Privacy Statement

Underwriting Australia Pty Ltd (‘UAPL’) (ABN 50 087 225 661) (AFSL 322536) is committed to protecting your privacy in accordance with the Privacy Act 1998 (Cth).

This Privacy Statement describes our current policies and practices concerning the collection, use and management and protection of personal information about individuals.

The general Insurance Privacy Code

The Privacy Act provides for industry groups to operate their own privacy code, tailored to the needs and features of the industry. The General Insurance Privacy Code ("the Code") was compiled by the Insurance Council of Australia and has been approved by the Federal Privacy Commissioner.

The Code ensures that all the principles under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) are incorporated into the business practice of its signatories. The Code also provides consumers with additional protection through complaints handling mechanisms, industry monitoring processes and consumer education.

Our Privacy Policy - Our Commitment

1. What information do we collect and how do we use it?

1.1   At UAPL, we collect personal information that is necessary to provide and manage the products or services we offer on behalf of the insurers we deal with; develop and identify products and services that may interest you; and to conduct market or customer satisfaction research. As an agent of the various insurers, we may collect the personal information on behalf of these insurers, who are located in Australia and overseas.

1.2  Generally, we collect both personal and sensitive information. Please see below for a description of the information we may gather.

1.3 Insurers may pass on personal and sensitive information to their reinsurers or other persons, e.g. loss adjusters, medical advisers, claim consultants, lawyers and other advisers. Some of these companies may be located outside Australia. We may also disclose your personal and sensitive information to a premium funder if premium funding is to be arranged on your behalf.

1.4 We also use your personal information to send you requested product information and related material and to enable us to manage your ongoing insurance requirements, e.g. renewals, and our relationship with you and your agent.

1.5 We may occasionally notify you, unless you notify us otherwise, about new services, special offers, events or articles we think will be of interest to you. We may send regular updates by email or by post on insurance matters. If you would rather not receive this information, you must notify us in writing.

1.6 We may use your personal information internally to help us improve our services and help resolve any problems.

1.7 Personal Information

Personal Information is information by which an individual can be identified such as your name, contact details, date of birth, insurance history or financial details.

1.8 Sensitive Information

Sensitive Information is a particular kind of personal information which includes information about an individual’s health, racial or ethnic origin, membership of political, professional or trade organisations, criminal record, sexual practices, political opinions or philosophical or religious beliefs. We will only collect this information if we have express consent.

2. What if you don’t provide some relevant information to us?

We can only fully advise you of your insurance needs if we have all relevant personal and/or sensitive information. Insurance laws also require you to provide your insurers (and their agents) with all the information they need in order to be able to decide whether to insure you and on what terms.

3. How do we hold and protect your information?

3.1. We strive to maintain the reliability, accuracy, completeness and currency of the personal information we hold and to protect its privacy and security. We keep personal information only for as long as is reasonably necessary for the purpose for which it was collected or to comply with any applicable legal or ethical reporting of document retention requirements.

3.2. We hold the information we collect from you in a safe record storage system. We ensure that your information is safe by enforcing strict security arrangements.

4. Will we disclose the information we collect to anyone?

4.1 We disclose personal information to third parties who we believe are necessary to assist us and them in providing relevant services and products to you. We will not do this unless it meets the privacy standards under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth). For example, to evaluate or deliver our products and services to you, we may need to disclose your information to:

1. An agent authorised by UAPL to collect or assess information relating to the relevant product or service;
2. The insurers who we act as agent on their behalf;
3. A broker or other persons authorised by you;
4. A person or organisation contracted by UAPL or an insurer to assess, evaluate or manage claims made under your policy;
5. A person or organisation acting on your behalf to assess, evaluate or manage a claim made by a another person on a policy which you are claiming indemnity or in which you are an insured;
6. A person or organisation contacted by UAPL or an underwriter to confirm, assess, clarify or assist in delivering a product or service to you;
7. An organisation contacting UAPL or another agent, with your consent, to obtain past policy or claims information about you;
8. Commonwealth or State/territory Government authorities; and
9. Courts, tribunals or other dispute resolution bodies.

4.2 We limit the use and disclosure of any personal information provided by us to them to the specific purposes for which we supplied it. We may transfer your personal information overseas where it is necessary to provide our service or product. As the agent for some overseas insurers, such as Lloyd’s, that information will be transferred overseas.

4.3 We do not sell, trade, or rent your personal or sensitive information to others for monetary or financial gain.

4.4 We may need to provide your personal and sensitive information to contractors who supply services to us, e.g. to handle mailings on our behalf or to other companies in the event of a corporate sale, merger, reorganisation, dissolution or similar event. However, we will do our best to ensure that they only use and protect your information in the same way that we do.

4.5 We may also disclose your personal and sensitive information to other persons such as our lawyers, consultants, other insurance intermediaries, employees and officers in any of our related companies who may provide services to us to manage your insurance requirements and claims.

4.6 We may provide your information to others if we are required to do so by law or under some unusual circumstance which the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) permits. We will take reasonable steps to ensure the information we collect about you is accurate, complete and up-to-date.

5. Your consent

By asking us to arrange or assist with your insurance needs, even if requested via a person or acting on your behalf, you will be taken to have consented to the collection and use of your personal and sensitive information provided to us for the purposes described above.

6. How can you check, update or change the information we are holding?

6.1 On your request, UAPL will provide you with access to the personal information that we hold about you, except in circumstances where access may be denied under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth). UAPL reserves the right to determine the manner in which the information is accessed.

6.2 On receipt of your written request and provided we are able to ascertain the information we may hold, we will provide to you a copy of the personal information. We will also correct, amend or delete any personal information that we agree is inaccurate.

6.3 We will take all reasonable steps to keep your information confidential and secure and protect it from unauthorised access, modification and disclosure or misuse or loss. We may store your information electronically or in paper form.

6.4 If you wish to access or correct your personal information, please write to The Privacy Officer at the address below.

6.5 If we deny you access we will provide you with a reason and, depending on the circumstances of the denial, we may provide sufficient access to information through mutually agreeable intermediaries to meet the needs of both parties. If you request access to your personal information, you may be charged a fee for costs incurred such as photocopying, administration and postage. You may also request that we provide you with further information on how we collect, hold, use and disclose personal information at UAPL.

7. Information about other individuals

7.1 If you provide us with personal or sensitive information about another individual, we expect that you will advise that individual that you have collected their information, that you have passed it on to us, the purpose for which we will use it and the parties who we may disclose it to. In the case of sensitive information, you must obtain the individual’s consent to collect it and how you will use it.

7.2 If we pass on personal or sensitive information about an individual to you, then you and the person(s) you are authorised to disclose it to, must only use it for the purpose for which we disclose it to you and comply with the requirements of the National Privacy Principals regarding your collection, use, handling and storage of that information.

8. Privacy Complaints

8.1 UAPL has established a privacy complaints handling procedure to deal with any complaints you may have about how we have collected, used or managed your personal information. If you need to make a complaint, please contact the Privacy Officer at the address below. We will endeavour to resolve your complaint as soon as possible within 21 working days.

8.2 Your complaint may be made orally or in writing. If you make your complaint orally, we will require you to put it in writing as soon as possible. Please let us know if you require assistance to put your complaint in writing. Your complaint will be taken seriously and investigated thoroughly by the Privacy Officer at UAPL. There may be instances where the Privacy Officer will recommend that the complaint be handled by the Privacy Commissioner or another Code adjudicator.

8.3 If you are not satisfied with the investigation undertaken by UAPL, you can make a complaint to the Insurance Ombudsman Service Limited (IOS), PO Box 561, Collins Street West Melbourne, 8007. You can also reach the IOS via phone, National Toll Free: 1300 780 808 or via their website www.insuranceombudsman.com.au. This process is free of charge. If you are unsatisfied with the way your complaint is handled by the IOS, you are able to contact the Office of the Privacy Commissioner on 1300 363 992, which also has a complaint review and resolution processes