Privacy Policy and Disclaimer

Disclaimer

SYNRG is independently owned, operated, and licensed under the Real Estate Agents Act 2008. All SYNRG offices and salespersons in New Zealand are bound by the Real Estate Agents Act (Professional Conduct and Client Care) Rules 2009. These rules are displayed under the "About Us" section of this website. 

Every precaution has been taken to establish the accuracy of the information provided on this website.

Prospective purchasers should not limit their property research to the website alone but should make their own enquiries to satisfy themselves in all respects.

If you are dissatisfied with any portion of the Web Site or these terms of use you should immediately stop using the Web Site and related services.

If you would like to make a comment about the website, you may email info@synrg.co.nz.

Links

The Web Site may contains links to third party web sites and may redirect you to third party web sites. These include sites of Independently owned and operated SYNRG offices, and Service providers and property portals who have a relationship with SYNRG, some of whom are permitted to display a SYNRG logo.  Third Party Sites are not under the control of  SYNRG, SYNRG is not responsible for such Third Party Sites, including without limitation the accuracy, sufficiency, correctness, reliability, veracity, completeness, or timeliness thereof, any link contained therein, or any changes or updates thereto. The inclusion or access to Third Party Sites does not imply an endorsement thereof by SYNRG, or of the provider of such content or services, or of any third party web site. SYNRG reserves the right to terminate any link or linking program at any time.

Limited License

The materials provided through the Web Site including, but not limited to, all information, text, messages, images, photos, illustrations, designs, icons, files, trademarks, copyrighted material, specifications, catalogs, literature, technical information, advertisements, and other content or materials on the Web Site, as well as the organization and layout of the Web Site, are copyrighted. You may access, download and print materials on the Web Site solely for your personal and non-commercial use.

Trademarks

The trademarks and service marks used or displayed on the Web Site are trademarks or service marks of SYNRG or a third party, which may be registered in New Zealand or other jurisdictions. None of these trademarks or service marks may be used in any way without receiving the prior express written permission of the owner of the mark.

Transmit

If you post, upload, submit or otherwise transmit any content on or through the Web Site, you agree to provide true, accurate and complete information and to refrain from impersonating any person or entity and from falsely representing your affiliation with any person or entity.

Privacy Policy

Our Policy Aim

Synergy Realty Group Limited, SYNRG, understands and respect your right to privacy and the protection of your personal information. We are bound by the Privacy Act 1993. This document sets out how we collect, use, disclose, retain and manage your personal information.

Scope and Responsibilities

This policy applies to board members, managers, employees, independent contractors and volunteers at SYNRG; and describes the type of information we collect, how the information is handled, how and to whom the information is disclosed and how the information may be accessed.

We will take steps to ensure that all those responsible are aware of and understand our obligations as well as their own obligations under the Act. We will achieve this through the provision of training and through maintaining and implementing internal procedures to prevent personal information from being collected, used, disclosed, retained, accessed or disposed of other than in accordance with this policy.

This policy applies to all your dealings with us, whether in person, via telephone, via email, through written correspondence or via our website WWW.SYNRG.CO.NZ, apps, social media and other digital services. By accessing our website or using our services, you agree to be bound by the terms of this privacy policy.

Definitions

For the purpose of this policy, the following terms will have the following meanings:

Personal Information means information or an opinion about an identified individual, or an individual who is reasonably identifiable:

(a) whether the information or opinion is true or not; and

(b) whether the information or opinion is recorded in a material form or not.

Sensitive Information means:

(a) information or an opinion about an individual's:

(i) racial or ethnic origin; or

(ii) political opinions; or

(iii) membership of a political association; or(iv) religious beliefs or affiliations; or

(v) philosophical beliefs; or

(vi) membership of a professional or trade association; or

(vii) membership of a trade union; or

(viii) sexual orientation or practices; or

(ix) criminal record;

that is also personal information; or

(b) health information about an individual; or

(c) genetic information about an individual that is not otherwise health information; or

(d) biometric information that is to be used for the purpose of automated biometric verification or biometric identification; or

(e) biometric templates.

Types of personal and sensitive information collected and held

The types of personal information we collect and hold includes (but is not limited to):

• Names
• Mailing or Street addresses
• Email addresses
• Telephone numbers
• Facsimile numbers
• Birth Date
• Business History
• Educational History
• References
• Financial Information
• Bankruptcy and credit reporting information
• Bank account information and credit card details
• Insurance related information
• Licensing information
• Copies of photo identification (e.g. drivers license & passport)
• Other personal information you provide to us directly in relation to the products and services we are providing to you

We do not collect personal and sensitive information unless it is reasonably necessary for, or directly related to, one or more of the services we provide or functions we carry out. We will not collect any sensitive information unless we first obtain your consent to the collection of that information, or if we are required or authorised by law to collect the information.

How do we collect your personal information? We will if it is reasonable or practicable to do so, collect your personal information directly from you.

We may collect personal information in various ways, including:

• through your access and use of our websites; or
• by telephone, email, fax, SMS or letter; or
• during conversations between you and us; or
• by entering competitions, promotions or requesting information from us; or
• by contracting with us; or
• by completing surveys or providing feedback.

Sometimes we may collect personal information from a third party such as credit reporting agencies and government bodies or from representatives such as lawyers and accountants. If you provide personal information to us about someone else, you must ensure that you have their consent to disclose their information to us. You should also ensure that you take reasonable steps such that the individual concerned is aware of the various matters dealt with in this policy. We endeavor to contact and notify the individual of the circumstances of such collection where it is reasonable to do so.

If we receive personal information that we did not solicit, we will determine as soon as reasonably practicable whether we could have legitimately collected that information as part of our functions or activities. If we determine the unsolicited information could not have been legitimately collected by us, then provided it is lawful and reasonable to do so, we will destroy or de-identify that information as soon as practical.

Website Usage

During your website visit we may automatically collect certain aggregate information related to your website visit. Aggregate information is non-personally identifiable or anonymous information about you, including the date and time of your visit, your IP address, your computer browser information, the internet address that you visited prior to and after reaching the website, the name of the domain and host you used to access the internet, and the features of our website which you accessed. We may, from time to time, use the information we collect to improve the quality of our website, enhance or tailor the information we offer, and make your experience on our website as valuable and efficient as possible.

By using our website, you consent to SYNRG's collection and use of your information as described in this policy. If SYNRG updates this privacy policy, such changes will be posted on this page. To ensure you are always aware of what information we collect and how we use it, we recommend that you review this page regularly.

Use of Cookies

"Cookies" are simple text files stored on your computer for use by a browser. Certain website features may only be available through the placement of a cookie. We may use "cookies" to assist in data collection and to track visitor website usage and trends to help us better serve you. All information these cookies collect is anonymous. The use of cookies is a standard practice among internet websites; most internet browsers permit a user to accept, decline or delete cookies. This website works with a first party cookie that collects anonymous traffic data at the website.

Links to other websites

Please be aware that when you click on links that take you to third-party websites, you will be subject to their respective privacy policy. While SYNRG supports the protection of privacy on the internet, SYNRG cannot be responsible for the actions of third parties. We encourage you to read the posted privacy statement whenever interacting with any website.

Anonymity

You may choose to interact with us anonymously or under a pseudonym where lawful and practical. If you do not provide us with the personal information as described above, some or all of the following may happen:

• we may not be able to provide the requested products or services to you, either to the same standard or at all; or
• we may not be able to provide you with information about products and services that you may want; or
• we may be unable to tailor the content of our websites to your preferences, thus, your experience of our websites may not be as enjoyable or useful.

Use and disclosure of personal information

We collect personal information to enable us to provide our products and services. This includes (but is not limited to):

• processing enquiries;
• processing of payments;
• processing of forms;
• for the administrative, marketing (including direct marketing), planning, product or service
• development, quality control, survey and research purposes of SYNRG, its related
• bodies corporate, franchisees, licensees, sales associates or service providers;
• communicating with you (including direct marketing);
• facilitating potential vendors, buyers and investors in connecting with us (lead generation);
• facilitating the public display of property listings on various portals;
• complying with our legal obligations;
• providing financial advice and services;
• assisting with processing applications; assisting with recognition/acknowledgment;
• facilitating with compliance audits and management of our franchises;
• facilitating the application &/or registration for various documents, licenses, names etc as
• required by law;
• maintaining and updating our records of your contact details;
• processing and responding to any complaints; and
• statistical purposes.

To enable us to provide our products and services, we may disclose your personal information to third parties in certain circumstances including (but not limited to):

• where disclosure is required or authorised by law;
• when we use it for the purpose for which it was collected, e.g. as part of an application form for a business name;
• to our related bodies corporate and franchises;
• to franchisees who assist us in operating our business and providing our products and services;
• to suppliers and other third parties with whom we have commercial relationships, for business, marketing and related purposes;
• in circumstances where you would reasonably expect information of that kind being passed to a third party;
• if it is reasonably necessary for enforcement related activities conducted by, or on behalf of, an enforcement
• body (e.g. Police); and
• if you expressly agree to any use or disclosure not covered above.

By accepting this privacy policy, you agree that we may use and disclose your personal information for any of these purposes.

SYNRG may transfer your personal information to overseas countries including but not limited to the United States of America, China and New Zealand in order to perform one or more of our functions or activities. It may also be transferred between any of the countries in which our service providers operate.

The Act requires us to ensure that, before disclosing personal information overseas, reasonable steps are taken to ensure that overseas recipients do not breach the Privacy Act. Whilst we take reasonable steps to ensure this, it is not always possible to ensure that overseas recipients will comply. We do not take any responsibility for the actions of overseas third party recipients of personal information.

By providing us with personal information and thereby agreeing to this privacy policy, you consent to us using and disclosing your personal information off-shore and agree that we may do so. If at any time you wish to withdraw your consent, contact our Privacy Officer. However, we may not be able to provide the products &/or services you have requested in whole or in part or those products &/or services may have to be modified.

Like many other businesses in New Zealand, we may rely on third party suppliers to provide specialized services such as web hosting, cloud computing technology and data storage services. These suppliers may store data on servers located outside New Zealand. It is not practicable to list every country in which such overseas recipients may be located. If personal information is provided to these suppliers in order for them to perform the agreed tasks, we will make every effort to ensure that these suppliers handle the personal information in accordance with the Privacy Act .

We may sell, transfer, or otherwise disclose our database of personal information to an actual or potential successor entity, purchaser, or investor in connection with a corporate merger, consolidation, sale of our assets or substantially all our assets, share sale, investment transaction or other corporate rearrangement.

Our Offices and Franchisor

SYNRG offices are owned and operated by Synergy Realty Group Limited. 

In order to enable us to provide our products and services to you, and to conduct our business generally, we may share some of your personal information with our franchisors such as website market appraisal requests. Likewise, in the course of business we may collect personal information from our franchisors.

We are not responsible for the privacy practices of our franchisors. You should refer to the privacy policy of the relevant franchise entity you are dealing with for information about the management of your personal information.

Direct Marketing

We may send you direct marketing communications and information about our products and services that we consider may be of interest to you. These communications may be sent in various forms, including mail, SMS, fax and email, in accordance with applicable marketing laws. If you indicate a preference for a method of communication, we will endeavor to use that method whenever practical to do so. In addition, at any time you may opt-out of receiving marketing communications from us by contacting us (see the Contacting Us section for more information) or by using opt-out facilities provided in the marketing communications. If you opt-out, we will ensure that your name is removed from our mailing list(s).

Accuracy of personal information

SYNRG will take reasonable steps to ensure that all personal information it collects, uses or discloses is accurate, complete and up-to-date. If you believe your personal information is not accurate, complete or up-to-date, please contact us (see the Contacting Us section for more information).

Security of personal information

Your personal information may be stored in hard copy documents or electronically. SYNRG and its related bodies corporate are committed to keeping your personal information secure and safe.
Some of the ways we do this are:

• Requiring employees and service providers to enter into confidentiality agreements;
• Secure hard copy document storage, e.g. storing hard copy documents in locked filing cabinets;
• Security measures for access to our computer systems;
• Access control for our building after hours;
• Use of password protection;
• Access privileges for our websites and data servers;
• Anti-spam, anti-virus and anti-malware software;
• Secure server room with access limited to authorised personnel.
• We will review and update our security measures from time to time.

In addition, we will review the personal information held by us from time to time, in order to ensure that information which is no longer needed for a purpose for which it was initially collected is destroyed or de-identified.

Access to personal information

You may request access to any personal information we hold about you at any time by contacting us (see the Contacting Us section for more information). Where we hold information that you are entitled to access, we will try to provide you with suitable means of accessing it. We may charge you a fee to cover our administrative and other reasonable costs in providing the information to you and, if so, the fees will be disclosed to you prior to the request being actioned. No charges will apply for simply making a request and for us to make any corrections to your personal information. If we do not agree to provide access to your personal information or to correct your personal information, we will provide written reasons for the refusal and outline the mechanisms available to complain about the refusal (see the Complaints section for more information).

Complaints

If you consider that there has been a breach of the New Zealand Privacy Act 1993 you are entitled to complain to us (see the Contacting Us section for more information).

We will acknowledge receipt of a complaint within 2 business days. We will investigate the complaint and attempt to resolve it within 20 business days after the complaint was received. Where it is anticipated that this timeframe is not achievable, we will contact you to provide an estimate of how long it will take to investigate and respond to the complaint.

If you consider that we have not adequately dealt with a complaint, you may complain to the Office of the New Zealand Information Commissioner on the below details:

Mail:

Te Mana Matapono Matatapu Privacy Commissioner

PO Box 10- 094, The Terrace, Wellington, 6143

Email: enquiries@privacy.org.nz

Phone: 04 474 7590 (Wellington)
Phone: 09 302 8680 (Auckland)

Contacting us

You may contact us by mail, email or telephone as follows:

Mail: SYNRG - PO Box 9 Wanaka 9343

Email: info@synrg.co.nz

Phone: 03 443 0150

Policy Review

This policy will be reviewed as follows:

• At least every two years;
• Following an information security incident;
• Following significant changes to our systems;
• Following changes to government legislation.

The most up-to-date version of  SYNRG's Privacy Policy will be available on our website:

WWW.SYNRG.CO.NZ

September 2014