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Data Protection & Privacy Notice

Key Information

Graham Fear & Co. respects your right to privacy. We put in place security measures for your personal data and manage your personal data in accordance with applicable data privacy regulations.

Please note that Graham Fear & Co. is the Data Controller of your personal data. The principles set out in this Privacy Notice apply to all instances in which we receive your personal data as a Data Controller for the purposes described in this notice. Those purposes are processing of data in order to participate in the various activities available on our website (www.grahamfear.co.uk) or as mentioned below.

We asked ourselves a number of key questions that we believe you would like answered about the personal data that you submit to us. These answers will, to the extent required by applicable law, inform you of your rights relating to your personal data, the security measures that we put in place with regard to your personal data and the uses to which such personal data is put. We trust you find this information helpful.

If you have any requests concerning your personal data or any queries with regard to these practices please contact us on 0208-363-3331 or by e-mail sean@grahamfear.co.uk

1. Personal data we Collect

You can provide your personal data if you wish. We only collect personal data that YOU want to provide to us or that is needed to provide (and improve) our service to you. We collect personal data directly such as name, age, gender, address and e-mail address and evidence of your identity, such as passport, photographic drivers licence and utility bills. The legal basis for the processing of your personal data is your consent and/or any other applicable legal basis, such as our legitimate interest in practicing as solicitors and offering services of value to you. Any consent you provide may be withdrawn at any time by following the contact methods listed in Paragraph 5.

You may want to give us your e-mail address, name, telephone number etc. so that we can provide you with information on our products; or just keep you informed about changes in the law.

2. Security Measures

We take security measures in line with data protection regulations. We have security measures in place designed to prevent data loss, to preserve data integrity, and to regulate access to the data. Only our employees, and authorised employees of our Third-Party service providers, processing data on our behalf, have access to your personal data. All employees who have access to your personal data are required to adhere to our Privacy Notice

3. How we use your personal data

Your personal data will only be used for the purposes for which you provided it to us, as indicated to you at the time you provided your personal data. It will also be used to administer, support and obtain feedback on the level of our services, to help prevent breaches of security, the law or our contract terms, and for direct marketing purposes. It may also be disclosed to third parties (as part of the information generally contained in business) in the event of a sale of the business, or a reorganisation of the business, or as otherwise required or permitted by law or applicable regulator.

4. Who we disclose your personal data to and why

We will never share your personal data with any Third-Party business organisation that intends to use it for their own purposes, other than as required by law. We do share data with our auditors and if required, our regulatory bodies, such as Solicitors Regulation Authority.

5. Your rights

You have the right to ask us to provide you with all the information we store on you.

There are exceptions to these rights, however. For example, access to personal data may be denied in some circumstances if making the information available would reveal personal information about another person or if we are legally prevented from disclosing such information.

6. Countries your personal data will be sent to and why

We will not send your data abroad.

7. Our policy on collecting data from children

We do not collect personal data from children under the age of 16.

8. Changes to the terms of this Privacy Policy

We will occasionally make changes and corrections to this Privacy Policy. If we believe that the changes are material, we’ll let you know by doing one (or more) of the following: (1) posting the changes on this site, or (2) sending you an email or message about the changes. We will also give you the opportunity to consent to these material changes. Changes will be effective upon the posting of the changes and your acceptance of the changes, which may be through your continued use of the site after the changes take effect.

9. Retention of your personal data

We will retain your information only for as long as is necessary for the purposes set out in this policy. We will retain and use your information to the extent necessary to comply with our legal obligations (for example, if we are required to retain your information to comply with Solicitors Accounts Rules), resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements. We also retain log files for internal analysis purposes. These log files are generally retained for a short period of time, except where they are used for website security, to improve website functionality, or we are legally obligated to retain them for longer time periods.

Complaints

We want to give you the best possible service. However, if at any point you become unhappy or concerned about the service we provided then you should inform us immediately, so that we can do our best to resolve the problem.

In the first instance it may be helpful to contact the person who is working on your case to discuss your concerns and we will do our best to resolve any issues at this stage. If you would like to make a formal complaint, then we will supply you with a copy of our complaints procedure. Making a complaint will not affect how we handle your case.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority can help you if you are concerned about our behaviour. This could be for things like dishonesty, taking or losing your money or treating you unfairly because of your age, a disability or other characteristic.

You can raise your concerns with the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

What do to if we cannot resolve your complaint

The Legal Ombudsman can help you if we are unable to resolve your complaint ourselves. They will look at your complaint independently and it will not affect how we handle your case.

Before accepting a complaint for investigation, the Legal Ombudsman will check that you have tried to resolve your complaint with us first. If you have, then you must take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman:

Within six months of receiving a final response to your complaint and

No more than six years from the date of act/omission; or

No more than three years from when you should reasonably have known there was cause for complaint.

If you would like more information about the Legal Ombudsman, please contact them.

 

Contact details

Visit: www.legalombudsman.org.uk

Call: 0300 555 0333 between 9am to 5pm.

Email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk

Legal Ombudsman PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ

• Website: www.grahamfear.co.uk

• Accessibility statement

• Privacy policy

• Complaints procedure

Regulated by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority. The information given on this site is for guidance only and not a substitute for professional legal advice. We therefore cannot take any responsibility for any losses or damage suffered by individuals who have taken action based on the information on this website.