1 ABOUT THIS POLICY
1.1 This policy provides an overview of how we will process any personal information we collect about you and how we will comply with data protection legislation and protect the rights of the individuals we deal with.
1.2 We
are required under data protection legislation to notify you of the information
contained in this privacy notice. It is important that you read this privacy
notice so that you are aware of how and why we are using such information.
1.3 We review this code and our other data protection policies annually to make sure they are appropriate and up to date. Changes we make to this Privacy Policy will be posted on our website. Any changes will take effect 7 days after the date on which we post the modified terms on the website. Your continued use of our website after that period expires means that you agree to be bound by the modified policy.
2 WHO WE ARE AND WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR PERSONAL DATA
2.1 Business Enterprise Fund (BEF) is a Social Enterprise which provides loans to support businesses across Yorkshire and the North East. See our website for further details.
2.2 BEF is a Group of companies made up of Business & Enterprise Finance Ltd; Business & Enterprise Finance (NE) Ltd; Goole Development Trust Ltd (GDT); BEF BSC Ltd; and BEF-NPIF GP Ltd as General Partner of the NPIF YHTV Microfinance LP.
2.3 This Privacy Notice applies to and is common to all the Group companies.
2.4 The companies in the BEF Group are ‘Joint (Data) Controllers’ which means they are together, jointly responsible for deciding and determining how they hold and use personal information about you.
2.5 We take our privacy obligations very seriously and will make sure that your information is held and used by us safely and securely.
2.6 We have appointed a data protection officer to oversee compliance with this privacy notice. If you have any questions about this privacy notice or how we handle your personal information please contact the Group Data Protection Officer at:
Email Address: [email protected]
Postal Address: Business Enterprise Fund, The City Hub, 9 - 11 Peckover Street, Bradford BD1 5BD
3 WHAT IS THE LAWFUL BASIS FOR PROCESSING YOUR INFORMATION
We will only use your personal information when the law allows us to. Most commonly, we will use your personal information in the following circumstances:
1. Where we need to perform the contract we have entered into with you.
2. Where we need to comply with a legal obligation.
3. Where it is necessary for our legitimate interests (or those of a third party) and your interests and fundamental rights do not override those interests.
The primary purpose for processing your information is to decide whether to offer you a loan and allow us to perform our contract with you. If you fail to provide certain information when requested, we may not be able to perform the contract we have entered into with you or we may be prevented from complying with our legal obligations
4 DATA PROTECTION PRINCIPLES
4.1 We will comply with data protection law. This says that the personal information we hold about you must be:
5 WHAT INFORMATION WE COLLECT ABOUT YOU
5.1 When you submit an application or enquiry form for a loan through BEF the process will require us to collect personal data about you and your business.
5.2 If you are not the person submitting the application but are included within it because you are a business partner or a joint director or you may be acting as a Guarantor, then your personal data will also be collected.
5.3 If you are a trusted finance partner, a broker or other intermediary sourcing finance for clients we will collect your personal and business details as part of our on-going relationship with you.
5.4 If you are a tenant or contemplating becoming a tenant of one of our managed service offices we will collect your personal details as part of our administration of your licence agreement. Your details will not be shared with anyone else outside our organisation.
Personal data, or personal information, means any information about an individual from which that person can be identified. An individual includes a limited company. It does not include data where the identity has been removed (anonymous data).
5.5 We may collect and process the following types of data about you (“your information”):
Personal data you submit online via our website when you apply for a loan or register an interest with us, or when you enter into any other agreement or business arrangement with part of our Group.
Any correspondence and supporting information you send to us which might include Confidential information, for example: business plans and financial statements, proofs of ID and CVs;
Copies of any agreements you enter into with us
Anonymous details of your visits to our website and the resources that you access, which may include, amongst other things; traffic data and communication data. Some of this information is recorded and processed using a cookie file which is stored on your device. (For further information follow the link to our Cookie Policy).
We may collect and process Sensitive Information about your mental or general health and medical details; your ethnicity; religious beliefs, sexual orientation or other sensitive personal information.
We will only use information you provide relating to ethnicity and disabilities for monitoring and providing reports to our ultimate funders and for equal opportunities purposes.
When you make an application with us we will search at Credit Reference Agencies such as Experian, Graydon and Call Credit for information on your business accounts and on you personally for matters relating to your credit histories. These searches may reveal the following relationships - joint account(s) and/or those that are financially linked to other individuals, but we do not search individuals who are not party to the application and your consent will be obtained before conducting a credit reference check.
When you submit an application through BEF for a loan from the Start Up Loans scheme, we will check the Start Up Loans own records for information on any existing Start Up Loan that you may have, the status of that loan and the information you provided at the time of that application; and if you have one, your financial associates’ Start Up Loan, its status, and the information provided by them at the time of that application.
We may also collect your information from third parties, including our trusted finance partners.
6 HOW WE USE YOUR INFORMATION
6.1 We will use the information we receive in the following ways:
In the case of borrowers, to help us assess your ability to repay the loan you are seeking in conjunction with your business; to process your loan application and if successful to manage and administer your loan facility.
We may use scoring methods to assess your application and to verify your identity.
In the case of trusted financial partners facilitate and manage your involvement with us and any transactions you are connected with through your relationship with us.
To ensure that our website’s content is presented as effectively as possible for you and to enable you to participate in interactive features of our website, when you choose to do so.
For our internal purposes, such as research and analysis, monitoring and financial reporting, economic and social impact reporting, quality control, website performance, system administration and to evaluate use of our website, so that we can provide you with enhanced services.
To notify you about changes to our products and services and to help us improve our products and services to allow you to have a better experience.
To market and advertise our services to you and others, to create reports to assist with future marketing and provide you with information, products or services that you request from us, or which we feel may interest you. We will obtain your consent to do this.
We may use your information in case studies that we produce which will then be used for advertising and marketing purposes. We will obtain your consent to do this.
For complaint handling purposes.
To carry out our obligations arising from any contracts with you or under the law.
And to carry out any obligations we have from our agreements with various funding partners, for example to provide information to enable them to evaluate the effectiveness of the finance provided to you and your business and to report on outcomes.
6.2 We will use the information we receive from credit reference agencies to:-
Assess your application for credit and check details on applications for credit and credit related or other facilities;
Verify your identity and, the identity of your business partner(s) or other directors/partners but only if they are a party to your application;
Undertake checks for the prevention and detection of crime, fraud and/or money laundering;
We may make periodic searches of our own group records and at Credit Reference Agencies to manage your account, including whether to make credit available or to continue or extend existing credit. We may also check at fraud prevention agencies to prevent crime and money
laundering.
Undertake periodic statistical analysis or testing to ensure the accuracy of existing and future products and services.
For further information follow the link to: Credit Reference Agency Information Notice (CRAIN)
7 WHO WE WILL SHARE YOUR INFORMATION WITH
We will share your information with between our group of companies and with our trusted finance partners so that they can consider your eligibility for support, progress your loan application or manage your loan facility, as well as for research and monitoring purposes.
ANY PARTNERS WE SHARE YOUR INFORMATION WITH WILL HAVE AN OBLIGATION TO KEEP YOUR DATA SECURE.
A trusted Finance Partner may be any organisations or individual associated with the provision of the funding requested and or that BEF Group considers relevant to a legitimate purpose or interest identified with the funding. For Example: it may be the organisation that provides successful loan recipients with the loan proceeds and appears as the lender of record on the Loan Agreement; it may be the Start Up Loans Company or an organisation that is contracted by the Start Up Loans Company; it may be a state owned body or governmental department including European Funders; it may be a trusted broker or any other financial services provider, bank or loan fund who we work with in connection with the finance, delivery or ongoing support and management of your loan finance. Our trusted Finance Partners have an obligation to keep your data secure.
We will share details of the performance of your loan account and how you manage it with credit reference agencies. If you borrow money and do not repay in time and in full, the credit reference agencies may be advised and this may affect your ability to secure further credit elsewhere. If you do not repay your loan in time and in full we may share your details with trace agents in order to locate you or with an external debt collection agent who is authorised to act on our behalf.
We will also share your information with selected third parties for the purposes of enabling them to provide data analysis, IT customer support, storage and other services to us.
We may also share your information with third parties for the purposes of producing research reports or studies to help evaluate the impact of the finance provided to you and your business activities.
We will not routinely transfer your information to, or store it, outside the European Economic Area (“EEA”). If we do wish to transfer your personal data outside the EEA to countries which do not have as developed data protection laws, we will ensure that it is adequately protected in accordance with Principle 8 of the DPA.
8 HOW WE WILL SAFEGUARD YOUR INFORMATION AND HOW LONG WE KEEP IT FOR
8.1 he following ‘Retention Periods’ are applicable for all loan applicants:
Successful loan applicant details: your information will be kept for a maximum period of 10 years after you have fulfilled all loan payment obligations.
Unsuccessful loan applicant details: if your application is unsuccessful we may need to keep your information for a period of 10 years to meet our monitoring obligations.
8.2 We will keep that information secure, and use it only for specific legitimate purposes. We will keep information about you that is necessary for BEF to provide you with a service or product you have requested or that we are contractually obliged to retain by our fund providers.
8.3 We will keep personal information secure by taking appropriate technical and staff measures to protect it against the unauthorised or unlawful processing and against accidental loss, destruction or damage.
9 YOUR RIGHTS UNDER DATA PROTECTION LEGISLATION
Right of Access
You may at any time request to see a copy of the information we hold about you so that you are aware of and can verify the lawfulness of the processing. Before we agree to this, you must provide us with sufficient evidence of your identity and sufficient details of the information you wish to see to enable us to locate it.
Right to Rectification
You have the right to request that any errors in information we hold about you are corrected, and to change or correct any details you have already given us. Please inform us about changes to your details so that we can keep our records accurate and up to date.
Right to Erasure (Right to be Forgotten) or to Restrict Processing
In certain circumstances you have the right to request that your personal data is erased or that processing is blocked or restricted. This may be where we may have processed the personal data unlawfully, or it is no longer necessary for us to use it for the purpose it was originally collected, or you have withdrawn your consent for or object to its use in relation to Marketing activity, or you may be questioning the accuracy of your personal data.
Right to Object
You have the right to object to your personal data being processed for direct marketing purposes.
Rights Related to Automated Decision Making
Where the decision to provide you with a loan is made via our online system you may contact us to ask for an explanation or to express a point of view about the processing of your data.
9.1 You can make your request regarding any of the above Rights either orally or in writing to the Group Data Protection Officer and we will try in all cases to respond within one month of receiving the request.
9.2 We may need to request specific information from you to help us confirm your identity and ensure your right to access the information (or to exercise any of your other rights).
9.3 You will not have to pay a fee to access your personal information (or to exercise any of the other rights). However, we may charge a reasonable fee if your request for access is clearly unfounded or excessive. Alternatively, we may refuse to comply with the request in such circumstances.
