Exeter Friendly Society

• How we use your information

  We are registered under the Data Protection Act 1998. In addition to the information gathered from you in relation to any applications for products, we also need to maintain other records, mainly in regard to your membership of the Society.

  We maintain all the information on computer and/or paper files.

  Information will only be disclosed to third parties where it is necessary to do so in whatever format is considered appropriate by us.

  Your personal information will be treated in confidence and will only be used by the Society for the following purposes:

  • The assessment and management of your medical insurance, including contacting you on an annual basis regarding the renewal of your policy and processing claims
  • Transmission to those involved in your treatment and care
  • Retaining cancelled policies and associated details to assist us in determining future applications for insurance that you may wish to make
  • Transmission to carefully selected third parties (including the intermediary who arranged your policy, if any) as part of our administrative operations or for the purpose of research, advertising, marketing or selling (for example to develop and advise you of new products)
  • As may be required or permitted by law or as appropriate to detect and prevent fraud and improper claims

  Under the terms of the Data Protection Act 1998, you may request a copy of the details we hold about you. We reserve the right to charge a fee for this service, up to the maximum allowed by the Act. If you require a copy of such information, you should write to the Compliance Officer at:

  Exeter Friendly Society, Lakeside House, Emperor Way, Exeter, EX1 3FD

  We will post details of any changes to our Privacy Policy on this page to help ensure you are always aware of the information we collect, how we use it, and in what circumstances we share it with other parties.

• Ways we collect information

  Shared Care is no longer available to new members.

  Information is gathered through forms you fill in and also through methods where you won't actively provide it. This is through the use of various technologies and methods such as Internet Protocol (IP) addresses and cookies. These methods do not collect or store personal information.

  IP Addresses:

  An IP address is a number assigned to your computer by your Internet Service Provider (ISP), so you can access the internet. It is generally considered to be non-personally identifiable information, because in most cases an IP address is dynamic (changing each time you connect to the internet), rather than static (unique to a particular user's computer).

  We use your IP address to; diagnose problems with our server, report site information, determine the fastest route for your computer to use in connecting to our site, and to administer the site.

  Cookies:

  A cookie is a piece of data stored on your computer and contains information about your activities on the internet. On our website, we use cookies to track your progress through the site, allowing us to make improvements and ensure security.

  The information in a cookie does not contain any personally identifiable information you submit to our site but it does allow us to provide secure transmission of your personal information. It is not possible to identify a particular user by means of a cookie alone. We will not know who you are even if we use a cookie.

  You have the ability to decline cookies. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies but you can change your browser setting to decline cookies. For information on how to do this please refer to your browsers Help page. If you choose not to accept the cookie you will be able to access most of the information on our site but you will not be able to make full use of our online services, such as applying for one of our policies.

  The cookie is also used for anonymously recording what parts of the service you use. Overall, aggregated usage information from all our customers helps us improve our service by showing us how different areas of the site are being used. Usage information may also be used to target advertising so you view advertisements which have the most relevance for you.

  We also collect certain information you enter for the purpose of creating statistics. We will not link your name or address with the data we collect for statistical purposes.

• Data Storage

  We will take all reasonable steps in accordance with our legal obligations to update or correct personally identifiable information in our possession that you submit on our site.

• Security

  We take all appropriate steps to protect your personally identifiable information as you transmit your information from your computer to our site and to protect such information. We use leading technologies and encryption software to safeguard your data, and operate strict security standards to prevent unauthorised access. Webpages from which we collect your information will be under a secure https:/ address and may display a padlock symbol at the bottom of your screen.

  Where you use passwords, ID numbers, or other special access features on this site, you have a responsibility to take steps to safeguard them.

• Why we collect your information

  Any personal information you provide will be used to respond to your enquiry or policy application. All personal data about you is treated in confidence - please refer to How we use your information. Our purposes for holding personal information, and general description of the people and organisations to whom we may disclose it, are listed in the Register of Data Controllers. You may inspect this, or obtain a copy of the relevant entry from the Office of the Information Commissioner (and at their website: www.ico.gov.uk).

  We have a responsible mailing policy, and may contact you from time to time to inform you of the products or services that we provide, or we may pass your details to other carefully selected organisations whose services we think may be of interest to you. If you would like to continue to receive this information, you need take no further action. However, if you would prefer not to be part of our mailing programme, please contact us.