Who we are
Habitat Loans, 5 South Charlotte Street, Edinburgh, EH2 4AN, is responsible for the personal information described in this notice.
For privacy questions or to exercise your rights, email contact@habitatloans.co.uk or write to Habitat Loans, 5 South Charlotte Street, Edinburgh, EH2 4AN.
The information we collect
| Type | Examples | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Contact details | Name, email address, telephone number and home address | You, through the enquiry form or when you contact us |
| Property and mortgage details | Estimated property value, outstanding mortgage and whether you own alone or jointly | You |
| Borrowing needs | The amount you want to borrow, what it is for and your preferred term | You |
| Website use | Pages visited, device and browser type and approximate location from your IP address | Cookies and similar technology, where you allow them |
| Correspondence | Emails, letters and notes of calls | You, when you contact us |
We do not ask for your credit report, bank details or identity documents. Loans Warehouse and the lender collect what they need for advice and an application under their own privacy notices.
How we use it
| Purpose | Lawful basis |
|---|---|
| Passing your enquiry to Loans Warehouse so that an adviser can contact you | Steps taken at your request before any contract, and our legitimate interest in providing the introduction you asked for |
| Responding to questions and complaints | Legitimate interests, and legal obligations where complaint handling rules apply |
| Keeping records of introductions and related payments | Legitimate interests and legal obligations, including accounting and tax rules |
| Understanding how the website is used and improving it | Consent, given through your cookie choices |
| Sending marketing about secured borrowing | Consent. You can withdraw it at any time using the link in any message or by contacting us |
| Preventing fraud and misuse of the website | Legitimate interests |
We do not make decisions about you by automated means that have a legal or similarly significant effect.
Who we share it with
- Loans Warehouse Limited, which receives your enquiry details in order to advise you. Loans Warehouse is a separate controller, and its privacy notice applies to what it does with your information.
- Service providers that host this website, store our data and send email on our behalf. They act on our instructions.
- Professional advisers, regulators, the Financial Ombudsman Service and law enforcement where the law requires or permits it.
- A buyer or successor if our business is sold or reorganised, under the same protections.
We do not sell personal information. Your information is stored in the United Kingdom. Where a supplier processes it elsewhere, we rely on safeguards recognised under UK data protection law.
How long we keep it
| Information | How long we keep it |
|---|---|
| Enquiry details passed to Loans Warehouse | Two years from the date of the enquiry |
| Records of introductions and related payments | Six years after the end of the financial year they relate to, in line with accounting and tax rules |
| Complaint records | Three years from the date the complaint is closed |
| Correspondence | Two years from our last contact with you |
| Website analytics | As set out on the cookies page |
When information is no longer needed we delete it or make it anonymous.
Cookies
This website uses cookies and similar technology. Our cookies page explains what they do and lets you change your choices.
Your rights
Under UK data protection law you have the right to:
- ask for a copy of the personal information we hold about you
- have inaccurate information corrected and incomplete information completed
- ask us to delete your information, in certain circumstances
- ask us to restrict how we use it, in certain circumstances
- receive the information you gave us in a portable format
- object to processing based on legitimate interests, and to direct marketing at any time
- withdraw consent where we rely on it, without affecting anything done before you withdrew it
To exercise any of these rights, email contact@habitatloans.co.uk. We respond within one month. For complex or numerous requests this can be extended by up to two further months, and we will tell you if that applies. We may ask you to confirm your identity first.
Security
We use technical and organisational measures appropriate to the information we hold, including encrypted connections to this website, access controls and staff confidentiality obligations. No system is completely secure, so please contact us if you believe your information has been compromised.
Children
This website and the enquiry service are for people aged 18 or over. We do not knowingly collect information about children, and we delete it if we learn we have done so.
Changes to this notice
We update this notice when our practices or the law change. The date at the top shows when it was last revised. Significant changes affecting information we already hold will be brought to your attention.
Complaints about your data
If you are unhappy with how we have handled your information, contact us first at contact@habitatloans.co.uk and we will try to put it right. You also have the right to complain to the regulator.