Privacy statement

Your privacy is important to us. Our privacy statement sets out how, and why the Buller District Council collects and stores your personal information, what we will use it for and with whom we can share it.

Openness and transparency are important to us. The Privacy Act 2020 requires us – like any other New Zealand agency – to tell you certain things about the personal information we need to carry out our functions. This is where we explain our privacy practices and why you can trust us to handle your information with care and respect.

To ensure we keep up with changes to our business, the Council may occasionally update this Privacy Statement.

We need to collect personal information for a number of reasons, however, this will only be necessary for a function or activity of the Council.

This information may include your name, gender, date of birth, image, addresses, email address, or telephone number where relevant to responding to your requests for information or providing you with our services and/or use of our facilities.

We may also collect personal information regarding your communications with us, or how you interact with us

Wherever possible your personal information will be collected from you, or anyone you authorise to provide us with your personal information.

We may collect personal information when you, or someone acting on your behalf, provides it to us directly. For example, when you:

• Communicate with us in person, by letter, phone or electronically.
• Complete and submit forms or applications for consents, licences, approvals, permits, funding, or other authorisations.
• Use, or register for, any of our services or facilities, such as our online services and apps, including libraries, hire of Council facilities, online payment services, newsletters, or service updates.
• Submit a written submission, request, or other feedback.
• Follow or post comments in response to our social media or other online communications.
• Apply for employment with us.
• Appear in any images and audio from Closed Circuit Television or body cameras, as described below.

Please be aware that this is an indicative list of examples only.

We may keep a record of any information you receive from us.

We may monitor and record your phone calls with us for quality control or staff training purposes. If your call is to be monitored and recorded, we will let you know at the time of the call.

We may collect personal information about you from other organisations, entities or persons to fulfil a necessary activity. These might include:

• Our related organisations, including Council Controlled Organisations.
• Our suppliers, which include organisations such as:
  • Land Information New Zealand
  • QV
  • other government departments
  • solicitors/conveyancers
  • the New Zealand Police
  • credit reporting agencies; and other organisations, entities and persons where you have expressly authorised us to request and obtain your information from them or you have authorised them to provide your information to us.

CCTV

We may collect video footage through various means, including:

• Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) may be used in particular areas such as service centres, libraries, parking facilities, and recreation centres, and to monitor public places in order to help reduce crime and anti-social behaviour. Where possible, signage will advise when CCTV equipment is being used. Only authorised people will be able to watch the CCTV footage for the purposes mentioned above or to regularly check the system is working. We will not actively attempt to identify individuals from the CCTV footage unless a reported or suspected incident needs investigation.

Cookies

When you visit or return to our website, we may use technology solutions such as cookies to provide you with better access to tailored information and services. A cookie is a small data file that a website or app sends to your device, which may be stored for later retrieval by the website or app. Some cookies we use last only for the duration of your website or app session and expire when you close your browser or exit the app. Other cookies are used to remember you when you return.

We use Google Analytics to further understand how some of our services may be improved. Google Analytics relies on the use of cookies. For details on what information is collected via the use of cookies, and how it is stored and used, see Google’s privacy policy(external link).

Accessing and correcting your personal information

You can ask us to confirm whether we hold any personal information about you, and you may request access to your personal information by emailing us at [email protected] or by coming into council offices on Brougham Street, Westport or in Reefton.

Once we have verified your identity, we will provide you with confirmation and access, unless we believe we can withhold the information under the Privacy Act.

You can ask us to correct the personal information we hold by emailing us at [email protected].  If we agree that your personal information needs to be corrected, we will do so and provide you with an amended record, if requested.

Your right to access and correct any personal information we hold is subject to the Privacy Act.

Questions or complaints

If you feel we have breached any of the principles set out in the Privacy Act or have a privacy issue you wish to discuss, please contact us via:

Website: Click here
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 03 788 9111 or 0800 807 239

If you believe there is a privacy dispute we cannot resolve, you can make a complaint to the Privacy Commissioner, who can investigate potential breaches of the privacy principles. You can contact the Privacy Commissioner by:

Phone: 0800 803 909 (Monday to Friday, 10:00am to 3:00pm)
Email: [email protected]
By Post: Office of the Privacy Commissioner, PO Box 10094, Wellington 6143