PRIVACY POLICY
Introduction
HQ Real Estate Services Inc. (the “Company”) provides real estate brokerage services, including connecting Users to individual real estate brokers affiliated with the Company (“Brokers”) and communicating with individuals about properties that may be of interest to them (the “Services”).
This privacy policy has been compiled to serve those who are concerned with how their ‘Personal Information’ is being used online.
The Company respects the privacy of individuals, and strives to collect, use and disclose Personal Information in a manner consistent with all applicable laws. The Company is committed to safeguarding the privacy of Personal Information that it collects, uses or discloses in the course of providing the Services and will not sell Personal Information.
This privacy policy is developed in compliance with British Columbia’s Personal Information Protection Act, which sets out rules for how the Company can collect, use and disclose your Personal Information.
Please read our privacy policy carefully to get a clear understanding of how we collect, use, protect or otherwise handle your Personal Information in accordance with our website.
Application of Policy
This privacy policy establishes the Company’s obligations and expectations for the use, collection and disclosure of Personal Information of visitors to the Company’s website and individuals who otherwise contact the Company or individuals who otherwise make use of the Services (collectively, the “User”, “Users” or “you” as applicable)—whether oral, electronic or written.
This privacy policy does not apply to the Personal Information of the Company’s employees.
What is Personal Information?
In this privacy policy, “Personal Information” is information that can be used on its own or with other information to identify, contact, or locate an individual, or to identify an individual in context, but does not include business contact information which enables an individual at a place of business to be contacted.
Information that is organized in the aggregate and/or which does not reasonably identify the individual to whom it pertains is not Personal Information.
What personal information do we collect from the people that visit our website?
The types of Personal Information that the Company may collect include, but are not limited to, the following:
- name, email address, cell phone number, physical address;
- information related to the use of the Company’s website, including IP address, browser type, the referring domain, pages visited, and search history; and
- information relating to the User’s interactions with the Company, including records of correspondence, internal notes or memoranda, financial records, business records.
When do we collect information?
We collect information from you when you contact us (through our site or otherwise), use our site or fill out a form on our site.
The Company normally collects Personal Information directly from the User but may collect User’s Personal Information from third parties as authorized by law.
How do we use your information?
Except as otherwise provided by law, the Company shall collect, use or disclose Personal Information only as reasonably required for the purposes of providing the Services (the “Purposes”).
- The Purposes include, but are not limited to:
providing Personal Information to Brokers to provide the Services;
improving the delivery of the Services, including providing customer support; - monitoring the use of the Company’s website, for creating, improving or editing the Company’s website content, and to protect the security and integrity of the Company’s website;
- subject to applicable legislation, to allow the Company to market and advertise the Services to Users;
- subject to applicable legislation, to provide Users with information which may be of interest with respect real estate properties and services offered by third parties through the Company or advertised on the Company’s website, and to facilitate a User’s registration for, purchase of, or interest in the same, as applicable;
- enforcing the User’s compliance with all applicable terms of use and all applicable laws, including investigating any complaints or claims related thereto or assisting law enforcement or any authority with jurisdiction in any investigation;
- providing Users with notifications relating to the Services, including updates about changes to, and features of, the Services, important news which may impact a User’s use of the Services, and as may be required by law; and
- Complying with the Company’s legal obligations, business requirements, and regulatory compliance and for auditing purposes.
If the Company wishes to use or disclose Personal Information for any purpose other than the Purposes, the Company will obtain the consent of the User, as required under applicable laws and regulations.
Disclosure of Personal Information
The Company may disclose Personal Information to Brokers or other third parties for legitimate business purposes or for the Purposes and will obtain assurances from such Brokers or third parties that they will safeguard Personal Information in a manner consistent with this privacy policy.
Consent
By visiting the Company’s website, or by voluntarily providing Personal Information to the Company, as applicable, you are deemed to have given your consent to the collection, use and disclosure of your Personal Information in accordance with this privacy policy. You may consent orally, in writing or electronically and such consent may be implied or express.
You may withdraw your consent in writing to the use and disclosure of your own Personal Information at any time unless the Personal Information is necessary for the Company to fulfill its legal obligations.
If you withdraw consent to the use and disclosure of Personal Information, it may compromise the Company’s ability to provide you with the Company’s Services.
Do we use ‘cookies’?
Yes. Cookies are small files that a site or its service provider transfers to your computer’s hard drive through your Web browser (if you allow that) that enable the site’s or service provider’s systems to recognize your browser and capture and remember certain information. For instance, we use cookies to help us remember if you’ve been to our site before, so we can show you different information on your next visit. We also use cookies to help us compile aggregate data about site traffic and site interaction so that we can offer better site experiences and tools in the future.
You can choose to have your computer warn you each time a cookie is being sent, or you can choose to turn off all cookies. You do this through your browser (like Google Chrome) settings. Each browser is a little different, so look at your browser’s Help menu to learn the correct way to modify your cookies.
If you turn cookies off, some features will be disabled, but it won’t affect your user experience or make your site experience less efficient.
Third-party disclosure
Except as set out in this privacy policy, we do not sell, trade, or otherwise transfer to outside parties your Personal Information unless we provide you with advance notice. This does not include website hosting partners and other parties who assist us in operating our website, conducting our business, or servicing you, so long as those parties agree to keep this information confidential. We may also release your information when we believe release is appropriate to comply with the law, enforce our site policies, or protect ours or others’ rights, property, or safety.
However, information that is not Personal Information may be provided to other parties for marketing, advertising or other uses.
Third-party links
We do not include or offer third-party products or services on our website.
How does our site handle do not track signals?
We do not honor do not track signals and do not track, plant cookies, or use advertising when a Do Not Track (DNT) browser mechanism is in place.
How do we protect Personal Information?
The Company will take reasonable precautions, including technical, administrative and physical measures to protect Personal Information from loss, misuse and unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration or destruction. Records containing Personal Information are considered Company property and will afforded confidential treatment at all times, regardless of whether these records are in electronic or paper form.
The Company uses appropriate security measures when destroying Personal Information, including shredding paper records and permanently deleting electronic records.
Accuracy of Personal Information
The Company will employ reasonable efforts to keep Personal Information relevant to its intended use, accurate, complete and current. The Company relies on Users to notify it if there is a change to their Personal Information.
The Company will take reasonable steps to permit Users to correct, amend or delete Personal Information that is demonstrated to be inaccurate or incomplete. These requests may be made by contacting the Company’s privacy officer at the information set out in the “Contact Us” section below.
In the event Personal Information is corrected, the Company will as soon as reasonably possible send applicable corrections to each organization the Personal Information was disclosed to during the year before the Personal Information was corrected. In the event Personal Information is not corrected, the Company will note the requested correction where applicable.
Access to Personal Information
Users have a right to access their own Personal Information that is in the custody or under the control of the Company, subject to exceptions provided for in applicable privacy laws. In the event an access request is refused, the User will be advised in writing of the reasons for the refusal and other applicable information.
Users also have a right to ask the Company to provide them with information about the ways in which their own Personal Information has or is being used, as well as with the names of the individuals and organizations to which an employee’s Personal Information has been disclosed.
Any requests for access or information about how Personal Information has been used and to whom it has been disclosed must be made in writing and should be directed to the Company’s privacy officer at the address set out in the “Contact Us” section below. The Company may charge Users a minimal fee with respect to access or information requests.
Retention and Destruction of Personal Information
Subject to the terms of this privacy policy, Personal Information is only retained as long as is reasonable to fulfill the purpose for which it was collected or for legal or business purposes (such as backup, archival, or audit purposes, or to improve the Services) or as otherwise required under applicable law.
Personal Information which is used to make a decision that directly affects the User to whom it pertains will be retained for at least one year after the date of that decision.
CASL
CASL is a law that sets the rules for commercial email, establishes requirements for commercial messages, gives recipients the right to have emails stopped from being sent to them, and spells out tough penalties for violations.
We collect your email address in order to:
• Send information, respond to inquiries, and/or other requests or questions
• Market to our mailing list, or continue to send emails to our clients after the original transaction has occurred
To be in accordance with CASL we agree to the following:
- We will ensure we have a form of valid consent to send emails
- We will clearly identify ourselves and our organization
- We will not use false or misleading sender information, subject matter information, URLs or metadata
- We will include our phone number or email address in the email
- We will include the physical address of our business or site headquarters
- We will monitor third-party email marketing services for compliance, if one is used
- We will allow users to unsubscribe by using the link at the bottom of each email, and honour opt-out/unsubscribe requests quickly
- We will ensure the unsubscribe mechanism is functional for 60 days
If at any time you would like to unsubscribe from receiving future emails, you can follow the instructions at the bottom of each email, and we will promptly remove you from ALL correspondence.
Contacting Us
If there are any questions regarding this privacy policy, you may contact us using the information below.
HQ Real Estate Services Inc.
1330 Granville Street
Vancouver, BC V6Z 1M7
Canada
admin@hqcommercial.ca
If a User is not satisfied with the response of the Company, the User may have a right to complain to the applicable privacy commissioner. In British Columbia, complaints may be directed to the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner for British Columbia.
Changes to This Privacy Policy
This privacy policy may be amended from time to time, consistent with the requirements of applicable law. Appropriate notice will be given concerning any such amendment.
Last edited on 2019-09-10