What personal information do we collect and hold?
As a group of companies offering a wide range of products and services, we collect and hold a range of personal information from and about people (particularly people who wish to purchase our products or use our services).
In the process of conducting our businesses, we are likely to collect a broad range of information about our customers, prospective customers, contractors, suppliers, brokers, introducers, agents, service providers and the people who run the businesses we deal with. This information can include such things as contact details, financial information and supporting documentation (including credit history details), identification information, transaction history information, banking details and personal references.
In order to satisfy our legal obligations we may even need to retain that information after a transaction has come to an end (subject to our obligations under the National Privacy Principles).
How do we collect personal information?
Wherever it is possible and practical to do so, we collect personal information directly from the person concerned. For example, we will collect personal information when we deal with a person over the telephone, via letters, email or fax, as well as the information contained on completed forms (such as an application form or submitting information via the internet).
In addition to this, there may be occasions where we need to collect personal information we require for a particular purpose from a third party.
How do use personal information?
We collect personal information in order to:
- undertake and complete the many transactions we have with our customers, suppliers, and other parties with whom we do business;
- to administer the many products we provide;
- to maintain the business relationships we have that enable us to carry on our business; and
- for keeping our customers informed of the many products and services we have, which may include using it for direct marketing.
To what other organisations do we disclose personal information
The National Privacy Principles allow the GE Commercial Finance Companies to share personal information provided to any one of them where they are related bodies corporate. This may include sending information about you to GE's overseas offices that are responsible for approving, processing or administering our products and services (including storing and backing up information).
Separately, in providing and managing our products and services, we contract with other businesses and may need to disclose personal information to them to enable them to perform services for us. GE Commercial Finance Companies may also use other businesses (including businesses located overseas) to maintain some of our data and storage systems and provide auxiliary services. We require all these businesses to adhere to our confidentiality requirements for handling personal information For more information about our disclosures of personal information, you will need to refer to the Privacy Notices that we provide to applicants for each of our products or services, or by contacting the relevant GE Commercial Finance Company.
How do you access the personal information we hold about you and make complaints?
If you wish to obtain details of your personal information that we hold, please contact your relevant GE Commercial Finance Company representative.
Privacy complaints will be handled through the relevant GE Commercial Finance Company complaint handling processes.. Should you wish to complain about a privacy matter please contact your GE Commercial Finance Company representative or refer to our contact details below. We will attend to your complaint or request as quickly as possible.
Your personal information and emails
If you send an email to any of the GE Commercial Finance Companies, details such as your name, address and other information about you contained in your email and in any attachments will be collected and made use of. When you submit feedback or questions via email, it is very important that you do not disclose any details that could be used by others to gain access to your account. This includes private details such as your username, password or card number.
If you receive an email from us, you should only re-transmit, distribute or commercialise the material or information in the email if you are authorised to do so (under the Privacy Act or otherwise).
Your personal information on the web
We do not collect personal information about you when you visit our websites unless you apply for any of our products online, register for access to any of our online services, or provide us with your personal information for us to contact you (including feedback you provide using Soapbox).
Our websites contain links to other sites. While we try to link only to sites that share our high standards and respect for privacy, we are not responsible for the privacy practices of other web sites to which you provide your personal information.
Website security
Our website contains high levels of security in order to protect all personal information. These security levels are standard for internet banking and e-commerce sites and involve the use of 128-bit encryption. You can check the security level of a web page by clicking on your internet browser's padlock or key icon.
Encryption is the standard way of protecting your information as it is transmitted between you and us. This involves converting the information into an unreadable code using a 'key' (and also de-coding it using this 'key'). The longer the key, the more difficult it is for others to break the encrypted code.
Cookies
A cookie is a tiny element of data that a website can send to your browser, which may then be stored on your hard drive, so you can be recognised when you return. You may set your browser to notify you when you receive a cookie. Cookies are used on our websites to monitor the traffic to the site. They are used to count the number of visitors to each page and to track the path each visitor takes to navigate this website. No personal information about you is collected during this process.
If our website requires you to register or login to gain access to the site, cookies are used to assist in this process. Cookies are used as part of the registration process. They are also used to store the username while the user is logged into the site and to track the number of times the user has tried to log in during a single visit.
Online Services
When you register for access to one of our online services, the information required will include details such as your name, date of birth and card number. As a security measure, this information will be checked against any existing information we hold about you. If the information does not match our records, you will not be able to access the online service.
The GE Commercial Finance Companies in Australia include GE Commercial Corporation (Australia) Pty Ltd, GE Commercial Pty Ltd, GE Capital Australia, GE Capital Finance Pty Ltd, GE Finance Australasia Pty Ltd, Custom Service Leasing Pty Ltd and Custom Fleet Pty Ltd.