Privacy Notice

BACKGROUND:

AFJ Associates Ltd understands that your privacy is important to you and that you care about how your personal data is used. We respect and value the privacy of all of our Clients and will only collect and use personal data in ways that are described here, and in a way that is consistent with our obligations and your rights under the law.

INFORMATION ABOUT US

AFJ Associates Ltd is a Private Limited Company registered in England under Company Number 10839009.

Our registered address is Suite D, The Business Centre, Faringdon Avenue, Romford, RM3 8EN.

Our Data Protection Officer is Kerry Hopwood.

She can be contacted by email at kerry@afjassociates.com by phone on 020 3726 5763 or at the postal address above.

Our ICO registration number ZA285195

WHAT THIS NOTICE COVERS

This Privacy Notice explains how we use your personal data: how it is collected, how it is held, and how it is processed. It also explains your rights under the law relating to your personal data.

WHAT IS PERSONAL DATA

Personal data is defined by the General Data Protection Regulation (EU Regulation 2016/679) (the “GDPR”) as ‘any information relating to an identifiable person who can be directly or indirectly identified in particular by reference to an identifier’.

Personal data is, in simpler terms, any information about you that enables you to be identified. Personal data covers obvious information such as your name and contact details, but it also covers less obvious information such as identification numbers, electronic location data, and other online identifiers.

The personal data that we collect is listed below. We may collect some or all of this data depending on your relationship with us:

·         Name

·         Address

·         Email address

·         Telephone number

·         Business name

·         Job title

·         Profession

·         Payment information

We may have received some or all of the above information from a third party that we have a contract to provide services to.

WHAT ARE YOUR RIGHTS

Under the GDPR, you have the following rights, which we will always work to uphold:

·         The right to be informed about our collection and use of your personal data.

·         The right to access the personal data we hold about you.

·         The right to have your personal data rectified if any of your personal data held by us is inaccurate or incomplete.

·         The right to ask us to delete or otherwise dispose of any of your personal data that we have.

·         The right to restrict (i.e. prevent) the processing of your personal data.

·         The right to object to us using your personal data for a particular purpose or purposes.

·         The right to data portability. This means that, if you have provided personal data to us directly, we are using it with your consent or for the performance of a contract, and that data is processed using automated means, you can ask us for a copy of that personal data to re-use with another service or business in many cases.

For more information about our use of your personal data or exercising your rights as outlined above, please contact us.

 

Further information about your rights can also be obtained from the Information Commissioner’s Office or your local Citizens Advice Bureau.

If you have any cause for complaint about our use of your personal data, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office, there details can be found at www.ico.gov.uk

HOW WE USE YOUR PERSONAL DATA

Under the GDPR, we must always have a lawful basis for using personal data. This may be because the data is necessary for our performance of a contract with you, because you have consented to our use of your personal data, or because it is in our legitimate business interests to use it. Your personal data may be used for one of the following purposes:

·         Providing and managing your account.

·         Supplying our services to you. Your personal details are required in order for us to enter into a contract with you.

·         Personalising and tailoring our services for you.

·         Communicating with you. This may include responding to emails or calls from you.

·         Providing data to third parties that is required by law.

WEBISTE COOKIES

Our site may place and access certain first-party Cookies on your computer or device. First-party Cookies are those placed directly by us and are used only by us. We use Cookies to facilitate and improve your experience of our site and to provide and improve our services. By using our site, you may also receive certain third-party Cookies on your computer or device. Third-party Cookies are those placed by websites, services, and/or parties other than us. Â In addition, our site uses analytics services provided by Google Analytics, which also use Cookies. Website analytics refers to a set of tools used to collect and analyse usage statistics, enabling us to better understand how people use our site.

If you take the opportunity to contact us through social network links – such as Facebook and Twitter – you may be sent cookies from these websites. We don’t control the setting of these cookies, so please check the third-party websites for more information about their cookies and how to manage them.

DATA RETENTION

We will not keep your personal data for any longer than is necessary in light of the reason(s) for which it was first collected. Your personal data will therefore be kept for the following periods or, where there is no fixed period, the following factors will be used to determine how long it is kept:

·         Contact information will be kept for a minimum of one year from the date we last provided services to you.

·         Contracts will be kept for 6 years from the last date we provided services to you in case of a contractual claim being brought.

·         Financial information will be kept for 6 years from the date we last provided services to you in line with HMRC requirements.

DATA STORAGE

We will only store or transfer your personal data within the European Economic Area (the “EEA”). The EEA consists of all EU member states, plus Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein. This means that your personal data will be fully protected under the GDPR or to equivalent standards by law.

The security of your personal data is essential to us and to protect your data, we take a number of important measures, including the following:

·         Password encryption of mobile devices and laptops.

·         Passwords for cloud database.

·         Anti-virus software and firewalls are installed on all relevant devices.

·         All paper documentation is stored securely in a locked environment.

WHO WE SHARE YOUR DATA WITH

We may pass your information to our third party service providers, agents, subcontractors and other associated organisations for the purposes of completing tasks and providing services on our behalf.

However, when we use third party service providers, we disclose only the personal information that is necessary to deliver the service and we have a contract in place that requires them to keep your information secure and not to use it for their own direct marketing purposes.

Please be reassured that we will not release your information to third parties beyond the company for them to use for their own direct marketing purposes, however, in some limited circumstances, we may be legally required to share certain personal data, which might include yours, if we are involved in legal proceedings or complying with legal obligations, a court order, or the instructions of a government authority.

If any of your personal data is required by a third party, as described above, we will take steps to ensure that your personal data is handled safely, securely, and in accordance with your rights, our obligations, and the third party’s obligations under the law.

If any personal data is transferred outside of the EEA, we will take suitable steps in order to ensure that your personal data is treated just as safely and securely as it would be within the UK and under the GDPR, as previously explained.

DATA ACCESS REQUEST

If you want to know what personal data we have about you, you can ask us for details of that personal data and for a copy of it (where any such personal data is held). This is known as a “subject access request”.

All subject access requests should be made in writing and sent to the email or postal addresses stated in the contact us section of this notice.

To make this as easy as possible for you, a Subject Access Request Form is available for you to use. You do not have to use this form, but it is the easiest way to tell us everything we need to know to respond to your request as quickly as possible.

There is not normally any charge for a subject access request. If your request is ‘manifestly unfounded or excessive’ (for example, if you make repetitive requests) a fee may be charged to cover our administrative costs in responding.

We will respond to your subject access request within one month of receiving it. Normally, we aim to provide a complete response, including a copy of your personal data within that time. In some cases, however, particularly if your request is more complex, more time may be required up to a maximum of three months from the date we receive your request. You will be kept fully informed of our progress.

CONTACT US

To contact us about anything to do with your personal data and data protection, including to make a subject access request, please use the following details

For the attention of: Kerry Hopwood

Email address: kerry@afjassociates.com

Telephone number: 020 3726 5763

Postal Address: Suite D, The Business Centre, Faringdon Avenue, Romford, RM3 8EN.

CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY NOTICE

We may change this Privacy Notice from time to time. This may be necessary, for example, if the law changes, or if we change our business in a way that affects personal data protection.

Any changes will be made available at www.afjassociates.com .