This document outlines Agar Cleaning Systems Pty Ltd’s policy on handling the personal information that we collect about individuals in the course of providing our products and services. All people working with and for Agar are required to be familiar, and are required to comply with the obligations set out in this, Agar’s Privacy Policy.
The purpose of this Privacy Policy is to explain:
- Application of this policy
- The kind of personal information that we collect, how we collect it, and how we use it
- How we may disclose that information
- How you can access the information that we hold about you
- The protection of your personal information
- How you can contact us about privacy
Application of this policy
This Privacy Policy applies to personal and sensitive information collected by Agar, whether we have asked for the information or not. Agar is governed by the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).
Personal information can be defined as any information or an opinion about an identified individual, or an individual who is reasonably identifiable. The information is considered personal information whether it is true or untrue, and whether it is recorded or not. Some examples of personal information may include:
- An individual’s name
- Signature
- Address
- Telephone number
- Date of birth
- Bank account details
- Medical records, etc
Sensitive information is a subset of personal information. Sensitive information is information or an opinion relating to an individual such as:
- Race or ethnic origin
- Political opinions
- Religious or philosophical beliefs
- Membership of a trade union
- Sexual orientation or practices
- Criminal record
- Health information, etc
This policy applies only to Agar. It does not apply to any other company or organisation, including those who have links to Agar content or services. The policy is publicly available via our website agar.com.au, or you can contact us about obtaining a copy of the policy. This policy is reviewed from time to time to take account of new laws and technology, and changes to our operations and practices, and to make sure it remains appropriate to the changing environment.
Collection and use of personal information
During the course of business we may ask you for personal information to assist us in providing you with relevant products and services. The information that we request may include (but is not limited to) the following:
- Personal contact information such as your name, address, telephone numbers, fax numbers, and email addresses
- Personal information relating to your business or professional capacity such as ABN, and position
- Transactional information such as credit card details or bank account details in the event of a purchase from Agar
- Personal information such as copies of identification and your signature
- Personal and/or sensitive information relating to human resources, finance, and general administration purposes
We may collect your personal information:
- Because we need it to provide a product or service that you have requested – for instance, if you purchase products from Agar, or subscribe to an email list
- Because you have provided it to us – for instance if you contact us to make comments, complaints or to ask us questions
- Because we would like to improve our services – for instance through the collection and analysis of statistical and research data
- Because you work for us, or apply for a job or work experience
- For purposes directly related to any of the above
We collect personal information directly from you through application forms, or by recording information that you have provided through phone calls, interviews and other forms of communication. We may also gather publically available information.
We will never knowingly send you unsolicited commercial electronic messages. We may use information that we know about your likes and interests to tell you about other products and services.
It is your choice as to whether or not you provide us with your personal information, however if you choose not to then we may not be able to fulfil your request for products or services. If you wish to remain anonymous or to use a pseudonym when dealing with us, we may be able to provide you with limited information or services, such as general details about our products. However in many cases it will be impracticable for us to assist you if you wish to remain anonymous or use a pseudonym.
Disclosure of personal information
The first priority of Agar’s use of personal information is to protect its confidentiality, subject to the particular use the information is being put to. Personal information will not be revealed, sold, distributed, rented, licensed, shared or passed on to any third party unless consent has been granted by the individual or organisation, or Agar is required to do so by law.
From time to time we may share your personal information with other entities. The entities that we might share your personal information with vary according to the product or service involved, but could include:
- Service providers and specialist advisers we engage to provide us with services such as administrative, financial, or legal services, some of whom may contact you on our behalf
- Courts, tribunals and other dispute resolution bodies in the course of a dispute
- Anyone authorised by you or to whom you have provided your consent (either expressly or impliedly)
- Anyone to whom we are required or authorised by law to disclose your personal information (for example, law enforcement agencies, and national government and regulatory authorities including but not limited to the Australian Taxation Office, Child Support Agency, etc.)
Some of the entities we share information with may be located in, or have operations in, other countries, for example New Zealand and Thailand.
Protection of personal information
We take reasonable steps to maintain the security of personal information to protect it from unauthorised disclosures. Personal information is stored as hard copy format in our secure offices, and in electronic format in our secure servers.
We take a number of steps to protect personal information from misuse, loss, unauthorised access, modification or improper disclosure. These include instructing staff who handle personal information to respect the confidentiality of customer information and the privacy of individuals.
We may be legally required to maintain some of your records for a significant period of time. However, once we believe information is no longer needed we may remove any identifying details or destroy the records entirely.
How you can access your personal information or make a complaint
You can contact us to:
- Seek more information about anything contained in this policy, or to request a copy of this policy
- Update or correct your personal information
- Opt out of receiving direct marketing material
- Ask about accessing the personal information we hold about you; or
- Make a privacy related complaint
Agar welcomes feedback about privacy issues and will attend to all questions and complaints promptly. We can be contacted in one of the following ways:
- By telephone: 03 9480 3000
- By email: feedback@agar.com.au
- In writing: PO Box 8056
Northland Centre VIC 3072
We will refer a complaint to our Privacy Compliance Officer to respond to your concerns. We take privacy-related complaints very seriously and consider all complaints carefully as part of our commitment to being open, honest and fair in dealing with your concerns. In most cases, we’ll contact you within five working days of receiving your complaint to let you know what actions we are taking regarding the matter.
