Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy of SmartLoan HQ

Smartkey Australia Pty Ltd T/as SmartLoan HQ is committed to protecting your privacy and personal information. We respect your right to privacy and we comply with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and all related rules and regulations (“Act”).

This privacy policy explains how we collect, use, disclose and store your personal information, and how you can access and correct it. By using our services, you consent to the collection and use of your personal information as described in this policy.

What personal information do we collect?

Personal information is any information that can identify you or be used to contact you. The types of personal information we may collect from you include:

• Your name, address, phone number, email address, date of birth, driver’s licence number, passport number and other identification details.
• Your financial information, such as your income, assets, liabilities, expenses, credit history, bank account details and payment details.
• Your employment information, such as your employer’s name, address and contact details, your occupation, income and length of service.
• Your preferences and interests, such as the products or services you are interested in or have applied for.
• Any other information you provide to us or we obtain from third parties with your consent or as permitted by law.

We may collect your personal information from various sources, such as:

• When you fill out an application form, enquiry form or other document on our website or through our brokers or agents.
• When you communicate with us by phone, email, SMS, fax or online chat.
• When you use our website or online services, such as cookies and web analytics tools.
• When you participate in our surveys, promotions, competitions or events.
• When you provide feedback or make a complaint to us.
• When we conduct credit checks or verify your identity with credit reporting bodies (“CRBs”) or other third parties.
• When we obtain information from public sources, such as government agencies, business directories or social media platforms.

Why do we collect your personal information?

We collect your personal information for the following purposes:

• To assess your eligibility and suitability for the products or services you have applied for or expressed interest in.
• To provide you with the products or services you have requested or agreed to receive from us or our partners.
• To communicate with you about your account, transactions, products or services.
• To manage and administer your account, products or services, including processing payments, sending statements and notices, and resolving disputes.
• To comply with our legal and regulatory obligations, such as anti-money laundering, counter-terrorism financing, consumer credit protection and personal property securities laws.
• To prevent and detect fraud, crime and other misconduct.
• To monitor and improve the quality and performance of our products, services and website.
• To conduct market research and analysis to understand your needs and preferences and to develop new products and services.
• To provide you with marketing communications and offers about our products, services and promotions that may be of interest to you.
• To deal with any enquiries or complaints you may have.

How do we disclose your personal information?

We may disclose your personal information to third parties for the purposes described above or as required or authorised by law. These third parties may include:

• Our related entities within the SmartLoan HQ group of companies.
• Our brokers, agents, contractors, consultants and service providers who assist us in providing our products and services to you or who perform functions on our behalf, such as credit assessment, identity verification, payment processing, data storage, data analysis, marketing, mailing and printing.
• Our partners who offer products or services that may be of interest to you or who provide funding for our products or services. These partners may include lenders, finance companies 1, insurers 2, vehicle dealers 3, equipment suppliers 4 and rewards program operators 5.
• CRBs who collect and provide credit reporting information about individuals and businesses. We may exchange credit information with CRBs for the purposes of assessing your credit worthiness 4, managing your credit 3, collecting overdue payments 5 and creating assessments and ratings of your credit worthiness 4. The CRBs we deal with are Equifax , Experian and Illion. You can obtain their privacy policies from their websites.
• Other credit providers who may also provide credit to you or who are involved in the same transaction as us. We may share credit information with them for the purposes of assessing your credit worthiness 4, managing your credit 3, collecting overdue payments 5 and creating assessments and ratings of your credit worthiness 4.
• Government agencies , regulators , law enforcement bodies , courts and dispute resolution schemes as required or authorised by law or to protect our rights and interests or those of others.
• Any other person or organisation you have consented to or as permitted by law.

Some of the third parties we disclose your personal information to may be located overseas, such as in New Zealand, Singapore, the United States and the United Kingdom. We will take reasonable steps to ensure that any overseas recipients of your personal information comply with the Act and this privacy policy.

How do we store and secure your personal information?

We store your personal information in various forms, such as in paper, electronic or cloud-based formats. We take reasonable steps to protect your personal information from loss, misuse, interference, unauthorised access, modification or disclosure. These steps include:

• Using encryption, passwords and other security measures to protect our systems and databases.
• Restricting access to our premises and systems to authorised personnel only.
• Training our staff on how to handle personal information securely and confidentially.
• Destroying or de-identifying personal information when it is no longer needed or required by law.

How can you access and correct your personal information?

You have the right to access and correct your personal information held by us. You can request access or correction by contacting us using the details below. We will respond to your request within a reasonable time and in accordance with the Act. We may charge a reasonable fee for providing access to your personal information, but we will not charge for making a correction request or for correcting your information.

We may refuse to provide access or correction if permitted or required by law. If we refuse your request, we will give you written reasons for our decision and how you can complain if you are not satisfied.

How can you opt out of marketing communications?

We may use your personal information to send you marketing communications and offers about our products, services and promotions that may be of interest to you. These communications may be sent by email, SMS, phone, mail or online channels such as social media platforms.

You can opt out of receiving marketing communications from us at any time by:

• Following the unsubscribe instructions in the communication.
• Contacting us using the details below and asking us to stop sending marketing communications to you.

Please note that even if you opt out of receiving marketing communications from us, we may still send you service-related communications, such as account statements, notices and updates.

How do we use cookies and web analytics tools?

When you visit our website or use our online services, we may use cookies and web analytics tools to collect information about your online activity. Cookies are small text files that are stored on your device when you visit a website. Web analytics tools are software applications that measure and analyse how visitors use a website.

The information we collect using cookies and web analytics tools may include:

• Your IP address, device type, browser type, operating system, screen resolution and language settings.
• The pages you visit, the links you click, the time and duration of your visit and the referring website.
• The products or services you view, search for, apply for or purchase on our website.
• The advertisements you see or interact with on our website or other websites.

We use this information to:

• Enhance and personalise your online experience with us.
• Remember your preferences and settings.
• Analyse how our website and online services are performing and how we can improve them.
• Deliver targeted advertising and content to you based on your interests and online behaviour.

You can manage your cookie preferences by changing the settings on your browser. However, some features of our website or online services may not function properly if you disable cookies.

We may also use third-party cookies and web analytics tools from service providers such as Google Analytics , Facebook Pixel and Bing Ads . These service providers may collect, store and use your information in accordance with their own privacy policies . You can opt out of their tracking by visiting their websites or using their opt-out tools .

How do we update this privacy policy?

We may update this privacy policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technologies, legal requirements or other factors. We will post the updated version on our website and indicate the date of revision. We encourage you to review this policy periodically to stay informed about how we handle your personal information.

How can you contact us or make a complaint?

If you have any questions, comments or complaints about this privacy policy or how we handle your personal information, please contact us using the following details:

SmartLoan HQ Address: 4/17 Welby St, Eastwood NSW 2122 

Phone: 0430 224 936 

Email: Eric.chow@smartloanhq.com.au

We will acknowledge your enquiry or complaint within a reasonable time and try to resolve it as quickly as possible.  

If you are not satisfied with our response or how we handled your complaint, you can escalate the matter to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (“OAIC”). The OAIC is an independent body that investigates and resolves complaints about privacy issues. You can contact the OAIC using the following details:

Office of the Australian Information Commissioner Address: GPO Box 5218, Sydney NSW 2001 

Phone: 1300 363 992 

Email: enquiries@oaic.gov.au 

Website: [www.oaic.gov.au]

This privacy policy was last updated on 8 October 2023.