Milford Group Privacy Policy

Milford Asset Management Limited and its related entities are bound by and adhere to the New Zealand Privacy Act 2020 for personal information to which that Act relates and Milford Asset Management Limited and Milford Australia Pty Ltd are bound by and adhere to the Australian Privacy Act 1988 for personal information to which that Act relates (each, the Privacy Act). Each Privacy Act provides a set of Privacy Principles which govern how we collect, use, hold and disclose your personal information.

This Privacy Policy explains:

• the kinds of personal information that we collect and hold
• how we collect and hold personal information
• the purpose for collecting, holding, using and disclosing personal information
• how you can seek access to, and correction of, that information, and
• how you can make a complaint relating to our handling of that information.

We can change this Privacy Policy from time to time. The latest version of this Privacy Policy will always be available on our website, application, and client portal (each, a platform). It’s up to you to check for any changes. By continuing to use the platform you are considered to have accepted any updated policy. The updated version will apply from the date stated at the end of this Privacy Policy.

What information we collect?
What personal information we collect and hold may depend on the reason that we collect your personal information (including what products or services you require). This information can include:

• contact data such as personal address, telephone number, email address
• identification data such as full name, title, date of birth, passport number, driver’s licence number, tax number, signature
• financial and related data such as bank account number, occupation, assets, income, employment
• transaction history with us and our associates or relevant third parties
• marketing and communications data such as marketing and communication preferences, tracking data relating to whether you have read marketing communications from us
• profile data such as username and password for our online services you have access to, investments made by you, services requested, marketing communications responded to, information about health and genetic and biometric data.

Why do we collect personal information?
The personal information you provide to us (whether on our platform or captured on closed circuit television or in an application form for a Milford Fund or elsewhere) may be collected, held and used by us for the following purposes:

• process and respond to your web enquiry
• administration, marketing, operation, security and management of the Funds
• provision of our financial products and services to you, and the provision of financial advice
• compliance with laws, rules and regulations whether in New Zealand, Australia or elsewhere,
• including Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing laws, financial markets laws and taxation laws, in each case in both New Zealand and Australia
• to understand our platform user and client preferences and interests
• for internal research, development, and optimisation of our platforms and the services we provide
• targeting our advertising, and letting you know about new features and services we offer
• managing our relationship with you, and evaluating and improving our client service
• detect, deter, prevent or investigate unruly behaviour or fraud and/or other criminal activity
• exercise and enforce our rights under our platform terms of use
• assist with the safety and security of our staff, contractors, visitors and property.

Who do we disclose your personal information to?
Your personal information may be disclosed to, and held and used by, the following persons:

• Milford Asset Management Limited or any of its subsidiaries or related entities (together, the Milford Group), and any of the Milford Group’s employees, contractors, advisers, and agents.
• Any third party, whether in New Zealand, Australia or elsewhere, that provides services to the Milford Group or assists us to provide our products and services. For example, you may have opted for electronic identity verification in connection with an application for a Milford Fund or service, in which case your information will be shared with external agencies who may use a credit file header database to verify your address (note, however, this is not a credit check). The Milford Group takes reasonable steps to ensure the third party does not breach the Privacy Principles.
• Other bodies such as government agencies, regulators (including the FMA and ASIC), and legal and professional advisers (whether or not we are legally obliged to disclose).
• Any other person or entity where it is relevant to do so for the purposes set out above or below.

We may also release personal information where we believe this is appropriate for legal compliance, avoiding prejudice to the maintenance of law (including the prevention, detection, investigation, prosecution and punishment of offences) and law enforcement (including to government agencies with statutory law enforcement responsibilities), or to assist with court proceedings, enforce or apply our terms of use, or protect ourselves, our platform users or clients, and others.

We can also disclose personal information to third parties as instructed by you and in other ways permitted by the Privacy Act and Principles.

Your personal information may also be used by, and you consent to the use of your personal information by, any Milford Group member to keep you informed about other financial opportunities, products and services of any Milford Group member, including by email, by text message, by Milford Group’s online portal or by any other electronic means. Any electronic communication offering other financial opportunities, products or services will include an unsubscribe facility.

How do we collect personal information?
We collect most personal information directly from you (or from someone who is representing or assisting you). Sometimes we may (and you authorise us to) collect personal information about you from other people. We may also collect information about you through your use of our website (including subscribing for news and insights) and from publicly available sources of information.

We will only collect information which is sensitive in nature (for example, your health information) directly from you or relevant third parties with your consent, if the information is reasonably necessary for, or directly related to, one or more of our activities. In some circumstances permitted under the Privacy Act, for example, where authorised by a court, we will not seek your consent to collect sensitive information. Any sensitive information that is collected will only be used for the purpose for which it is provided.

When you are dealing with Milford by telephone or live web or video chat service, your conversation may be recorded for training or verification purposes. When you approach or enter a Milford office, you may be recorded on a closed-circuit television (CCTV) operated or managed by Milford primarily for health and safety purposes. CCTV cameras may be located in Milford offices, however they are not located in restrooms or other areas designated for personal privacy.

Cookies and similar technologies
We, and our third-party service providers may use cookies, web beacons and other storage technologies when you are on our platform. Cookies are small blocks of text stored on your device. They allow us and our third-party service providers to recognise your device, and collect and receive information about you from our platform and elsewhere on the internet. Cookies, web beacons and other storage technologies may be used for security to help us identify your browser, to provide you with personalised features, to provide measurement services and target ads, and for tracking traffic on our platform.

We may share information collected through cookies (or similar technologies) with third parties (who may also use that information for ad targeting and the other purposes described above).

Opting out of cookies
You can prevent new cookies from being installed and delete existing cookies. The procedure depends on which browser you are using. For information on how to remove cookies, check your internet browser. You may be unable to make full use of our platform or its integration with Facebook unless you accept cookies.

For further information on how to opt out of cookies or similar technologies, see http://www.aboutads.info/choices, and http://www.networkadvertising.org.

How do we hold personal information?
The personal information we hold will be stored securely by us or our service providers, whether electronically or otherwise. We may hold your personal information on the cloud or other types of electronic system. We use a range of security measures to protect the personal information we hold.

What do we do if there has been a breach of your personal information?
If there has been an eligible breach of your personal information, we will respond to actual or potential data breaches quickly through our notification processes. Eligible breaches include (i) unauthorised access or disclosure of personal information, and (ii) information that is lost in circumstances where unauthorised access or disclosure of personal information has occurred, in each case where the breach has or is likely to result in serious harm to one or more individuals and Milford has not been able to prevent the likely risk of serious harm with remedial actions.

If we believe there has been an eligible breach, then affected individuals and the regulator will be notified to ensure that your personal information is protected.

How can you access and correct your personal information?
You may request access to, or correction of, any personal information that we hold about you at any time (subject to certain exceptions allowed by law).

You may request access to, or correction of, your personal information by contacting Milford on the Contact Details below. Any update to your personal information may be used to update other information held about you by any member of the Milford Group.

There are circumstances where we are entitled to refuse your request. For example, we will not give you access to the personal information where giving access would likely pose a serious threat to the life, health, or safety of you or any individual, or to public health or public safety.
We will respond to your request for access or correction within 30 days. If your request is refused for any reason, we will give you a written notice with the reasons why your request has been refused and your options in respect of our decision.

If you are concerned about how your personal information is being handled or if you would like to make a complaint, or you have any questions or concerns about our Privacy Policy or practices, please contact us on the Contact Details below.

What happens if personal information is not provided?
If you do not provide the personal information we request, we may not be able to respond to your enquiry or provide you with the full range of products and services we offer.

What do you need to do if you have a complaint?
If you wish to make a complaint about a breach of this Privacy Policy, the Privacy Act or the Privacy Principles, you can contact us using the contact details below. You will need to provide us with sufficient details regarding your complaint together with any supporting evidence.

We will refer your complaint to our Privacy Officer who will investigate the issue and determine the steps (if any) that we will undertake to resolve your complaint. We will contact you if we require any additional information from you and will notify you in writing of the outcome of the investigation. We will aim to respond to and notify you of the outcome of our investigation regarding the privacy complaint within 30 days of receiving the complaint.

If you are not satisfied with our determination, you can contact us to discuss your concerns or make a complaint to the New Zealand Privacy Office via www.privacy.org.nz or the Australian Privacy Commissioner via www.oaic.qov.au.

If your concerns relate to Milford Australia Pty Ltd, you can also lodge a dispute through the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA), our external dispute resolution provider, via www.afca.org.au.

AFCA provides consumers and small businesses with fair, free and independent dispute resolution for financial complaints.

Contact Details

• If calling from New Zealand: 0800 662 345
• If calling from Australia: +1800 161 310
• By emailing us at [email protected]

Date updated: 16 September 2024