Privacy Policy

Homes for Reading Limited – Data Privacy Notice: Residential Acquisitions and Lettings

The Identity and contact details of the company

Data Protection Officer, Civic Offices, Bridge Street, Reading, RG1 2LU, United Kingdom

Data Protection Officer Email: ricky.gill@reading.gov.uk

What personal data is held?

The personal information you provide to enable us to provide you with our services may include the following:

Client surveys and other promotional material

Information such as name and household information (email address, postal address, housing requirements, length of tenancy, job title, income).

Additional information may be processed where it is provided by the customer, for example in correspondence, in connection with an existing tenancy or in letting us know what areas you are interested in moving to and when you wish to be contacted by us. This may include access or bedroom requirements which may reveal information about your health or religious beliefs.

Our websites and those of our affiliates may also collect your device’s unique identifier, such as an IP address.

Providing residential sales and lettings services

Information processed for tenancy sign-up, sales processes and relationship management procedures such as name, employment information, household information and identification documentation.

Additional personal data will be processed when individuals are named in matters in which Reading Borough Council and our Service Providers are advising or when the personal data is uploaded onto any of the web based services (e.g. Homes for Reading Ltd. website or Rightmove) which customers provide.

Our web-based services and those of Reading Borough Council and Service Providers (e.g. Reading Borough Council website or Rightmove) will also process online registration details and login credentials for the individuals who request access to these services.

HfR people

Personal data such as name, address, contact details, education and employment history; background checks (financial and criminal), ID and right to work status; information relating to next of kin/ dependants; financial information including bank details and identifiers (e.g. National Insurance numbers); records of your use of the company’s IT and information services (e.g. IRIS); CCTV and swipe card data. Also we may process information revealing sensitive information such as health details, racial origin, religious beliefs and information about offences/ alleged offences.

How will the data be stored?

Our office location is a secure office with restricted access.

Information will be held on a secure drive that is accessed via Reading Borough Council encrypted laptops and systems.

What is the legal basis for the collection, use and storage of the data?

To fulfil and manage the business of the company including the contractual aspects of the tenancy and sales agreements entered into with Homes for Reading Limited.

To deliver customer care services including repairs, maintenance and management of the company’s properties.

To undertake customer surveys and other promotional marketing.

To fulfil legal and regulatory requirements e.g. Right to Rent checks.

The data may also be used to gather information for possible legal action where the conditions outlined in the tenancy or sales agreements are not being maintained or where service agreements have not been paid e.g. Council Tax.

Give details of how long the data will be stored and criteria used to determine this?

We will keep your personal information while you are employed with us or have an account with us or we are providing services to you. Thereafter, we will keep your personal information for as long as is necessary:

• to respond to any questions, complaints or claims made by you or on your behalf;
• to show that we treated you fairly;
• to keep records required by law.

We will not retain your personal information for longer than necessary for the purposes set out in this privacy notice. Different retention periods apply for different types of personal information. Further details on this are available from our Data Protection Officer

When it is no longer necessary to retain your personal information, we will delete or anonymise it.

Who will it be shared with and for what purpose?

We may share personal information with:

• third parties we use to help deliver our services to you, e.g. consultants, solicitors, service providers, contractors’ and delivery companies;
• other third parties we use to help us run our business, e.g. consultants, legal advisors, referencing agencies or the Reading Borough Council;
• our insurers and brokers;
• our banks.

We only allow our service providers to handle your personal information if we are satisfied they take appropriate measures to protect your personal information. We also impose contractual obligations on service providers relating to ensure they can only use your personal information to provide services to us and to you. We may also share personal information with external auditors, e.g. in relation to the audit of our accounts.

We may disclose and exchange information with law enforcement agencies and regulatory bodies to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations.

How can the service user get access to it?

http://www.reading.gov.uk/dataprotection

State whether any data is to be transferred outside the EU?

From time to time, the company of its affiliates may use suppliers in connection with the operation of our business and they may have access to the personal data we process. For example, an IT supplier may see our personal data when providing software support, or a company which we use for a marketing campaign may process contacts’ personal data for us. When contracting with suppliers and/or transferring personal data to a different jurisdiction, the company takes appropriate

steps to ensure that there is adequate protection in place and that the principles are adhered to.

Is processing based on consent?

Yes

What other rights does the service user have that we have to make known to them?

Access – The right to be provided with a copy of your personal information (the right of access).

Rectification – The right to require us to correct any mistakes in your personal information.

To be forgotten – The right to require us to delete your personal information—in certain situations.

Restriction of processing – The right to require us to restrict processing of your personal information—in certain circumstances, e.g. if you contest the accuracy of the data.

Data portability – The right to receive the personal information you provided to us, in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format and/or transmit that data to a third party—in certain situations.

To object – The right to object: —at any time to your personal information being processed for direct marketing (including profiling); —in certain other situations to our continued processing of your personal information, e.g. processing carried out for the purpose of our legitimate interests.

The right to put a complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)

State if there will be any automated decision making

No