|
Privacy Policy
|
|
We respect the privacy of our clients and are committed to keeping your personal information accurate,
confidential, secure and private. We have adopted the following Privacy Policy to ensure that we
continue to meet our commitment to your privacy. This policy will be reviewed for appropriateness
from time to time as our users and requirements change, and therefore this policy may change from
time to time, so please check back periodically.
|
|
Introduction
|
In the course of providing its business activities, we may collect certain personal information about users
of our web site (the "Site"),in accordance with applicable laws.
"Personal Information" means information about an identifiable individual. This may include,
without limitation, the individuals name, home address, age, income, credit history, or other financial
information, credit card information, personal preferences, and other information about his or her
family. Personal Information does not include the name, title, business address, or telephone number of
an employee of an organization.
This Privacy Policy is based on, and complies with, Canada's Personal Information Protection and
Electronic Documents Act ("PIPEDA"), which includes the Ten Privacy Principles outlined in the Canadian
Standards Association Model Code for the Protection of Personal Privacy. For more information
about this legislation, please visit the official Web site of the Privacy Commission of Canada at www.privcom.gc.ca.
This Privacy Policy describes the ten principles that we follow to ensure that we protect your Personal
Information when we collect, use, or disclose it in the course of carrying on commercial activities in
Canada. All of our employees who have access to Personal Information must adhere to this Privacy
Policy and related procedures.
|
|
The Ten Principles of Privacy:
|
The following ten principles govern our actions as they relate to the use of Personal Information:
- Accountability
- Identifying purposes
- Consent
- Limiting collection
- Limiting use, disclosure, and retention
- Accuracy
- Safeguarding personal information
- Openness
- Access
- Addressing complaints
|
|
Principle 1: Accountability
|
|
We are accountable for all Personal Information in our possession or custody, including Personal
Information disclosed to third parties for purposes of providing services requested by you.
|
|
Principle 2: Identifying purposes
|
|
We will inform you of the purposes for which we are collecting any Personal Information, before or at
the time the information is collected.
|
|
Principle 3: Consent
|
|
We will obtain your consent before or when we collect, uses, or discloses your Personal Information.
Consent can be express, implied, or given through an authorized representative. You may withdraw your
consent at any time (subject to any legal consequences of which you will be informed). However, we
may collect, use, or disclose Personal Information without your knowledge or consent in exceptional
circumstances where such collection, use, or disclosure is permitted or required by law.
|
|
Principle 4: Limiting collection
|
|
The information collected by us will be limited to those details necessary for the purposes it has
identified to you or to perform the services you have requested. Information will be collected by fair and
lawful means.
|
|
Principle 5: Limiting use, disclosure, and retention
|
|
Personal Information will only be used or disclosed for the purpose for which it was collected unless you
have otherwise consented. Personal Information may only be retained for the amount of time needed
to fulfill the purpose for which it was collected. In certain exceptional circumstances, we may have a
legal duty or right to disclose Personal Information without your knowledge or consent with respect to
matters that concern our or the public's interest.
|
|
Principle 6: Accuracy
|
|
We will keep Personal Information as accurate, complete, and current as necessary to fulfill the
identified purposes for which it was collected. You may have this information amended where it is found
to be inaccurate or incomplete.
|
|
Principle 7: Safeguarding personal information
|
|
Personal Information is safeguarded using measures appropriate to the sensitivity of the information.
|
|
Principle 8: Openness
|
|
We will make information available to our clients and employees about the policies and procedures we
use to manage Personal Information. You have access to this information through our Site, or through
alternative means if requested.
|
|
Principle 9: Access
|
|
Upon written request, you will be informed of the existence, use, and disclosure of your Personal
Information, and will be given access to it. We will respond to such requests as efficiently as possible. If
we are prohibited from providing such access we will explain the reasons for the lack of access, except
where prohibited by law.
|
|
Principle 10: Addressing complaints and suggestions
|
|
You may challenge our compliance with this Privacy Policy. We have policies and procedures to receive,
investigate, and respond to complaints and questions regarding this Privacy Policy and our collection,
use, and disclosure of Personal Information. You may contact our Privacy Officer to express any
concerns or to request access to your Personal Information. The contact information for this individual is provided at the end of this document.
|
|
Application of the ten Privacy Principles - How we treat your personal information
|
|
The kind of information we collect
|
|
We gather and use Personal Information in order to provide you with the products and services you
have requested, including but not limited to, information about residential real estate listings and about
real estate agents. We may also use your Personal Information to update you about our services and
to offer you additional products and services that you may be interested in, so that we may continue
to serve your needs. If you visit the Site, we do not collect personally identifiable information about
you unless you provide it. All information that you do provide us with is securely maintained and kept
strictly confidential. This Privacy Policy does not apply to aggregated data from which it is not possible
to determine the identity of a specific individual. We reserve the right to use aggregated data in any way
that it determines appropriate.
|
|
How we use your information
|
We use Personal Information for three general purposes:
- To communicate with you in order to provide you with our products and services.
- To communicate your contact information to Royal LePage sales representatives or his/her representative so that they may provide you the information you requested.
- For inclusion in documentation relating to products and services we provide to you.
- To gather transactional information to monitor our level of service and to periodically contact our customers to determine their level of satisfaction with the services offered by GetHomes.ca.
We will only use Personal Information for the purpose that we have disclosed to you. If we want to use your information for a different purpose, we will notify you and ask for your consent first.
|
|
When we are permitted to disclose your information
|
|
We are obliged to keep your Personal Information confidential except under the following
circumstances:
|
|
(i) When authorized by you
|
Certain of the services offered by us may require us to obtain Personal Information about you in order
to perform the services you have engaged us to provide. We will always obtain consent from you first,
and we will never use the information for purposes other than those we have told you about.
You may withdraw your consent at any time, subject to any legal implications (which we will inform you about). In some cases, if you do not consent to our use or disclosure of certain Personal Information, we
may be unable to continue to provide all or part of the services you have requested.
|
|
(ii) When required by law
|
|
The type of information we are legally required to disclose usually relates to government tax reporting
requirements. In some cases, however, such as under a court order, we may be required to disclose
certain information to persons specified in the court order. We will only provide the specific information
requested and only upon being satisfied that the authorities have legitimate grounds to request the
information.
|
|
(iii) When permitted by law
|
|
The legislation has provided certain situations where we are legally permitted to disclose Personal
Information without your consent. Examples include situations involving the collection of debt in
arrears, medical emergencies, or suspicion of illegal activities.
|
|
With whom we may share your information
|
|
GetHomes.ca employees
|
|
In the course of daily operations, access to sensitive Personal Information is limited to those employees
with a legitimate reason for accessing it. As a condition of their employment, our employees are
required to follow all applicable laws and regulations, including this Privacy Policy. Unauthorized use
or disclosure of confidential client information by any of our employees is prohibited and may result in
disciplinary measures.
|
|
GetHomes.ca affiliates
|
|
In order to better meet your needs, we may share some of your Personal Information with our affiliates.
We will only do this with your express consent and you may withdraw this consent at any time. The
procedure for withdrawing consent is outlined below under the section "Opting Out."
|
|
GetHomes.ca third-party suppliers
|
|
As you may know, we may engage and coordinate third-party suppliers to provide you with certain
services offered through GetHomes.ca. Such suppliers are only given the information that is needed to
provide the specific service for which we contract them to provide. Suppliers are contractually obliged
to protect the confidentiality of your Personal Information and are prohibited from doing anything
with this information that we have not authorized them to do. They are required to treat your Personal
Information in a manner consistent with this Privacy Policy.
|
|
Sale of Business
|
|
We may transfer your personally identifiable information to a third party in connection with a sale, merger, or other disposition (whether of assets, stock, or otherwise) of our business.
|
|
How we safeguard information.
|
|
We have extensive controls in place to maintain the security of its information and information systems.
Client files are stored according to the sensitivity of the information contained therein. Appropriate
controls (such as restricted access) are placed on our computer systems and data processing
procedures. Physical access to areas where Personal Information is gathered, processed, or stored is
limited to authorized employees. When you telephone one of our employees to speak about your file,
you may be asked for some personally identifying information. This type of safeguard is designed to
ensure that only you, or someone authorized by you, has access to your file.
|
|
Website security
|
|
The Site may contain links to other Web sites, including those of its business partners. We are in no way
responsible and cannot guarantee the content or privacy of other sites linked to the Site.
|
|
Accessing and amending your information
|
As one of our clients, you have the right to access the Personal Information we keep in your file and
you have the right to verify or amend the information if it is shown to be inaccurate. If you would like
to view the Personal Information held in your file, please make a written request to the Privacy Officer
at the address listed below, under "Questions, Concerns, and Complaints". We will respond to your request as efficiently as possible.
To make a change, please make a similar request in writing to us at the address below.
|
|
Anonymous information and "cookies"
|
We may collect anonymous information about you. This means that the information collected cannot
be traced back to a specific person. For example, our Web servers may record certain information
automatically when you visit the Site. This information is collected using "cookies" and might include the
pages you visited, your IP (Internet protocol) address and other site usage statistics. This anonymous
information is used for research and analytical purposes only (like evaluating how many visitors our Site
receives or which pages they visit most often). It does not reveal any Personal Information about you,
the user. This aggregate data may be disclosed to third parties, but never with personally identifying
information.
"Cookies" are small text files that contain a unique identification number that allows our computers
to identify your Web browser (but not you) each time you visit our Web site that uses cookies. The
information helps us improve the functionality of the Site and enhance the navigation and security of
your session. Most major Web sites use this technology and most browsers are set up to accept them.
You may configure your browser to notify you when you receive a cookie, and you may refuse to accept
them entirely. However, if you refuse to accept cookies, you may limit the functionality that we can
provide to you when you visit our site.
|
|
Questions, Concerns, and Complaints
|
If you have any questions, concerns, or complaints about your Personal Information, or about this Privacy Policy, contact our privacy officer using the contact information provided below:
Thomas Hogan
General Counsel and Secretary
39 Wynford Drive
Don Mills, Ontario M3C 3K5
Tel.: (416) 510-5800
E-mail: Tom.hogan@brookfieldrps.com
|
|
