Privacy notice.

Introduction

Watts Group Limited (Watts) is an independent provider of building surveying, cost management and project management services to the property and construction industry in the UK and Ireland. This Privacy Notice explains how we store and use personal data collected, for example when:

  1. We provide a quote or tender for some work
  2. We undertake a due diligence check on a potential client/supplier
  3. We purchase a product or service from a supplier
  4. You commission a service or you are nominated as a contact point for a service we are providing
  5. You give us your business card or contact us via email, social media or our website
  6. Your company or project is identified as a ‘Target Client’ via a publicly available printed/electronic media source

Subject Matter

  • What personal data is collected?
  • How is personal data protected?
  • How will your personal data be used?
  • Who will personal data be shared with and why?
  • How long will we keep your personal data for?
  • How can you check/update your information?
  • Cookies
  • Is any personal data stored or processed outside the European Economic Area (EEA)?
  • How to contact us
  • Changes to this Privacy Notice

What personal data is collected?

We collect personal data from potential, current and former clients/suppliers and other individuals with an interest in the property and construction industry to fulfil our stated purposes. The data routinely collected usually includes some or all of the following: Contact Name, Company Name, Office Address, Job Title, Telephone Number(s) and Email Address. All your personal data will be placed on our Client Relationship Management (CRM) system and protected in accordance with our Cyber Essentials Plus accreditation.

Documents obtained to help confirm your identity and substance during our Know Your Client (KYC) checks are stored in our ‘SharePoint’ browser-based collaboration and document management system.

We do not collect any personal data from third party data vendors and do not sell any data to these organisations.

How is personal data collected?

We deploy multiple layers of protection both to computers, the networks and at the boundary of our networks with Enterprise grade products and cloud services from the likes of Checkpoint, Mimecast and Mobile iron. Appropriate levels of virus protection are also used to ensure all our systems are in line with ISO 27001 requirements and our Cyber Essentials Plus certification. Our email systems are also protected by Targeted Threat management systems, to reduce the risk of phishing attacks on staff.

How will your personal data be used?

We use the personal data collected for a range of different business purposes but primarily to meet our regulatory and contractual obligations. It is also used in a way we believe you should reasonably expect us to use the data which does not materially impact your rights, freedom or interests. For example, we use the following lawful basis to process personal data:

Contract

  1. To fulfil our contractual/regulatory obligations(e.g. service delivery, KYC checks)
  2. To do something before entering into a contract (e.g. provide a fee proposal, tender for a commission)

Legitimate interests

  1. To meet our commercial interests (e.g. offering to provide additional services, getting feedback)
  2. To satisfy individual interests (e.g. sharing knowledge and information about our services and/or the property/and construction industry)

Who will personal data be shared with and why?

Watts’ employees will have access to the personal data held in our CRM and SharePoint systems in order to perform their service delivery or support role functions. Access is gained via individual secure Active Directory managed (AD) password protected user accounts.

Access to electronic information is further controlled by AD security groups, so for example, only staff working in our Belfast office can access Belfast office team data.

We may use competent suppliers to deliver services on our behalf or to help us provide services to you (e.g. sub-consultants, couriers etc.). We may also use external providers to carry out identity/credit checks and collect debts for us. Where services are outsourced in this way, we will still control your personal data and we have strict controls in place to make sure it is properly protected.

Additionally, we may disclose your personal information to third parties:

  1. In the event that we sell or buy any business or assets, in which case we may disclose your personal data to the prospective seller or buyer of such business or assets
  2. If Watts or all of its assets are acquired by a third party, in which case personal data help by it about its clients will be one of the transferred assets
  3. If we are under a duty to disclose or share your personal data in order to comply with any legal obligation or in order to enforce or apply our terms of use and other agreements; or to protect the rights, property or safety of Watts, our clients, or others. This includes exchanging information with our companies and organisations for the purposes of fraud protection and credit risk reduction.

How long will we keep your personal data for?

We will retain the data you give us, for differing periods of time, dependent on the reason you have supplied it to us, whether there is a need to retain the data and in accordance with our data retention policy. All such time frames are guided by industry best practice and other relevant legislation.

How can you check/update your information?

If we contact you because we believe we have a legitimate interest to do so, you will be given the opportunity to opt-out of receiving future communications when you receive the first and subsequent messages. You will also be able to check and amend the information we hold using a form access via a hyperlink in the email.

You can also contact us at any time to access your personal data so you are aware of and can verify the lawfulness of the processing we undertake – please use the contact details in the ‘How to contact us’ section below.

Cookies

In common with many other companies, we use standard technology called ‘cookies’ on our website. Cookies are small pieces of information that are stored by your browser on your computer’s hard drive. They help us to collect statistical data about our users’ browsing actions and patterns but they do not identify any individual. They enable us to:

  1. Manage and develop our website e.g. to improve usability or measure the popularity of a given web page
  2. Speed up your searches during subsequent visits

Most browsers are initially set to accept cookies; you do not need to use cookies to visit our website, but parts of the site may not work as intended if you don’t. You may refuse to accept cookies by activating the appropriate setting on your browser (Note: turning cookies off at the browser level could disable cookies on ALL sites you visit, and therefore disable the functionality you rely on when visiting those sites).

Is any personal data stored or processed outside the European Economic Area (EEA)?

We use secure cloud-based services for hosting the data but none of this infrastructure is knowingly based outside the EEA. If we subsequently do this, our contracts with third parties stipulate the standards they must follow so we can store or process your information under the guiding principles of this Privacy Notice and all applicable laws.

How to contact us

Questions, comments and requests regarding this Privacy Notice are welcomed and should be addressed to:

Director of Process and Quality
Watts Group Limited
1st Floor, 42 Trinity Square,
London, EC3N 4TH

If you want to make a complaint on how we have handled your personal data, please use the contact details above so we can investigate the matter and report back to you. If you are still not satisfied after our response or believe we are not using your personal information in line with the law, you also have the right to complain to the data-protection regulator in the country where you live or work; that is the information commissioner in the UK.

Changes to this Privacy Notice

This Privacy Notice is periodically reviewed and amended as necessary to make sure that it remains suitable and effective; it was last updated in January 2020. Any changes we may make in the future will be posted on this page, and where appropriate, notified to you by e-mail.

Telephone: +44 (0)20 7280 8000 | Registered office: 1st Floor, 42 Trinity Square, London, EC3N 4TH. | Company Registration number: 05728557
© 2000 - 2022 Watts Group Limited. All rights reserved. | Privacy policy | Terms of use

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© 2000 - 2020 Watts Group Limited. All rights reserved. Registered Office:
Privacy policy | Terms of use

Telephone +44(0)20 7280 8000

Website by Amanda Design