Privacy and Information Handling Policy

Purpose. Sets out how Vantage collects, uses, stores and discloses personal information about owners, tenants, applicants, residents, staff and contractors in line with the Australian Privacy Principles.

1.Purpose and scope

Vantage holds a large amount of personal information: tenancy applications, identity documents, bank details, body corporate rolls, CCTV footage, patrol logs and survey client records. This policy applies to every employee, casual and contractor in every division and to every system and paper file the business keeps.

2.Collection

Staff must collect only the personal information needed for the task, must tell the person why it is being collected and how it will be used, and must collect it directly from the person wherever possible. Tenancy applications must use the approved form and must not ask for information that is unlawful to consider under tenancy or anti-discrimination law.

3.Use and disclosure

Personal information must be used only for the purpose it was collected for. Tenant details must not be given to tradespeople beyond the name, contact number and access arrangement needed for the job. Owner and tenant details must never be disclosed to prospective buyers, other residents or callers who cannot be verified. CCTV footage will be released only to police on a lawful request or to the client under the contract.

• Verify the identity of any caller before discussing an account
• Give contractors only the details needed to do the job
• Do not discuss a tenancy, sale or scheme in public areas
• Release CCTV only under the contract or to police

4.Storage and security

Electronic records must be kept in the approved systems with individual logins. Paper files must be locked away when not in use. Identity documents received with applications must be destroyed once the application is decided unless the tenancy proceeds. Staff must lock screens when away from their desks and must not send personal information to personal email accounts.

5.Access and correction

A person is entitled to ask for access to the personal information Vantage holds about them and to ask for it to be corrected. Requests must be passed to the Office Manager and answered within 30 days. Body corporate records are available to owners under the strata legislation and requests will be handled under that process.

6.Breaches

A suspected privacy breach, such as a misdirected email, a lost file or unauthorised access, must be reported to the General Manager the same day and logged in the incident register. The General Manager will assess whether the breach is likely to result in serious harm and whether notification to the affected people and the regulator is required.