Introduction

Jacksons Est Ltd needs to gather and use certain information about individuals. These can include customers, suppliers, business contacts, employees and other people the organisation has a relationship with or may need to contact. This policy describes how this personal data must be collected, handled and stored to meet the company’s data protection standards – and to comply with the law.

Why this policy exists

This data protection policy ensures Jacksons Est Ltd

Protects itself from the risks of a data breach

Complies with data protection law and follow good practice

Protects the rights of staff, clients, customers and partners

Is open about how it stores and processes individuals data

Data Protection Law

The Data Protection Act 1998 describes how organisations including Jacksons Est Ltd must collect, handle and store personal information.

These rules apply regardless of whether data is stored electronically, on paper or on other materials. To comply with the law, personal information must be collected and used fairly, stored safely and not disclosed unlawfully.

The Data Protection Act is underpinned by eight important principles. These state that personal data must:

1. Be processed fairly and lawfully
2. Be obtained only for specific, lawful purposes
3. Be adequate, relevant and not excessive
4. Be accurate and kept up to date
5. Not be held for any longer than necessary
6. Processed in accordance with the rights of data subjects
7. Be protected in appropriate ways
8. Not be transferred outside the European Economic Area (EEA), unless that country or territory also ensures an adequate level of protection.

People, risks and responsibilities

This policy applies to:

• Jacksons Est Ltd
• All staff
• All associates
• All volunteers
• All contractors, suppliers and other people working on behalf of Jacksons Est Ltd

It applies to all data that the company holds relating to identifiable individuals, even if that information technically falls outside of the Data Protection Act 1998. This can include:

• Names of individuals
• Postal addresses
• Email addresses
• Telephone numbers
• Holiday movements
• Personal circumstances
• Relationship status
• Sexual orientation
• Religious beliefs
• Plus any other information relating to individuals

Data protection risks

This policy helps to protect Jacksons Est Ltd from some very real data security risks including:

Breaches of confidentiality. For instance, information being given out inappropriately.

Failing to offer choice. For instance, all individuals should be free to choose how the company uses data relating to them.

Reputational damage. For instance, the company could suffer if hackers successfully gained access to sensitive data.

Responsibilities

Everyone who works for or with Jacksons Est Ltd has some responsibility for ensuring data is collected, stored and handled appropriately.

Each team that handles personal data must ensure that it is handled and processed in line with this policy and data protection principles.

However, these people have key areas of responsibility:

The board of directors is ultimately responsible for ensuring that Jacksons Est Ltd meets its legal obligations.

The data protection officer, Carl Jackson is responsible for:

• Keeping the board updated about the data protection responsibilities, risks and issues.
• Reviewing all data protection procedures and related policies, in line with an agreed schedule.
• Arranging data protection training and advice for the people covered by this policy.
• Handling data protection questions from staff and anyone else covered by this policy.
• Dealing with requests from individuals to see the data Jacksons Est Ltd holds about them (also called subject access requests).
• Checking and approving any contracts or agreements with third parties that may handle the company’s sensitive data.
• Approving any data protection statements attached to communications such as emails and letters.
• Addressing any data protection queries from journalists or media outlets like newspapers.
• Where necessary, working with other staff to ensure marketing initiatives abide by data protection principles.

Carl Jackson is also responsible for:

• Ensuring all systems, services and equipment used for storing data meet acceptable security standards.
• Performing regular checks and scans to ensure security hardware and software is functioning properly.
• Evaluating any third party services the company is considering using to store or process data. For instance, cloud computing services.

General staff guidelines

• The only people able to access data covered by this policy should be those who need it for their work.
• Data should not be shared informally. When access to confidential information is required, employees and associates can request it from their line managers.
• Jacksons Est Ltd will provide training to all employees and associates to help them understand their responsibilities when handling data.
• Employees and associates should keep all data secure, by taking sensible precautions and following the guidelines below.
• In particular, strong passwords must be used and they should never be shared.
• Personal data should not be disclosed to unauthorised people, either within the company or externally.
• Data should be regularly reviewed and updated if it is found to be out of date. If no longer required, it should be archived and disposed of.
• Employees and associates should request help from their line managers or the data protection officers if they are unsure about any aspect of data protection.

Data storage

These rules describe how and where data should be safely stored. Questions about storing data safely can be directed to the IT manager or data controller. These guidelines also apply to data that is usually stored electronically but has been printed out for some reason.

• When data is stored on paper, it should be kept in a secure place where unauthorised people cannot see it.
• When not required, the paper or files should be kept in a locked drawer or filing cabinet.
• Employees or associates should make sure paper and printouts are not left where unauthorised people could see them, like on a printer.
• Data printouts should be shredded and disposed of securely when no longer required.
• When data is stored electronically, it must be protected from unauthorised access, accidental deletion and malicious hacking attempts:
• Data should be protected by strong passwords that are changed regularly and never shared between employees or associates.
• If data is stored on removable media (like a CD, DVD or USB file sharing device), these should be kept locked away securely when not being used.
• Data should only be stored on designated drives and servers, and should only be uploaded to an approved cloud computing services.
• Servers containing personal data should be sited in a secure location, away from general office space.
• Data should be backed up frequently. Those backups should be tested regularly, in line with the company’s standard back up procedures.
• Where possible, data should never be saved directly to laptops or other mobile devices like tablets or smart phones.
• All servers and computers containing data should be protected by approved security software and a firewall.

Data use

• Personal data is of no value to Jacksons Est Ltd unless the business can make use of it. However, it is when personal data is accessed and used that it can be at the greatest risk of loss, corruption or theft:
• When working with personal data, employees and associates should ensure the screens of their computers are always locked when left unattended.
• Personal data should not be shared informally. In particular, it should never be sent via personal email, as this form of communication is not secure.
• Data must be encrypted before being transferred electronically. The IT manager can explain how to send data to authorised external contacts.
• Personal data should never be transferred outside of the European Economic Area.
• Employees and associates should not save personal data to their own computers. Always access and update the central copy of any data.

Data accuracy

• The law requires Jacksons Est Ltd to take reasonable steps to ensure data is kept accurate and up to date.
• The more important it is that the personal data is accurate, the greater the effort Jacksons Est Ltd should put into ensuring its accuracy.
• It is the responsibility of all employees and associates who work with data to take reasonable steps to ensure it is kept as accurate and up to date as possible.
• Data will be held in as few places as necessary. Staff should not create any unnecessary additional data sets.
• Staff should take every opportunity to ensure data is updated. For instance, by confirming a customer’s details when they call.
• Jacksons Est Ltd will make it easy for data subjects to update the information Jacksons Est Ltd holds about them. For instance, via a simple email to the associate they are dealing with or anyone on the team.
• Data should be updated as inaccuracies are discovered. For instance, if a customer can no longer be reached on their stored telephone number, it should be removed from the database.
• It is the data protection manager’s responsibility to ensure marketing databases are checked against industry suppression files every six months.

Subject access requests

• All individuals who are the subject of personal data held by Jacksons Est Ltd are entitled to:

Ask what information the company holds about them and why.

Ask how to gain access to it.

Be informed how to keep it up to date.

Be informed how the company is meeting its data protection obligations.

If an individual contacts the company requesting information, this is called a subject access request.

Subject access requests from individuals should be made by email, addressed to the data controller at carl.jackson@thepropertyexperts.co.uk. The data controller can supply a standard request form, although individuals do not have to use this. 

Individuals will be charged £10 per subject access request. The data controller will aim to provide the relevant data within 14 days.

The data controller will always verify the identity of anyone making a subject access request before handing over any information.

Disclosing data for other reasons

In certain circumstances, the Data Protection Act allows personal data to be disclosed to law enforcements agencies without the consent of the data subject.

Under these circumstances, Jacksons Est Ltd will disclose requested data. However, the data controller will ensure the request is legitimate, seeking assistance from the board and from the company’s legal advisers where necessary.

Providing information

Jacksons Est Ltd aims to ensure that individuals are aware that their data is being processed, and that they understand:

• How the data is being used
• How to exercise their rights

Examples of good and bad practice

Open copying parties into an email revealing their contact information. Where necessary blind copy parties into an email and remove all contact information from an email chain when communicating to more than one party.

Giving the sellers contact information to a contractor such as a surveyor without their prior permission.

Inadvertently revealing a home owners diary and movements to a potential purchaser or another party. i.e. you can’t say that the sellers are on holiday for a week.

Revealing that a home owner has had a valuation appointment. A seller has the right to privacy and we should not disclose this to anyone until we have received instructions to do so.

Where necessary all correspondence and communications with clients and customers should be stored on the cloud computing software solution Rex.

There is a clear desk policy. When not in the office all files and paperwork should be stored away securely and safely.

Applicants should be registered to Rex in an accurate fashion. A client receiving property details from offices where they haven’t registered implies that their personal details have been shared across multiple offices.

Applicants should only be registered on Rex if they have contact us for the purpose of an MA or expressed an interest in a property we have for sale. We are also required to capture the information of individuals who are involved in a chain with Jacksons Est Ltd.