My privacy

Hillross Financial Services Limited (AFSL No. 232705) is committed to being open about how we use personal information. Hillross Financial Services Limited is a member of the AMP Group of companies. As such, it adheres to AMP’s Privacy Policy Statement which appears below.

AMP PRIVACY POLICY STATEMENT

Your privacy is important to us. This statement outlines AMP’s policy on how we manage the personal information we hold about our customers, shareholders and others. It applies to all organisations in the AMP group of companies in Australia.

AMP’s privacy policy is based on openness

Why does AMP collect personal information?
What kind of personal information do we ask for?
How do we use this information and who may we disclose it to?
Sensitive information is subject to greater restrictions
Management of personal information
You have the right to check what personal information about you is held by us
What if you have a complaint?
How to contact us
AMP in Australia

Privacy : web supplement

Interactive tools
What is a cookie and how does AMP use cookies?
Links to third party websites

It is AMP policy to respect the confidentiality of information and the privacy of individuals. AMP is bound by the National Privacy Principles contained in the Commonwealth Privacy Act.

AMP’s Privacy Policy Statement will be reviewed from time to time to take account of new laws and technology, changes to our operations and practices and to make sure it remains appropriate to the changing environment. Any information we hold will be governed by the most current AMP Privacy Policy Statement.

AMP’s privacy policy is based on openness

We are committed to being open about how we use personal information.

Where our documents ask for personal information, we will generally state the purposes for its use and to whom it may be disclosed.

Why does AMP collect personal information?

Our business is to understand and meet our customers’ needs over their lifetime for a wide range of financial and other services. To do this effectively, we need to collect certain personal information.

Our business units provide many financial products and services under the AMP brand. They include (but are not limited to):

life and general insurance products protecting against risks
investment products to build wealth
superannuation and retirement income products to provide for retirement
banking and other services to provide deposit and credit facilities
financial planning advice and other services to help individuals understand their financial needs and make financial and investment decisions
management of investment assets such as shares, property (including shopping centres), fixed interest and cash.

AMP Limited also maintains records of its shareholders and keeps them informed of AMP’s business activities (including AMP’s range of products and services that are available from time to time). Collecting personal information also allows us to meet legal obligations we might have.

What kind of personal information do we ask for?

Because of the nature of the products and services provided, government regulations and taxation laws, we ask for a range of personal information from our customers and shareholders.

The type of personal information we may collect can include (but is not limited to) name, address, date of birth, contact details, income, assets and liabilities, account balances, tax and financial statements and employment details.

We obtain most of the information directly from our customers through application or other forms, and from maintaining records of information provided in the course of ongoing financial planning advice or customer service. We may also obtain information from other sources.

We may ask for other information voluntarily from time to time (for example, through market research, surveys or special offers) to enable us to improve our service or consider the wider needs of our customers or potential customers.

Some of our insurance plans and other contracts also require us to collect sensitive information. For more details, see the section ‘Sensitive information is subject to greater restrictions’.

If you choose not to provide the information we need to fulfil your request for a specific product or service, we may not be able to provide you with the requested product or service.

How do we use this information and who may we disclose it to?

While we may send you marketing material from time to time that we think will be useful to you, we are conscious of the need to respect your privacy.

Unless you are informed otherwise, the personal information we hold is used for establishing and managing your financial products or services, reviewing your ongoing needs, enhancing customer service and product options and giving you ongoing information or opportunities that we believe may be relevant to your financial needs and other circumstances.

We use the personal information we collect about AMP Limited’s shareholders to fulfil our legal obligations and to keep our shareholders informed of AMP’s progress and the products and services that we provide to our customers.

Depending on the product or service concerned and particular restrictions on sensitive information, this means that personal information may be disclosed to:

other areas within the AMP group who provide financial and other services
financial planners, brokers and those who are authorised by AMP to review customers’ needs and circumstances from time to time
service providers and specialist advisers to AMP who have been contracted to provide AMP with administrative, financial, insurance, research or other services
other insurers, credit providers, courts, tribunals and regulatory authorities as agreed or authorised by law
credit reporting or reference agencies or insurance investigators
anyone authorised by an individual, as specified by that individual or the contract.

Generally, we require that organisations outside the AMP group of companies who handle or obtain personal information as service providers to AMP acknowledge the confidentiality of this information, undertake to respect any individual’s right to privacy and comply with the National Privacy Principles and this policy.

Sensitive information is subject to greater restrictions

Some personal information we hold is ‘sensitive’.

Sensitive information relates to a person’s racial or ethnic origin, membership of political bodies, religions or trade unions, sexual preferences or activities, criminal record, state of health and medical history.

The way we use tax file numbers and information received from a credit reporting agency about an individual is also restricted by law.

Sensitive information is usually needed for applications for death, sickness and disability insurance and to manage claims on those products. It may also be relevant to credit and other applications. It is AMP policy that sensitive information will be used and disclosed only for the purposes for which it was provided, unless the customer agrees otherwise or the use or disclosure of this information is allowed by law. Documents asking for sensitive information will explain this.

Management of personal information

AMP trains its employees and financial planners who handle personal information to respect the confidentiality of customer information and the privacy of individuals. AMP regards breaches of your privacy very seriously and will impose appropriate penalties, including dismissal.

AMP has appointed Privacy Officers to ensure that AMP’s management of personal information is in accordance with this statement and the Privacy Act.

How do we store personal information?

Safeguarding the privacy of your information is important to us, whether you interact with us personally, by phone, mail, over the internet or other electronic medium. We hold personal information in a combination of secure computer storage facilities and paper-based files and other records, and take steps to protect the personal information we hold from misuse, loss, unauthorised access, modification or disclosure.

We may need to maintain records for a significant period of time. However, when we consider information is no longer needed, we will remove any details that will identify you or we will securely destroy the records.

How do we keep personal information accurate and up-to-date?

AMP endeavours to ensure that the personal information it holds is accurate and up-to-date. We realise that this information changes frequently with changes of address and other personal circumstances. We can generally update your customer information over the telephone or via the AMP website.

You have the right to check what personal information about you is held by us

Under the Commonwealth Privacy Act, you have the right to obtain a copy of any personal information which AMP holds about you and to advise AMP of any perceived inaccuracy. The Act does set out some exceptions to this.

To make a request, you will need to complete an application form verifying your identity and specifying what information you require.

We will acknowledge your request within 14 days and respond promptly to it. We may charge a fee to cover the cost of verifying the application and locating, retrieving, reviewing and copying any material requested. If the information sought is extensive, we will advise the likely cost in advance and can help to refine your request if required.

What if you have a complaint?

If you consider that any action of AMP breaches this Privacy Policy Statement or the National Privacy Principles or otherwise doesn’t respect your privacy, you can make a complaint. This will be acted upon promptly.

To make a complaint, please telephone us on 13 12 67.

If you are not satisfied with our response to your complaint, you can telephone the Commonwealth Privacy Commissioner’s hotline on 1300 363 992.

How to contact us if you want to:

make a general enquiry about AMP’s privacy policy

change your personal information

obtain an application form for access to your personal information phone AMP on 13 12 67.

AMP in Australia

AMP provides wealth creation and protection for customers through:

Life and general insurance:

AMP Life Limited
AMP GI Distribution Pty Ltd

Investments:

AMP Capital Investors Ltd
Australian Securities Administration Limited
Hillross Financial Services Limited

Superannuation and retirement income:

AMP Life Limited
AMP Superannuation Limited

Banking:

AMP Bank Limited

Financial planning:

AMP Financial Planning Pty Ltd
Hillross Financial Services Limited

Asset Management:

AMP Capital Investors Ltd
AMP Shopping Centres Pty Ltd

Insurance Runoff Management Services

Cobolt Solutions Australia Limited

Shareholders own shares in AMP Limited, which is the holding company for the above mentioned major operating subsidiaries.

Privacy: Web supplement

This statement outlines some privacy issues specific to the hillross.com.au website.

Interactive tools

The Hillross website provides you with many interactive tools designed to help you make an informed choice with certain financial and other decisions. Some of these tools include budget planners, debt reduction calculators, home loan comparison and superannuation calculators.

Hillross does not collect any of the personal information you enter when using the interactive tools on our website.

What is a cookie and How does Hillross use cookies?

Cookies are small pieces of text stored on your computer. The purpose of this information is to provide you with a more relevant and effective experience on the Hillross website, including presenting web pages according to your needs or preferences.

Hillross may also use independent external service providers to track the traffic and usage on the web site.

Cookies are frequently used on many websites on the internet and you can choose if and how a cookie will be accepted by changing your preferences and options in your browser. You may not be able to access some parts of hillross.com.au if you choose to disable the cookie acceptance in your browser, particularly the secure parts of the website such as My Portfolio. We therefore recommend you enable cookie acceptance to benefit from all the services on the website.

Technology improvements

Hillross is constantly striving to improve functionality on this site through technology changes. This may mean a change to the way in which personal information is collected or used. The impact of any technology changes which may affect your privacy, will be notified in this Supplement at the time of change.

Links to third party websites

The Hillross website has links to external third party websites that may benefit the user.

External websites should contain their own privacy statements and we recommend you review them when using their website.

Please note, however, that third party websites are not covered by AMP’s privacy policy and these sites are not subject to AMP’s privacy standards and procedures.