property Holdings Pty Ltd (ACN 090 775 161).("Everest"). The Privacy Amendment (Private Sector) Act 2000 was passed by the federal government to extend the operation of the Privacy Act 1988 to the private sector and introduced a set of National Privacy Principles that govern how private sector organizations should collect, use, store and disclose personal and sensitive information. These new federal privacy laws affecting businesses in the private sector commenced operation on 21 December, 2001.
Everest is a Victorian-based property development company and property manager. In the process of running our business we handle, collect, process, record, store and disclose personal and sensitive information relating to purchasers and potential purchasers. This Privacy Policy explains how Everest complies with the National Privacy Principles.
1. What information does Everest collect?
Everest collects personal and sensitive information from several sources. Mostly, the personal and sensitive information we collect comes directly from potential purchasers when they are investigating properties for residential as well as investment purposes. We also collect information on employees and contractors, sub-contractors and consultants. Specific aspects of our business involve collecting large amounts of personal and sensitive information.
Most of Everest's personal and sensitive information records relate to existing and potential purchasers. Our records with respect to these purchasers will generally include contact details, job description, details of transactions with Everest including property value, and information about their interest in our products.
Under the Privacy Act 1988, certain types of personal information are regarded as sensitive and must be treated with a high standard of care. This includes information relating to health or religious beliefs. Everest does not normally collect this kind of information, unless a person provides it to us for a specific purpose, for example because it is related to a particular product that we are providing.
2. How we handle personal and sensitive information that belongs to purchasers
Many parts of our business deal with personal and sensitive information that has been collected from our purchasers and potential purchasers. For example:
- Everest has access to personal and sensitive information about purchasers who have invested in Everest products; and
- Everest also collects personal and sensitive information from potential purchasers who register their details on Everest's website or at marketing or display suites.
In handling personal and sensitive information that belongs to purchasers and potential purchasers, we process this information for the purpose of providing the products that the purchaser has requested. This is often spelt out in our agreements or communications with our purchasers. We do not use or retain personal and sensitive information for any purpose other than the delivery of the product and for auditing or legal reasons.
3. Using and disclosing your personal and sensitive information
We process personal and sensitive information relating to our purchasers to better understand their needs and to provide them with information about our products.
Our purchaser's personal and sensitive information is protected because only Everest or Becton Property Group Limited and its subsidiaries and associates (Becton) employees and service providers have access to this personal or sensitive information will be granted access.
Everest generally explains how it will use or disclose personal and sensitive information at the time it collects the information. In addition, personal and sensitive information may be disclosed when:
- required by law;
- we believe it necessary to provide a purchaser with a product that they have requested;
- it is necessary to implement our terms of service;
- it is necessary to protect the rights, property or personal safety of another Everest purchaser, any member of the public or Everest;
- the assets and operations of Everest's business are transferred to another party as a going concern.
4. Service providers
Like most large organisations, we use a range of service providers to help us maximise the quality and efficiency of our services and our business operations. This means that individuals and organisations outside of Everest, such as body corporate managers, share registers and mail houses, will sometimes have access to personal information held by Everest and may use it on behalf of Everest. We require our service providers to adhere to strict privacy guidelines that require them not to keep this information or use it for any unauthorised purposes.
5. Marketing communications
Like most businesses, marketing is important to Everest's continued success. We believe we offer to purchasers a unique range of high quality properties and investment products. We use contact lists and other personal information to promote new properties and investment products.
When you provide your personal information to Everest, we ask you to choose whether or not you wish to receive further information about new properties and investment products and Everest in general. We also send promotional information to other people who are not regular Everest purchasers to introduce them to our business.
If you are receiving promotional information and/or other communication from us and you decide you no longer wish to receive them, you may remove your name from our marketing list by contacting the Privacy Officer at Level 6, 470 St Kilda Road, Melbourne, Victoria, 3004. Please allow 28 days for this request to be processed.
6. You can access the information we keep about you
The Privacy Act sets out the rights that you have as a purchaser to see any personal information that Everest may have concerning you. If you would like to:
- see your personal and/or sensitive information;
- change any inaccurate or out of date personal and/or sensitive information;
- have your personal and/or sensitive information deleted, please contact the Privacy Officer at Level 6, 470 St Kilda Road, Melbourne, Victoria, 3004
Our file of your information will be made available to you within 14 days. In some cases we may need to impose a charge for providing access to personal or sensitive information. This charge reflects the administrative cost of finding this information and providing it to you.
7. Deleting the information we have about you
If you request that your personal or sensitive information be deleted, in the manner described in (5) and (6) above, we will take all reasonable steps to delete it unless we need to keep it for legal reasons. Personal and sensitive information may also be retained in certain files in order to resolve disputes or for auditing purposes. In addition, personal or sensitive information is never completely removed from our databases due to technical and legal constraints, including stored "back up" systems. Therefore, purchasers should not expect that all of their personal and sensitive information will be completely removed from our databases in response to their request.
8. Storage and security of your personal and sensitive information
Everest understands the importance of personal and sensitive information security. We endeavour to take all reasonable steps to keep secure any personal and/or sensitive information which we hold about you, and to keep this personal and/or sensitive information accurate and up to date. We require our employees and service providers to respect the confidentiality of any personal and sensitive information held by Everest.
9. Our Website
No data transmission over the Internet can be guaranteed secure. As a result, while we endeavour to protect your personal and sensitive information, we cannot guarantee the security of any personal and sensitive information you transmit to us when you access our website.
10. Everest and links to other websites
Everest may provide links to websites outside of the Becton website in which it forms part. These linked sites are not under the control of Everest, and we are not responsible for the conduct of companies linked to our website. Before discussing your personal information on any of the linked websites, we suggest that you examine the terms and conditions of those websites.
11. Future changes
Our commitment to being a leading property developer and property manager means that our business will continue to evolve as we introduce new products for purchasers. As a result, our Privacy Policy may be reviewed from time to time. Everest reserves the right to change its Privacy Policy and insert an updated version of the policy on its website.
The amended Privacy Policy will apply between us whether or not we have given you specific notice of any change.