Privacy
At The Australian Mortgage Specialists we want to provide the best possible service to our members and clients by making the most efficient use of your personal information. However, it is of utmost importance to us that you are confident that any personal information provided to us is treated with an appropriate degree of privacy.
The Australian Mortgage Specialists is an organization that provides mortgage brokering and finance services to our members and clients.
The Australian Mortgage SpecialistsTelephone (07) 3804 7116
Fax (07) 3382 7754
Address
3/127 City Road,
Beenleigh QLD 4207
Definitions
Personal Information: Personal Information is information or an opinion (including information or an opinion forming part of a database) whether true or not, and whether recorded in a material form or not about an individual whose identity is apparent, or can reasonably be ascertained, from the information or opinion.
Sensitive Information: Sensitive information is a subset of personal information. It means information or opinion about an individual's racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, membership of political association, religious beliefs or affiliations, philosophical beliefs, membership of a professional or trade association, membership of a trade union, sexual preferences, criminal record or health information about an individual.
Collection Of Personal Information
It is essential for The Australian Mortgage Specialists to collect personal information to complete its standard business activities of providing mortgage brokering and finance services to our members and clients.
When collecting information we:
- Establish and maintain a database for tracking loan stages to ensure prompt and efficient service from lenders
- Establish and maintain a database for tracking lead stages to ensure prompt and efficient service from our contractors
- Establish and maintain a database for commission processing and follow-up
- Assess clients' current situation, so as to provide information enabling the client to choose the most appropriate financial product for their needs
Collection and usage of personal information is essential for us to complete our business with clients. Where reasonable and practicable, The Australian Mortgage Specialists collect personal information directly from clients. This may occur for example when completing an application form for a product or request a product or service over the telephone or Internet.
Where not reasonable or practicable to collect personal information directly, The Australian Mortgage Specialists relies on third parties. Below are examples of situations where we may receive personal information from another source, and why this would happen.
- Application for a service through an The Australian Mortgage Specialists business alliance
- Processing of online enquiries for service provision
- A credit reference report from a credit reporting agency in the course of assessing a loan application
- A Mortgage Originator who provides The Australian Mortgage Specialists the information to meet legislative requirements
Consent
In the majority of circumstances The Australian Mortgage Specialists will require your specific consent before we collect, use or disclose personal information. Consent will be obtained in writing; however, there may be some situations where your verbal consent is accepted.
Disclosure
The Australian Mortgage Specialists do not generally disclose personal information to any other party, unless required or authorised by law, consent is given, or is required to complete a business transaction.
There are times when The Australian Mortgage Specialists is required or authorised by law to disclose personal information. Personal information may be required in accordance with taxation law to be provided to the taxation office, or under subpoena to a Court of Law.
Personal information may also be disclosed where consent has been obtained. Consent may be received directly from a client, as set out above, or may be implied from a client's conduct.
Personal information is only disclosed to parties outside The Australian Mortgage Specialists where it is required to complete business activities. Some examples where this may occur are: -
- Lenders for the completion of finance applications
- IT service providers for maintenance of CAS (Choice Aggregation Services - The Aggregator) Online Member accounts
- The Mortgage Originator who originally serviced your finance needs
Accuracy
It is essential to The Australian Mortgage Specialists that personal information is complete and up-to-date at all times to effectively conduct standard business activities.
When using personal information we will contact a client to determine if any personal details have changed. The Australian Mortgage Specialists can also be contacted at any time to update personal information, or to advise that information held is inaccurate or incomplete.
Access
Individuals can request access to their personal information by contacting the The Australian Mortgage Specialists Office in their relative area. A summary of personal information (E.g. name, address, phone number) is freely accessible.
In some situations, where the information requested goes beyond a basic summary, a fee may be charged for access. This fee is used to cover the cost to The Australian Mortgage Specialists for retrieving and supplying the information.
The Australian Mortgage Specialists will endeavor to handle all requests for personal information within 30 days of having received the request. Some requests may take longer than 30 days, depending on the information sought, in which case the individual will be notified of the expected time frame as soon as is practicable.
There are some circumstances where requests for access to information may be denied by The Australian Mortgage Specialists, such as where the information may relate to existing or anticipated legal proceedings, where denying access is required or authorised by law, or where the request for access is regarded as frivolous and vexatious.
If a request to access or change personal information is denied, we will offer a formal explanation for our actions.
Security
It is of utmost importance to The Australian Mortgage Specialists that personal information is protected from unauthorised access, loss, modification, misuse or disclosure.
When information is no longer required we ensure that it is deleted from our systems, destroyed in a secure manner, or permanently de-identified.
In common with other financial service providers we use agents and other third parties to provide some services to The Australian Mortgage Specialists and for this purpose we sometimes need to provide them with relevant parts of the information which we have obtained from clients under their contracts. These third parties are required to keep your information confidential and use it only for the purposes for which we are permitted.
We may offer through our website products or services that are supplied by or through other organisations. If a client enquires about the service we will need to pass to them relevant details about the client and their enquiry, to complete the transaction.
Information Security
The Australian Mortgage Specialists takes all reasonable steps to protect clients' security when using our web site but they should be aware that no transmission of information to and from web sites is ever totally secure.
Identifiers
In some circumstances certain Commonwealth identifies (e.g. Tax File Numbers) may be collected as proof of identity when carrying out standard business activities. These identifiers are securely destroyed, and are not used by The Australian Mortgage Specialists in any way to identify an individual.
Wherever it is lawful and practicable to do so The Australian Mortgage Specialists will endeavour to deal with clients anonymously. For example, when a client requests information regarding the services offered by The Australian Mortgage Specialists.
Sensitive Information
Sensitive information (as defined above) is only collected by The Australian Mortgage Specialists where consent has been obtained, it is allowed by law, or the collection is necessary for the establishment, exercise or defense of a legal claim.
Trans-Border Data Flows
The Australian Mortgage Specialists does not send any personal information outside of Australia unless we are authorised to, or required to by law.
Complaints
Any complaints with regard to the handling of your personal information in breach of this Privacy Policy can be directed to:
Telephone (07) 3804 7116
Fax (07) 3382 7754
Address
The Australian Mortgage Specialists
Privacy Officer
3/127 City Road,
Beenleigh QLD 4207
Any complaints that have not been handled satisfactorily by The Australian Mortgage Specialists can be referred to the Federal Privacy Commissioner.
Telephone 1300 363 992
Address
Director of Complaints
Office of the Federal Privacy Commissioner
GPO Box 5218
Sydney NSW 1042
