Privacy policy

Blackstone Financial Management Ltd – Privacy Notice

Blackstone Financial Management Ltd is committed to protecting your personal information. 

Our Privacy Policy contains important information about what personal details we collect, what we do with that information, who we may share it with and why; and your choices and rights when it comes to the personal information you have given us.

What information do we collect about you? 

We collect information about you when you engage us to provide financial advice. This information will relate to your personal and financial circumstances. It may also include special categories of personal data, such as data about your health, if this is necessary for the provision of our services.  We may also collect information when you voluntarily complete client surveys or provide feedback to us. 

Why do we need to collect and use your personal data? 

We take your privacy seriously, and we will only ever collect and use information which is personal to you where it is necessary, fair and lawful to do so. 

The primary legal basis we intend to use for processing your data is the performance of our contract with you. The information we collect about you is essential for us to carry out the services you require effectively. Without collecting your personal data, we’d also be unable to fulfil our legal and regulatory obligations. 

Where special category data is required, we’ll obtain your explicit consent in order to collect and process this information, except where it is exempt by virtue of being relevant for insurance underwriting purposes.

Special Category Person Data relates to Racial or ethnic origin, Political opinions, Religious or philosophical beliefs, Trade union membership, Genetic data, Biometric data, Data concerning health, Data concerning sex life or sexual orientation. We typically only need to ask for information about your health.

If you do not wish us to collect and use your personal information in this way, it may mean that we will be unable to provide you with any of our services. 

How will we use the information about you? 

We collect information about you in order to provide you with the services for which you engage us. 

Who might we share your information with?

To deliver our services to you effectively, we may share your details with third parties, such as those we engage for professional compliance, accountancy, or legal services, as well as product and platform providers we use to arrange financial products for you.  Where third parties are involved in processing your data, we’ll have a contract in place with them to ensure that the nature and purpose of the processing is clear, that they are subject to a duty of confidence in processing your data and that they’ll only act in accordance with our written instructions. Where it’s necessary for your personal data to be forwarded to a third party, we’ll use appropriate security measures to protect your personal data in transit. 

Where your information is processed 

Where your information is being processed outside of the UK, we take additional steps to ensure that your information is protected to at least an equivalent level as would be applied by UK data privacy laws e.g. we will put in place legal agreements with our third-party suppliers and do regular checks to ensure they meet these obligations. 

How we protect your information 

We take information and system security very seriously, and we strive to comply with our obligations at all times. Any personal information that is collected, recorded, or used in any way, whether on paper, online, or in any other medium, will be subject to appropriate safeguards in line with our data protection obligations.  Your information is protected by controls designed to minimise loss or damage arising from accident, negligence, or deliberate actions. Our employees also protect sensitive or confidential information when storing or transmitting information electronically and must undertake annual training on this.  Our security controls are aligned to industry standards and good practice, providing a control environment that effectively manages risks to the confidentiality, integrity and availability of your information. 

How long do we keep hold of your information? 

In principle, your personal data shouldn’t be held for longer than is required under the terms of our contract for services with you. However, we are subject to regulatory requirements to retain data for specified minimum periods. We also reserve the right to retain data for longer than this due to the possibility that it may be required to defend a future claim against us. 

What are my rights? 

Under data protection law, you have the right to ask us for a copy of the information we hold about you and to have any inaccuracies corrected or removed. You may also ask us to delete or cease processing all personal data held by us or any processor with whom we have shared your data. We may not always be able to comply with a deletion request, but you can ask us to cease processing your data. In addition, you have the right to be informed about the data we collect, where it is located, with whom it is shared, the processing we undertake, and to question any automated decision-making processes. To do this, or if you require more information, please get in touch with us; our contact details are below.

Marketing 

If we send you information about our services, we will only send potentially relevant information and will do so under the lawful basis of ‘legitimate interests’. You may stop us from contacting you for non-contractual purposes at any time using the contact details below. 

What can you do if you are unhappy with how your personal data is processed? 

You can complain to us using the contact details below, and we will respond to your complaint as soon as possible, within 30 days. We have a complaints process in line with the latest requirements of the UK Information Commissioner’s Office.

Our supervisory authority for data protection is the Information Commissioner’s Office: www.ico.org.uk. If you are unhappy with our response to any complaint, you may then complain to the ICO. 0303 123 1113 (local rate)

How to contact us 

Email: enquiries@BlackstoneFM.com 

Address:  22b Station Road, Cheadle Hulme, Cheshire, SK8 7AB 

Telephone: 0161 482 8285