Privacy Policy

This policy applies to Group of We’s trading as WeL’nd, ABN 20 672 801 651, Credit Representative Number 554029. It covers information collected through this website, through our forms and calculators, by phone, by email, and in person.

We handle personal information under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the thirteen Australian Privacy Principles. Where we handle credit information and credit eligibility information, Part IIIA of that Act and the Privacy (Credit Reporting) Code apply as well, and those rules are stricter.

We only collect what we need to do the job you have asked us to do. For a finance application, that is a lot, because a lender will not assess a file without it.

Personal information

• Name, date of birth, residential and postal address, phone numbers and email address.
• Identification documents, such as a driver licence or passport, and the details on them.
• Employment details, occupation and employer, or business details if you are self-employed.
• Income, expenses, assets and liabilities.
• Marital status and number of dependants, where a lender requires it for a serviceability assessment.
• Bank account details and transaction history where you provide statements.
• Details of the property or asset being financed or offered as security.

Credit information

• Identification information used by credit reporting bodies.
• Consumer credit liability information: the credit you hold, the credit provider, the limit and the term.
• Repayment history information, including whether payments were made on time.
• Default information, serious credit infringements, court proceedings and financial hardship information.
• Details of credit applications you have made.
• Any information a credit reporting body has derived from the above, such as a score.

Sensitive information

We generally do not seek sensitive information. Occasionally a file makes it relevant, for example a health matter that explains a period of reduced income or a hardship arrangement. Where that happens we will ask for your consent first, collect only what is needed, and record why it was needed.

Website information

When you use this site we may collect your IP address, browser and device type, the pages you visited and how you arrived. Figures you type into a calculator on this site are processed to produce the result you asked for. If you submit an enquiry form, we collect what you enter into it. Cookies and analytics are covered further down.

Information about other people

If you give us information about someone else, such as a co-borrower, a guarantor, a business partner or a dependant, please make sure they know you are giving it to us and that they can read this policy. We will treat it under this policy as if we had collected it from them directly.

We use your information to do the following, and not much else.

• Work out what you are trying to achieve and whether finance can achieve it.
• Make the enquiries and verification the law requires before we suggest a credit product.
• Prepare, lodge and manage applications with the lenders you agree we should approach.
• Communicate with you, your accountant, your solicitor and your lender about the application.
• Manage your loan after settlement, including reviews, variations and refinances.
• Meet our obligations under credit, anti-money laundering, tax and privacy law.
• Handle complaints, respond to regulators, and keep the records we are required to keep.
• Send you material about our services, where you have not opted out.

If you do not give us the information we ask for, we can usually still talk to you, but we may not be able to assess your situation properly or lodge an application at all. We will tell you when that is the case rather than let a file stall quietly.

Direct marketing

We may send you newsletters, rate and policy updates and other material about our services. Every message includes a way to opt out, and you can also tell us directly at any time. We do not sell your information and we do not provide it to third parties for their own marketing.

You can also ask a credit reporting body not to use your credit reporting information for pre-screening a direct marketing offer, and you can ask it not to disclose your information if you believe you have been or are likely to be a victim of fraud. Those requests go to the credit reporting body, not to us.

We disclose your information where it is necessary to arrange or manage your finance, where you have consented, or where the law requires it.

• Lenders and credit providers we approach on your behalf, and mortgage insurers and valuers engaged by them.
• The licensee under whose Australian Credit Licence we operate, and the aggregator whose lodgement and compliance systems we use.
• Credit reporting bodies, where the Act permits disclosure.
• Your own advisers, where you have asked us to deal with them: your accountant, bookkeeper, financial adviser, solicitor or conveyancer.
• Referral partners, but only the fact that you have engaged us and the progress of the matter, and only where you have consented.
• Service providers who host our systems, store documents, verify identity, send our email or provide IT support, all under confidentiality obligations.
• Insurers, brokers of insurance, and guarantors, where relevant to the transaction.
• Regulators, courts, and anyone else we are required or authorised by law to disclose to, including under anti-money laundering legislation.

Disclosure overseas

Some of the technology providers we rely on store or process data outside Australia, most commonly in cloud data centres. Where that happens we take reasonable steps to ensure the recipient handles your information consistently with the Australian Privacy Principles, through contract terms and by choosing providers with recognised security practices.

There are limits on disclosing credit eligibility information overseas, and we do not disclose it to an overseas recipient for the purpose of assessing your application. The specific countries in which our providers hold data will be listed here once confirmed.

We hold information in electronic systems and, in some cases, in paper files. We take reasonable steps to protect it from misuse, interference, loss, unauthorised access, modification and disclosure.

• Access controls, so staff can only reach the files they need for their work.
• Encrypted transmission for our website forms and our document collection.
• Secure storage for paper documents, and secure destruction when they are no longer needed.
• Confidentiality obligations in staff and contractor agreements.
• Training on privacy, identity verification and the handling of credit information.

No system is perfect. If a data breach occurs that is likely to result in serious harm, we will assess it, contain it and notify you and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner as required by the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme.

Credit law requires us to keep records for a set period after a loan is arranged, and other laws impose their own retention periods. We keep information for as long as those obligations require and for as long as it is needed for the purpose it was collected. After that we destroy it or de-identify it.

This site uses cookies and similar technologies. Some are necessary for the site to function, such as remembering a form state. Others help us understand which pages are read and where visitors arrive from, so we can write better material.

You can block or delete cookies in your browser settings. Parts of the site may not work as intended if you do. Calculator inputs are used to produce your result and, where a calculation runs in your browser, are not sent to us at all unless you choose to send them with an enquiry.

This site may link to other websites. We do not control them and this policy does not apply to them. Read their privacy policies before you give them anything.