What is Personal Information

Personal information is information or an opinion, in any form, that can reasonably identify an individual. Sensitive information is a specific type of personal information about an individual that may include, but not be limited to, information about an individual's race, ethnic origin, political opinions and affiliations, religious or philosophical beliefs, health, sexual preferences, memberships of professional or trade associations and criminal history. For the purpose of this document, personal information also includes sensitive information, unless otherwise stated.

Our Approach to Privacy

Maclean Partners Accountants & Advisers and M Financial Services are committed to respecting your privacy. In doing so, we comply with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles (APP).

About your Personal Information

Maclean Partners Accountants & Advisers, incorporating its related entities ("Maclean Partners Accountants & Advisers", "M Financial Services", "we", "us", "our"), is required to collect and use certain personal information about you in order for us to carry out our responsibilities to administer your financial affairs as instructed by you, and to enable us to comply with our legal/or regulatory obligations.
 
In most instances, we will collect personal information directly from you or where it is provided to us with your authority. We may also be required to collect personal information about you from a third party, which we will only do as permitted or required by law. Sometimes we may be required to collect sensitive information from you or about you from a third party for the provision of certain insurance and/or financial planning services.
 
In the normal course of the services we provide to you, you will be able to deal with us anonymously or by a pseudonym where it is lawful, practicable and reasonable to do so.

Using and Disclosing your Personal Information

Primarily we will use your personal information to provide you with the services you have requested. However, it may also be necessary for us to disclose certain information about you to the following types of organisations.
 
  • Regulatory bodies, including accounting and other financial professional bodies;
  • Government Agencies;
  • Your financial institution or any other financial institutions with which you have any dealings;
  • Other financial advisors, agents or brokers with whom you have any;
  • Agents, contractors and professional advisors who assist us; and
  • Credit and debit agencies
 
Whenever you request us to perform work on your behalf, you authorise Maclean Partners Accountants & Advisers to share your personal information within our group of related entities (including our financial planning entity, M Financial Services), as well as disclosing your personal information to those types of organisations referred to above.

Exchange of Personal Information with Overseas Parties

We will only transfer your personal information overseas if it is necessary, in order to provide you with your requested services. In such cases, we will obtain your consent to the transfer of your personal information (unless it is not practical to do so, and the transfer is to your benefit and consent would likely be given), take reasonable steps to ensure the recipient is subject to laws or privacy principles similar to the APP, and take reasonable steps to ensure that your personal information will not be used or disclosed by the recipient in a way that contravenes the APP.

Security of your Personal Information

We take all reasonable care to protect your personal information for misuse or loss and from unauthorised access, alteration and disclosure. We use a variety of physical and electronic security measures including restricting physical access to our offices, firewalls and secure databases to keep your personal information secure.
 
Whilst we take all reasonable measures, data transmissions over the internet cannot be guaranteed as fully secure. If you use the internet to send us information, including your email address, you do so at your own risk.
 
We will not retain any of your personal information for longer than is required, other than to satisfy legal or regulatory purposes. We will securely destroy or de-identify your personal information when it is no longer required by us.

Website

This Privacy Statement also applies to our website at www.macleanpartners.com.au
 
We generally only collect personal information from our website when it is provided voluntarily - for example, when you fill in a form to subscribe to our publications, register to attend a seminar or ask a question. When you visit our website or download information from it, our Internet Service Provider (ISP) makes a record of your visits and records the following information:
 
  • Your internet address
  • Your domain name if applicable; and
  • The date and time of your visit to the website

We may also collect the following information with your consent:

·        name

·        contact information including email address

·        demographic information such as postcode, preferences and interests

·        other information relevant to customer surveys and/or offers

Our ISP also collects information such as the pages our users access, the documents they download, links from other sites they follow to reach our site, and the types of browser they use. However, this information is anonymous and is only used for statistical and website development purposes.
 
While we take all reasonable security measures, the internet is not a secure environment. Therefore, data transmissions over the internet cannot be guaranteed as fully secure and any information you send to us over the internet, including your email address, is sent at your own risk.

Accessing and Correcting your Personal Information

You are able to gain access to your personal information held by us. To arrange access to your personal information, you should contact our office in writing, by telephone, facsimile or email. We will use our best endeavours to maintain current and accurate personal information about you and correct any errors as they arise, including notification to any third parties to whom we have disclosed your personal information. You agree to advise us in writing of any changes to your personal information within a reasonable time.
 
We may deny your request to access your personal information in some circumstances. If we do so, we will tell you why.

How we use cookies:

A cookie is a small file which asks permission to be placed on your computer’s hard drive. Once you agree, the file is added and the cookie helps analyse web traffic or lets you know when you visit a particular site. Cookies allow web applications to respond to you as an individual. The web application can tailor it’s operations to your needs, likes and dislikes by gathering and remembering information about your preferences.

We use traffic log cookies to identify which pages are being used. This helps us analyse data about web page traffic and improve our website in order to tailor it to customer needs. We only use this information for statistical analysis purposes and then the data is removed from the system.

Overall, cookies help us provide you with a better website, by enabling us to monitor which pages you find useful and which you do not. A cookie in no way gives us access to your computer or any information about you, other than the data you choose to share with us.

You can choose to accept or decline cookies. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser setting to decline cookies if you prefer. This may prevent you from taking full advantage of the website.

 

Links to other websites:

Our website may contain links to other websites of interest. However, once you have used these links to leave our site, you should note that we do not have any control over that other website. Therefore, we cannot be responsible for the protection and privacy of any information which you provide whilst visiting such sites and such sites are not governed by this privacy statement. You should exercise caution and look at the privacy statement applicable to the website in question.

Controlling your personal information
You may choose to restrict the collection or use of your personal information in the following ways:

• Whenever you are asked to fill in a form on the website, look for the box that you can click to indicate that you do not want the information to be used by anybody for direct marketing purposes
• If you have previously agreed to us using your personal information for direct marketing purposes, you may change your mind at any time by writing to or using the contact page on this website

We will not sell, distribute or lease your personal information to third parties unless we have your permission or are required by law to do so. We may use your personal information to send you promotional information about third parties which we think you may find interesting if you tell us that you wish this to happen.

Accuracy of your Personal Information

If you think that any personal information we hold about you is inaccurate, please contact us at mpca@macleanpartners.com.au or phone us on +61 7 4729 2222 and we will take reasonable steps to ensure that it is corrected.

Additional Information about our Professional Services

In addition to the administrative and regulatory requirements of maintaining your personal information, we may also use the information collected to notify you from time to time of general financial matters and/or related financial services provided by Maclean Partners Accountants & Advisers (including our related entities), as well as services offered by other professional organisations with which we have formal business relationships.

You have the right to request Maclean Partners Accountants & Advisers to cease providing information about general financial matters and/or related financial services at any time, by phoning us on 07 4729 2222; emailing us at mpca@macleanpartners.com.au or clicking unsubscribe on certain email communications we send to you. ou acknowledge that Maclean Partners Accountants & Advisers may be required by law and/or ethical standards to forward specific information about these professional services to you from time to time.

More Information

If you would like more information concerning how we handle your personal information or our approach to privacy, or if you wish to complain about a breach of this Privacy Statement or the APP, please contact our office during business hours.

Maclean Partners Accountants & Advisers

250 Ross River Road

Aitkenvale Qld 4814

P:  +61 7 4729 2222

E:   mpca@macleanpartners.com.au
W:  www.macleanpartners.com.au