Privacy Notice

This explains how and why we acquire your personal information in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2016/679, the General Data Protection (GDPR).

We collection information about you:

  • As part of your loan application and during the term of any agreement
  • From you and from searches of Credit Reference Agencies (CRAs) and Fraud Prevention Agencies (FPAs) of their records relating to you and other people with whom you are linked financially, from public records, e.g. the electoral roll and third parties e.g. credit brokers where you have provided information to them and consented for it to be passed to us.
  • This includes your name, address, national insurance number, date of birth, contact details, marital status, employment information, credit record and records of your accounts.

We use your information to:

  • Make credit decisions about you, members of your household or others to whom you are linked financially.
  • Communicate with you by telephone, email, SMS or post
  • Manage your account, make collections and debt tracing
  • Prevent fraud and money laundering
  • Report to CRAs and FPAs
  • Report to our regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, where we are required to do so.

This is to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations and fulfil our legitimate interests of promoting responsible lending. If you do not provide us with your information, we will not be able to lend to you. we may also use your information for other purposes where you have consented to this for example surveys and research.

We may share your information with:

  • Third parties to which we transfer, charge or assign your agreement or which manage your load or provide services for us
  • Law enforcement agencies or regulatory bodies where we are required to do so by law
  • CRAs and FPAs to which we may report positive, delinquent and default data about your account(s) on a regular (minimum monthly) basis. This information may be supplied to other organisations which search your credit record.

When CRAs receive a search from us they place a search “footprint” on your credit file whether to not the application proceeds. Records remain on file with the CRAs and FPAs for 6 years after they are closed, whether settled by you or defaulted.

More information about CRAs and how they use personal information is available at: www.experian.co.uk/crain/index.html or you can contact the agencies below:

We store your information:

  • Within the European Economic Area (EEA)
  • We may transfer data outside the EEA but will ensure that before we do so, there is adequate protection in place to ensure the security of your data

We keep your information:

  • For as long as it is needed to manage your account and for a maximum of six years unless a longer period is required by law.

You have the right to:

  • Access the information we hold about you
  • As us to make any changes to your information to make sure it is accurate and up to date
  • Ask us to stop or limit our use of or to delete your information
  • Receive your information in a format that suits you
  • Transfer your information to a third party
  • To be told which CRAs we have used and obtain a copy of your file from CRAs

Contact

If you have a question, want to exercise your rights or make a complaint, please contact our Data Protection Officer.

You can also make a complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF. Telephone: 0303 123 1113.