INSIGHT

Privacy Policy

Introduction

Your privacy is important to us and we are committed to keeping your information secure and managing it in accordance with our legal responsibilities under applicable data protection laws. We are registered with the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) as a data controller under registration number ZA211153.

In this Privacy Policy the terms, ‘we’ or ‘us’ is Carter Bond Limited trading as Carter Bond Solicitors and is a limited company.

Please take a moment to familiarise yourself with our privacy practices.

1. Important information and who we are

What is Data?

In this document, we adopt the same definitions as the GDPR, in particular:

Personal data ‘means any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural personal (“data subject”); an identifiable natural person is one who can be identified, directly or indirectly, in particular by reference to an identifier such as name, an identification number, location data, an online identifier or to one or more factors specific to the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity of that natural person’.

Controller

When we at Carter Bond Solicitors make all the decisions about how your data is processed, we are acting as the data controller. However, when we are processing your personal data on behalf of a third party in accordance with their strict instructions, we are acting as a data processor. This privacy notice complies with our obligations to provide you with information as a data controller.

What is a DPM?

We have a designated person who is responsible for our data management. We call that person a Data Privacy Manager or DPM. That is not a statutory role. There is a formal obligation to have a Data Protection Officer or DPO in certain circumstances, but we do not meet those circumstances. Therefore, the first point of contact for any concerns you have in relation to your data for whatever reason is our DPM.

Contact details and our DPM

If you have any questions about this privacy policy or our privacy practices, please contact our DPM in the following ways:

Full name of legal entity: Carter Bond Limited

For the attention of: Reena Popat

Email address: reena@carterbond.co.uk

Telephone number: +44 (0)20 3475 6751

You have the right to make a complaint at any time to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK supervisory authority for data protection issues (www.ico.org.uk). The ICO recommends, however, that any concerns are first addressed and dealt with us before they are approached.

Changes to the privacy policy and your duty to inform us of changes

We keep our privacy policy under regular review. This version was last updated on August 2019.

It is important that the personal data we hold about you is accurate and current. Please keep us informed if your personal data changes during your relationship with us.

2. The categories of personal data we may collect about you

We may collect, use, store and transfer different kinds of personal data about you. The type of data we collect about you depends on your relationship with us. For example, if you are a client using our legal services, if you are a visitor to our website or a subscriber to our newsletters. In all cases, we have grouped together the different kinds of data we may or are likely to collect from you:

  • Identity Data includes first name, maiden name, last name, username or similar identifier, marital status, title, date of birth and gender. This will also include information such as your passport, driving licence, utility bills or national identity card.
  • Contact Data includes billing address, delivery address, email address and telephone numbers.
  • Financial Data includes details such as your income and information about your bank accounts including details about payments to and from you. This may also include your credit history and records relating to you, your partner or anyone else you are financially linked with.
  • Transaction Data includes details about facts relevant to the services that we are providing to you such as intended business or property purchase and so on.
  • Technical Data includes internet protocol (IP) address, your login data, browser type and version, time zone setting and location, browser plug-in types and versions, operating system and platform, and other technology on the devices you use to access our website and our case management system Practice Evolve.
  • Usage Data includes information about how you use our website, products and services.
  • Marketing and Communications Data includes your preferences in receiving marketing from us and our third parties and your communication preferences.

If you fail to provide personal data

Where we need to collect personal data by law, or under the terms of a contract we have with you, and you fail to provide that data when requested, we may not be able to perform the contract we have or are trying to enter into with you (for example, to provide you with legal advice). In this case, we may have to cancel a service you have with us but we will notify you if this is the case at the time.

3. How is your personal data collected?

How your personal data is collected depends on your relationship with us. For example, if you are a client using our legal services, if you are a visitor to our website or a subscriber to our services. We use different methods to collect data from and about you including through:

  • Direct interactions. You may give us your Identity, Contact and Financial Data by speaking to us direct, filling in forms or by corresponding with us by email, phone, post or otherwise. This includes personal data you provide when you:
    – create an account on our website or on our case management system Practice Evolve;
    – subscribe to our service or publications;
    – request marketing to be sent to you;
    – give us feedback or contact us.
  • Automated technologies or interactions. As you interact with our case management system or our website, we may automatically collect Technical Data about your equipment, browsing actions and patterns. We collect this personal data by using cookies, server logs and other similar technologies. We may also receive Technical Data about you if you visit other websites employing our cookies. Please see our cookie policy for further details.

  • Third parties or publicly available sources. We may receive personal data about you from various third parties and public sources, especially concerning money laundering, passport and driving licence authenticity, company directorships and the like.

  • Identity and Contact Data from publicly available sources such as Companies House and the Electoral Register based inside the UK and the EU.

  • Technical Data from the following parties:
    • analytics providers such as Google based outside the EU;
    • search information providers such as Search Flow based inside the UK.

Where we obtain personal data from third party suppliers, we always ensure that these suppliers are bound to respect data protection laws and your privacy rights pursuant to their contract with us.

4. How we use your information or personal data

We will only use your personal data when the law allows us to. Most commonly, we will use your information or personal data to:

  • Provide legal services to you.
  • Provide and service your relationship with us.
  • Comply with legal obligations for the prevention of financial crime and money laundering.
  • Maintain our legitimate interests and your interests and fundamental rights do not override those interests.

Generally, we do not rely on consent as a legal basis for processing your personal data although we will get your consent before sending third party direct marketing communications to you via email or text message. You have the right to withdraw consent to marketing at any time by contacting us.

Purposes for which we will use your personal data

We will generally process your information in order to meet our contractual obligations to you, where we have a legitimate interest to do so, where we are permitted by law or to comply with applicable laws and regulation.

We have set out below, in a table format, a description of all the ways we plan to use your personal data, and which of the legal bases we rely on to do so. We have also identified what our legitimate interests are where appropriate.

Type of data

Purpose/Activity

Legal basis

Providing a service and internal processing

(a) Identity

(b) Contact

(c) Transaction

To assess your needs and provide you with suitable services

Contractual obligation to provide you with a proposal including a costs estimate

(a) Identity

(b) Contact

(c) Financial

(d) Transaction

To service and administer your matter including billing

(a) Performance of a contract with you

(b) Legitimate interests to provide and manage the service

(a) Identity

(b) Contact

(c) Financial

To verify the identity of our clients

To comply with legal obligation to prevent money laundering

(a) Identity

(b) Contact

(c) Usage

(d) Marketing and Communications

To confirm, update and improve our client records

To comply with legal obligations in line with Data Protection legislation

(a) Identity

(b) Contact

(c) Transaction

To deliver legal services and advice and support to you that you have requested from us

To meet our contractual obligation to provide information on the services you have requested.

Relationship Management

(a) Identity

(b) Contact

(c) Marketing and Communications

To manage and develop our relationship with you

Legitimate interest to service your matter and improve our service to you

(a) Identity

(b) Contact

(c) Marketing and Communications

To inform you of products and services that may be of interest to you, where you have chosen to be made aware of this

With your consent

Training and development

(a) Identity

(b) Contact

(c) Marketing and Communications

For training purposes and to improve our service to you

Legitimate interests to improve our services and develop our employees

Complying with Legal Obligations

(a) Identity

(b) Contact

(c) Financial

To prevent, investigate and prosecute crime, fraud and money laundering

To comply with legal obligations for the prevention of financial crime and money laundering

(a) Identity

(b) Contact

(c) Financial

(d) Usage

 

For auditing purpose

To comply with our legitimate interest to conduct audits

(a) Identity

(b) Contact

(c) Financial

 

If we are obliged to disclose information by reason of any law, regulation or court order

To comply with legal obligations

Other

(a) Identity

(b) Contact

(c) Usage

(d) Marketing and Communications

(e) Transaction

To transfer information to any entity which may acquire rights in us

Legitimate interests for commercial reasons

Any type of data

For any purpose to which you agree

With your consent

(a) Identity

(b) Contact

(c) Profile

(d) Usage

(e) Marketing and Communications

(f) Technical

To deliver relevant website content and advertisements to you and measure or understand the effectiveness of the advertising we serve to you

Necessary for our legitimate interests (to study how customers use our products/services, to develop them, to grow our business and to inform our marketing strategy)

(a) Technical

(b) Usage

To use data analytics to improve our website, products/services, marketing, customer relationships and experiences

Necessary for our legitimate interests (to define types of customers for our products and services, to keep our website updated and relevant, to develop our business and to inform our marketing strategy)

How we retain your personal information

We will retain your personal information in accordance with applicable laws. We will take reasonable steps to destroy or anonymise personal information we no longer need for the purposes we have set out above.

Our retention periods are:

Type of personal information

Retention Period

General personal data which includes your normal personal data, personal identity and personal financial data

6 years after the end of our business relationship with you, or the end of your matter which ever comes later

Client due diligence information including copies of your passport, drivers licence, bank statements and any associated documents and explanations you have given to us to prevent fraud, financial crime and money laundering

5 years after the end of our business relationship with you, or the end of your matter which ever comes later

Call recordings

1 year

CCTV – digital images if you visit our offices

30 days

5. How we share your information

The recipients of your data depends on your relationship with us. For example, if you are a client using our legal or accountancy or financial services, if you are a visitor to our website or a subscriber to our services. In all cases, we have grouped together the different kinds of recipients of your data as follows:

 

  • Internal staff. Our office based and remote working staff may have access to your data to provide you with the services and support for which you engage us. These staff are directly employed employees in the traditional sense of employees.

 

  • External staff. We may also instruct consultant solicitors to manage or assist on matters as circumstances dictate. They are prior to engagement required to sign our contract for services and are therefore always subject to our robust data management policies.

 

  • Third party service providers. Where necessary or required we may also share information with:
    • Regulatory authorities to comply with our legal obligations.
    • Credit reference agencies to check your identity in accordance with our obligations.
    • Property search companies to identify any issues that might influence your decision to buy or sell a property.
    • Insurers for the purpose of providing you with appropriate financial cover for an identified insurable risk, or in connection with any claim made by you against us.
  • Agents, brokers, lenders or other solicitors involved in your transaction representing other party(ies) in your matter to enable them and us to fulfil our obligations to you.

 

  • Other government departments such as HMRC, Companies House, HM Land Registry to fulfil your and our legal obligations.

 

  • Accountants, tax advisers, experts and barristers required to work on your matter.

 

  • Our auditors and external assessment bodies to achieve and maintain any regulatory or quality assurance standards and accreditations which meet our legal obligations and enable us to provide quality legal services to you.
6. International transfers

From time to time, we may share your personal data which involves transferring it to third parties who may be established outside the European Union Area (EEA).

Whenever we transfer your personal data out of EEA, we ensure a similar degree of protection is afforded to it by ensuring at least one of the following safeguards is implemented: 

  • We will only transfer your personal data to countries that have been deemed to provide an adequate level of protection for personal data by the European Commission.
  • Where we use certain service providers, we may use specific contracts approved by the European Commission which give personal data the same protection it has in Europe.
  • Where we use providers based in the US, we may transfer data to them if they are part of the Privacy Shield which requires them to provide similar protection to personal data shared between Europe and the US.

Opting out

You can ask us to stop sending you marketing messages at any time by following the opt-out links on any marketing message sent to you or by contacting us at any time.

Where you opt out of receiving these marketing messages, this will not apply to personal data provided to us as a result of a service or other transactions.

Cookies

Our website uses cookies to distinguish you from other users of our website. This helps us to provide you with a good experience when you browse our website and also allows us to improve our site.

We may also use Google Analytics cookies to obtain an overall view of visitor habits and visitor volumes to our Website.

For detailed information on the cookies we use and the purpose for which we use them see our cookie policy.

7. Data security

We have put in place appropriate security measures to prevent your personal data from being accidentally lost, used or accessed in an unauthorised way, altered or disclosed. We have put in place procedures to deal with any suspected personal data breach and will notify you and any applicable regulator of a breach where we are legally required to do so.

However, no internet-based site can be 100% secure and we cannot be held responsible for unauthorised or unintended access that is beyond our control.

 

8. Your legal rights

Under certain circumstances, you have rights under data protection laws in relation to your personal data.

Request access to your personal data (commonly known as a “data subject access request”). This enables you to receive a copy of the personal data we hold about you and to check that we are lawfully processing it.

Request correction of the personal data that we hold about you. This enables you to have any incomplete or inaccurate data we hold about you corrected, though we may need to verify the accuracy of the new data you provide to us.

Request erasure of your personal data. This enables you to ask us to delete or remove personal data where there is no good reason for us continuing to process it. You also have the right to ask us to delete or remove your personal data where you have successfully exercised your right to object to processing (see below), where we may have processed your information unlawfully or where we are required to erase your personal data to comply with local law. Note, however, that we may not always be able to comply with your request of erasure for specific legal reasons which will be notified to you, if applicable, at the time of your request.

Object to processing of your personal data where we are relying on a legitimate interest (or those of a third party) and there is something about your particular situation which makes you want to object to processing on this ground as you feel it impacts on your fundamental rights and freedoms. You also have the right to object where we are processing your personal data for direct marketing purposes. In some cases, we may demonstrate that we have compelling legitimate grounds to process your information which override your rights and freedoms.

Request restriction of processing of your personal data. This enables you to ask us to suspend the processing of your personal data in the following scenarios:

  • If you want us to establish the data’s accuracy.
  • Where our use of the data is unlawful, but you do not want us to erase it.
  • Where you need us to hold the data even if we no longer require it as you need it to establish, exercise or defend legal claims.
  • You have objected to our use of your data but we need to verify whether we have overriding legitimate grounds to use it.

Request the transfer of your personal data to you or to a third party. We will provide to you, or a third party you have chosen, your personal data in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format. Note that this right only applies to automated information which you initially provided consent for us to use or where we used the information to perform a contract with you.

Withdraw consent at any time where we are relying on consent to process your personal data. However, this will not affect the lawfulness of any processing carried out before you withdraw your consent. If you withdraw your consent, we may not be able to provide certain products or services to you. We will advise you if this is the case at the time you withdraw your consent.

If you wish to exercise any of the rights set out above, please contact us.

No fee usually required

You will not have to pay a fee to access your personal data (or to exercise any of the other rights). However, we may charge a reasonable fee if your request takes excessive time to comply with, is clearly unfounded or repetitive. Alternatively, we could refuse to comply with your request in these circumstances.

What we may need from you

We may need to request specific information from you to help us confirm your identity and ensure your right to access your personal data (or to exercise any of your other rights). This is a security measure to ensure that personal data is not disclosed to any person who has no right to receive it. We may also contact you to ask you for further information in relation to your request to speed up our response.

Time limit to respond

We try to respond to all legitimate requests within one month. Occasionally it could take us longer than a month if your request is particularly complex or you have made a number of requests. In this case, we will notify you and keep you updated.

DIVERSITY AT CARTER BOND
Professional Role
Age
Gender
Disability