Scout Aged Care and Retirement Solutions is a division of SST & Associates Pty Ltd ABN 73 644 455 550 ("ScoutACRS", "we", "us" or "our"). We help older Australians and their families downsize, declutter and sell the family home when moving into aged care or retirement living.

The people we work with often share personal and sometimes sensitive information with us at a significant moment in their lives. We take that trust seriously. This Privacy Policy explains what personal information we collect, why we collect it, how we use and protect it, and how you can access it or make a complaint.

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We handle personal information in line with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs), and, where it applies, the Health Records and Information Privacy Act 2002 (NSW). This policy applies to our website at www.scoutacrs.com.au and to all of our services.

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1.  What personal information we collect

The information we collect depends on how you deal with us. It may include:

• Contact details — name, phone number, email address, postal and residential address.

• Property information — the address of the home being sold, ownership and title details, its contents, condition and access arrangements, and information relating to the sale.

• Information about your move — the aged care home or retirement village you are moving to, timing, and the practical support you need.

• Information about the people involved — family members, attorneys under an enduring power of attorney, guardians, financial managers, executors and other representatives, including evidence of their authority to act.

• Financial information reasonably needed to deliver our services, such as invoicing details and information about how sale proceeds are to be applied. We do not ask for or store full bank card numbers through our website.

• Information about referral partners and service providers we work with, such as aged care providers, retirement villages, advisers, real estate agents and removalists.

• Website and technical information — see section 8.

 

2.  Sensitive and health information

Because of the nature of our work, we may collect sensitive information, including health information — for example, information about a person's care needs, mobility, an aged care assessment, or their capacity to make decisions about their property.

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We only collect sensitive information with consent (from the individual or someone legally authorised to act for them) and where it is reasonably necessary to provide our services safely and appropriately, or where otherwise permitted by law. We ask that you share only what we need. Sensitive information is accessed only by team members and providers who need it, and is not used for marketing.

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3.  How we collect personal information

Where practical, we collect personal information directly from you — when you contact us, complete an enquiry form, speak with us by phone or in person, or engage our services. We may also collect it from:

• a family member, attorney, guardian, executor or other representative acting on your behalf;

• a referral partner, such as an aged care provider, retirement village, aged care advocate, financial adviser or solicitor, where you have agreed to the referral;

• real estate agents, conveyancers and service providers involved in your move or sale;

• publicly available sources, such as title searches and property records; and

• our website, through cookies and analytics tools.

 

If you give us personal information about someone else (for example, a parent), you confirm that you have their consent, or are legally authorised to provide it, and that you will let them know about this policy.

 

4.  Why we collect, use and disclose personal information

We collect, use and disclose personal information to:

• respond to enquiries and provide information about our services;

• plan and coordinate decluttering, downsizing, packing, removal and related services;

• run real estate agent tendering and oversee the sale of the property on your behalf;

• communicate with you, your family, your representatives and the other professionals involved, as you have authorised;

• confirm that people acting for someone else have the authority to do so;

• manage our relationships with referral partners and service providers;

• issue invoices, manage accounts and keep business records;

• send you information about our services, where you have agreed (see section 7);

• improve our website and services; and

• meet our legal and regulatory obligations.

 

We will not use or disclose your personal information for any other purpose unless you consent, you would reasonably expect it and it is related to the purpose of collection (or directly related, for sensitive information), or it is required or authorised by law.

 

5.  Who we share personal information with

To deliver our services we may share personal information with:

• real estate agents invited to tender for, and appointed to, the sale of the property;

• decluttering, packing, removalist, cleaning, trades, valuation and other service providers we arrange on your behalf;

• conveyancers, solicitors and other professional advisers involved in the sale or your move;

• aged care providers, retirement villages and referral partners, with your consent;

• family members and representatives, as you have authorised;

• our IT, cloud storage, customer relationship management (CRM) and email service providers;

• our own professional advisers, such as accountants, lawyers and insurers; and

• government bodies, courts or regulators where required or authorised by law.

We require the people we share information with to handle it appropriately and only for the purpose it was provided. We do not sell personal information.

 

6.  Overseas disclosure

Some of our technology providers, such as cloud storage, CRM and email platforms, may store or process information outside Australia.  Where this happens, we take reasonable steps to ensure those providers handle personal information in a way consistent with the APPs.

 

7.  Marketing communications

With your consent, we may send you newsletters or information about our services. Every marketing email includes a way to unsubscribe, and you can also opt out at any time by contacting us. We comply with the Spam Act 2003 (Cth). We never use sensitive information for marketing.

 

8.  Our website, cookies and analytics

When you visit our website, we and our service providers may collect information such as your IP address, browser type, device, the pages you visit and how you arrived at our site. We use cookies and similar technologies to make the site work and to understand how it is used, including through Google Analytics.

 

This information is generally collected in aggregate and does not identify you. You can set your browser to refuse cookies, although some parts of the website may not work as intended. Our website may link to other websites; we are not responsible for their privacy practices.

If you submit an enquiry form, the details you enter are sent to us in our CRM so that we can respond.

 

9.  Automated decision-making

We do not use computer programs to make decisions, or to substantially assist in making decisions, that could significantly affect your rights or interests using your personal information. Decisions about our services, including the recommendation of real estate agents, are made by people. If this changes, we will update this policy to describe the kinds of personal information used and the kinds of decisions involved.

 

10.  Keeping personal information secure

We take reasonable steps to protect personal information from misuse, interference, loss, and unauthorised access, modification or disclosure. These include secure, access-controlled systems, password protection, limiting access to those who need it, and confidentiality obligations for our team and providers.

 

We keep personal information only for as long as we need it for the purposes described in this policy or as required by law (for example, business and tax record-keeping obligations). After that, we take reasonable steps to securely destroy or de-identify it.

If we experience a data breach that is likely to result in serious harm, we will notify affected individuals and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) as required under the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme.

 

11.  Accessing and correcting your information

You can ask to access the personal information we hold about you, or ask us to correct it if it is inaccurate, out of date, incomplete or misleading. Please contact us using the details below. We will respond within a reasonable time (generally 30 days) and may need to verify your identity, or the authority of a representative, first.

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There is usually no charge for a request. If we refuse access or correction, we will tell you why in writing, unless it would be unreasonable to do so, and how you can complain.

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12.  Dealing with us anonymously

You can make a general enquiry without identifying yourself or by using a pseudonym. However, we will need to know who you are, and who we are acting for, to provide our services.

 

13.  Complaints

If you have a concern about how we have handled your personal information, please contact our Privacy Officer using the details below. We will acknowledge your complaint promptly, investigate it, and aim to respond in writing within 30 days.

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If you are not satisfied with our response, you can contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner on 1300 363 992 or at www.oaic.gov.au. For complaints about health information in NSW, you may also contact the NSW Information and Privacy Commission on 1800 472 679 or at www.ipc.nsw.gov.au.

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14.  Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time to reflect changes in the law or in how we operate. The current version will always be available on our website, with the date it was last updated.

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15.  Contact us

Scout Aged Care and Retirement Solutions

A division of SST & Associates Pty Ltd t/as Scout Corp

Attention: Samantha Mills, Director

Email: hello@scoutagedcare.com.au

Phone: 0415 090 531

Post: PO Box 6939, Norwest NSW 2153