Privacy Notice

On the conclusion of your retainer we will archive your file.  We will store it for six years in accordance with current Solicitors Regulation Authority’s rules.  After that, it will be destroyed.

Our Privacy Notice

Version November 2022

Please read the following information carefully. This privacy notice contains information about what data we collect and store about you and why. It also tells you who we share this information with, the security mechanisms we have put in place to protect your data and how to contact us if you have a complaint.

 

Who we are?

Austins Solicitors collects, uses and is responsible for personal information about you. When we do this, we are the ‘controller’ of this information for the purposes of the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and other applicable data protection laws.

 

Our Data Protection OfficerSarah Austin

 

Our contact details:

Name: Sarah Austin

Address: Building 3, Chiswick Park, 566 Chiswick High Road, London W4 5YA

Phone Number: 0800 3777716

E-mail: sja@austinsandco.co.uk

 

What do we do with your information?

Information collected by us

When carrying out your instructions with regard to conveyancing, probate, trusts and wills,  we collect the following personal information that you provide to us:

  • Name, address,
  • source of funds,
  • personal assets and liabilities
  • bank details and
  • proof of ID and usual residential address
 
How we use your personal information

We use your personal information for the following purposes:

In relation to our retainer with you for example

  • Complete HM Land Registry application
  • Stamp Duty Land Tax return
  • Grant of Probate application

 

Whether information has to be provided by you, and why?

This personal information (proof of identity and address) must be provided by you to us, to enable us to undertake anti-money laundering procedures. So we can comply with all regulatory  and mandatory requirements. When we collect information from you, we will inform you whether you are required to provide this information to us.

 

Legal reasons we collect and use your personal information

We rely on legitimate interests as the legal basis for processing your information. As exampled above.

 

Who will we share your personal information with?

We have relationships with a number of third parties that we routinely share  For example HMRC, HMLR, property search agencies Probate Registry). This data sharing enables us to carry out  our retainer.

We will share personal information with law enforcement agencies if required by applicable law.

We will not share your personal information with any other third parties without your consent.

 

Transfer of your information to countries within the European Economic Area (EEA)

It may be necessary to transfer your personal information to countries within the EEA. These countries are subject to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which provides effectively identical data protection as the UK GDPR. We do not currently transfer any of our clients’ data to third parties outside the UK.

Transfer of your information to countries that are outside the EEA

It may be necessary to transfer your personal information to countries that are outside of the EEA or to an international organisation in order to (We do not currently transfer any of our clients’ data to third parties outside the UK).

These countries have been deemed by the European Commission to offer adequate protection of personal data. Any transfer will be subject to the international data transfer agreement or the international data transfer addendum to the European Commission’s standard contractual clauses for international data transfer as permitted under section 119A of the DPA 2018. These safeguards are designed to protect your privacy rights and provide you with remedies in the unlikely event that your personal information is misused.

If you would like any further information, please contact us or our Data Protection Officer.

 

Where will we store your personal data and how long for?

The information is securely stored electronically and on our paper files.

We keep your personal ID and address information centrally, for a year. After which it is destroyed. Any personal information retained on your physical file is retained for  six years after the completing of our retainer. We will then securely dispose of your information by destruction.

 

Consent

We are relying on your explicit consent to (insert processing that relies on consent). You provided this consent when the retainer commenced.

You have the right to withdraw this consent at any time, but this will not affect the lawfulness of any processing activity we have carried out prior to you withdrawing your consent.

 

Your data protection rights

Under the UK GDPR, you have a number of important rights that you can exercise free of charge. In summary, these rights are:

 

  • Transparency over how we use your personal data and fair processing of your information;
  • Access to your personal information and other supplementary information;
  • Rectification – require us to correct any mistakes or complete missing information we hold on you;
  • Erasure – require us to erase your personal information in certain circumstances;
  • Receive a copy of the personal information you have provided to us or have this information be sent to a third party, this will be provided to you or the third party in a structured, commonly used and machine readable format;
  • Object at any time to processing of your personal information for direct marketing;
  • Object in certain other situations to the continued processing of your personal information;
  • Restriction – Restrict our processing of your personal information in certain circumstances;
  • Data portability – ask that we transfer the information you gave us to another organisation, or to you, in certain circumstances.
  • Request not to be subject to automated decision making which produce legal effects that concern you or affect you in a significantly similar way.

 

If you want more information about your rights under the UK GDPR, please see the Guidance from the Information Commissioners Office on Individual’s rights under the UK GDPR.

If you want to exercise any of these rights, please contact Sarah Austin the Principal Solicitor.

 

How to make a complaint

The UK GDPR also gives you the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office. Their contact details are:

Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire SK9 5AF

Helpline number: 0303 123 1113

 
Our security

Our electronic and physical files are held securely at our office and in an offsite facility.

 

Future processing

We do not intend to process your personal information for any reason other than stated within this privacy notice. If this changes, we will inform you by email and/or letter.

 

Changes to this privacy notice

This privacy was published in November 2022 and last updated on 29 March 2023.

We constantly review our internal privacy practices and may change this policy from time to time. When we do, we will inform you by (insert notice mechanism).

 

Get in touch

If you have any questions about this privacy notice or the information we hold about you, please contact Sarah Austin at our office address, by email or telephone.

 

Alternative formats

If it would be helpful to have this notice provided in another format (for example: in another language, audio, braille), larger print, please contact us (see ‘Get in touch’ above).

Austins Solicitors Limited is Authorised and Regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority SRA No: 404976.

Registered office: 3 Chiswick Business Park, 566 Chiswick High Road, Chiswick, London W4 5YA

VAT no: GB 843 258 226

Our regulatory body: www.sra.org.uk