Policies

Privacy

1.  Privacy Form

1.1  This Privacy Form (“Privacy Form”) applies to the collection, use, storage and disclosure of personal information by Avenyou Finance Solutions Pty Ltd A.C.N. 619 019 975 (“Avenyou Finance”), Avenyou Asset Finance Pty Ltd A.C.N. 649 035 914 (“Avenyou Asset Finance”) and Avenyou Accounting & Advisory Pty Ltd A.C.N. 003 084 848 (“Avenyou Accounting”), collectively referred to as “we”, “our”, “us” and “Avenyou”, and including our employees, contractors, agents and assigns.

1.2  Avenyou is committed to providing you with a quality service and handling your private information fairly and lawfully. We comply with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles as set out in the Privacy Act.

2.  Avenyou

Avenyou offers accounting, advisory and finance solution services, and maintains a website (the “Site”) which includes information about Avenyou and the services we provide. The Site may also include general resources such as news articles. 

3.  Collection of Personal Information

3.1  We may collect personal information from you as required in order to provide you with access to the Site and to provide services to you, and as otherwise required by law. The personal information which we may collect may include, but is not limited to;

a)  Information about your identity, such as name, address and contact details;

b)  Financial and credit information;

c)  Photographic information such as your identity documentation;

d)  Tax file numbers and prior tax returns;

e)  Visa, work permit or foreign investor status;

f)  Details of investment, superannuation and insurance plans;

g)  Salary and employment history;

h)  Trust, company and other business and family structure documents; and

i)  IP address and information regarding what pages of the Site are accessed and when.

3.2  We will not collect sensitive information unless it is for the primary purpose of the service we are providing and with prior notice to you, unless otherwise required by law.

3.3  You acknowledge that the personal information which we collect is reasonably necessary for us to provide our services to you and/or for us to comply with our professional obligations. Although you have the option of not identifying yourself or using a pseudonym, we do not recommend this as it will greatly limit or prevent our ability to provide services to you.

3.4  Where reasonable and possible, we collect personal information directly from the individual to whom the personal information relates via methods such as client questionnaires, telephone conversations, email correspondence and face to face meetings. You acknowledge and agree that we may also collect personal information about you from other organisations for the purpose of providing our services to you, including credit information from a credit reporting body. All such personal information will be managed in accordance with the Privacy Act and this Privacy Form.

3.5  You acknowledge that our server automatically collects information about your use of the Site. This “Navigational Data” includes the type of browser you are using, your IP address, the URL you have come from and the time spent at that URL, cookies and your domain type and server. We use this information to monitor your use of the Site.

3.6  You acknowledge that when using the Site, cookies will be placed on your device to keep track of your use of our Site, designed to provide a better user experience for you. Cookies do not capture or track any personal information, however you may elect to set your device so that cookies are not so placed. 

3.7  You acknowledge that our Site may contain links to third party websites and mobile applications, for your convenience. You acknowledge that we do not have any control over how third parties manage their websites and mobile applications and we recommend that you review their respective privacy policies. 

3.8  You acknowledge that if you provide personal information to us about a third party, you will have first taken reasonable steps to make that third party aware of the matters referred to in this Privacy Form and you are warranting to us that you have their consent to the collection, use and disclosure of that personal information. All such personal information will be managed in accordance with the Privacy Act and this Privacy Form.

4.  Holding of Personal Information

4.1  We hold personal information in hard copy and electronic formats. We have stringent security measures in place relating to both the physical and technological information we retain, including a firewall system on our computers, password protection for our software systems and restricting access to electronic files to only the employees directly involved in your matter. 

4.2  To comply with our service obligations, our document retention policy is to keep all communication records and records relating to current and past clients for a minimum of 7 years, and records relating to Self-Managed Superannuation Funds for a minimum of 10 years. Certain documents, such as a Will or Power of Attorney, may be kept in our records indefinitely. As retention will depend on the service provided, we recommend asking our office how long your file will be retained if you have any concerns.

4.3  Unfortunately, the transmission of information via the internet is not completely secure. Although we will take all reasonable steps to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee the security of your personal information transmitted to us electronically and any transmission is at your own risk.

4.4  Upon receiving your personal information we will take all reasonable steps to ensure that it is secure from any unauthorised access, misuse or disclosure. However we do not guarantee that personal information cannot be accessed by an unauthorised person or that unauthorised disclosure will not occur.

5.  Use and Disclosure of Personal Information

5.1  We endeavour to only use personal information held about you for the primary purpose of providing our services to you.

5.2  Your personal information may be shared between Avenyou Finance, Avenyou Asset Finance and Avenyou Accounting. As Avenyou Finance and Avenyou Asset Finance operate through two aggregators, Australian Finance Group Pty Ltd (“AFG”) and National Finance Choice Pty Ltd (“NFC”), when dealing with Avenyou Finance or Avenyou Asset Finance your personal information may also be shared with AFG and/or NFC.

5.3  We may disclose personal information held about you;

a)  To such other third parties as may be required in connection with our providing services to you (which may include government agencies; entities who provide finance or other products, or to whom an application has been made for such finance or products; financial consultants, accountants, lawyers and advisers; any of our associates, related entities or contractors; referees such as your employer to verify information you have provided; any person considering acquiring an interest in our business or assets; and any organisation providing online verification of your identity).

b)  With your prior consent;

c)  If we are under a duty to disclose your personal information in order to comply with any legal obligation, or to protect the rights, property or safety of Avenyou, its clients or others (including in response to any complaint regarding our services); or

d)  As otherwise required or permitted by law.

5.4  If within your course of business with us we aid in the application of credit and mortgage services, we may need to obtain a credit report. The Privacy Act limits the information we can give to credit bodies in the process of obtaining a credit report. Any credit information obtained will be treated as private personal information and will be subject to our stringent standards as outlined in this Privacy Form. We recommend discussing with your mortgage broker what information will be shared and what this could mean for you. 

5.5  We may also use and disclose personal information held about you for secondary purposes which are related to the primary purpose of providing services to you. You acknowledge and agree that those secondary purposes may include;

a)  Recommending a service offered by Avenyou or a trusted referral partner which we believe may be of interest to you;

b)  Sending you regular updates or newsletters by email or post; 

c)  Notifying you of any changes to our business or other news which may be relevant to your circumstances; and

d)  Contacting you for sales purposes;

which you may at any time decline to receive by notifying us by email or phone. 

6.  Cross-Border Disclosure

6.1  Avenyou will not share your information with third parties internationally, except to the extent that Avenyou Finance and Avenyou Asset Finance engage an offshore processing team. The likely areas, type of information disclosed and likely recipients are indicated, so far as is practicable, in the table below;

6.2  We take reasonable steps to ensure that the offshore processing team complies with the same procedures and processes regarding personal information, and upholds the same privacy standard, that we do. 

6.3  Additionally, the email and software providers (such as Outlook) which Avenyou uses may engage in overseas data storage. Again we only use trusted and well-respected providers which would maintain stringent privacy standards.

7.  Access to Personal Information

7.1  You may, at any time, request access to the personal information which we hold about you by email or by visiting our offices. We will respond to such request within a reasonable time of it being received by us.

7.2  We will endeavour to provide access in the manner requested by you if it is reasonable and practicable to do so, otherwise we will take such steps as are reasonable to provide access in a way that meets both your and our needs.

7.3  We will generally not charge you to access your personal information. We may charge if large expenses are incurred in which circumstance, the fee will be a reasonable estimate such as an hourly rate and photocopying expenses. Our fee would be discussed and agreed with you, and payment in full required, prior to our making access available.

7.4  We will only deny you access to your personal information if we reasonable foresee it adversely impacting the privacy of a third party, compromising our professional obligations or if it is considered commercially sensitive. We will inform you if this is the case and explain our decision. 

8.  Correction of Personal Information

8.1  You may, at any time, request us to update or correct the personal information which we hold about you by email or by visiting our offices. We will respond to such request within a reasonable time of it being received by us.

8.2  We will generally not charge you to update or correct your personal information. We may charge if large expenses are incurred in which circumstance, the fee will be a reasonable estimate such as an hourly rate and photocopying expenses. Our fee would be discussed and agreed with you, and payment in full required, prior to our updating or correcting your personal information as requested. 

8.3  Where personal information which has previously been disclosed to another organisation in accordance with the Privacy Act and this Privacy Form has been corrected you may, at any time, request us to notify the other organisation of the correction. We will take such steps as are reasonable to give that notification unless it is impracticable or unlawful to do so.

8.4  If we refuse your request to correct your personal information we will give you written notice in accordance with the Privacy Act including setting out the ground/s of the refusal (except to the extent that it would be unreasonable to do so) and the mechanisms to complain about the refusal.

8.5  If we refuse your request to correct your personal information, you may request that we associate with your personal information a statement that in your view the information is inaccurate, out of date, incomplete, irrelevant or misleading. We will take such steps as are reasonable to associate the statement with your personal information in such a way that the statement will be apparent to users of the information.

9.  Changes to Privacy Form

9.1  Avenyou reserves the right to update or modify this Privacy Form as we reasonably see fit. Any changes will be notified by publishing a copy of the updated Privacy Form on our Site.

9.2  If you continue to use our Site and/or deal with Avenyou after publication of such updated Privacy Form, you will be deemed to have read and understood the terms of the updated Privacy Form.  

10.  Questions and Complaints

10.1  If you require any further information, have any questions, believe your privacy has been breached or wish to make a complaint regarding how we handle your personal information, you can contact our Privacy Protection Team;

a)  By mail: Privacy Officer
Avenyou Accounting & Advisory Pty Ltd
Avenyou Finance Solutions Pty Ltd
Avenyou Asset Finance Pty Ltd

GPO Box 7055, Sydney NSW 2001

b)  By email: info@avenyou.net.au 

10.2  We will take steps to respond to you and address any concerns or complaints within 30 days of receipt. We will work collaboratively with you to investigate and resolve any complaint. If you are not satisfied with the resolution of any complaint, you may refer your concerns to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, they can be contacted through their website www.oaic.gov.au or by calling 1300 363 992.

11.  Data Breaches

11.1  We have implemented a data breach response plan to assist us to contain and respond to suspected unauthorised access to and use of personal information.

11.2  Our data breach response plan sets out the process for our staff to identify a data breach, appoints a team to handle the breach and outlines the notification process of affected parties and the Australian Information Commissioner. It also outlines the post-breach review and assessment procedures.

12.  Emails

12.1  Avenyou email transmissions and any documents, files and previous e-mail messages attached to it are private and confidential. They may contain proprietary or copyright material or information that is subject to legal professional privilege. They are for the use of the intended recipient only.

12.2  Any unauthorised viewing, use, disclosure, copying, alteration, storage or distribution of, or reliance on, an Avenyou email message is strictly prohibited. No part may be reproduced, adapted or transmitted without the written permission of the owner. If you have received a transmission in error, or are not an authorised recipient, please immediately notify the sender by return email, delete this message and all copies from your e-mail system, and destroy any printed copies.

12.3  Receipt by anyone other than the intended recipient should not be deemed a waiver of any privilege or protection. Avenyou does not warrant or represent that this e-mail or any documents, files and previous e-mail messages attached are error or virus free.

13.  Site Disclaimer and Disclosure 

13.1  The information provided on the Site is of a general nature only and has not taken into account your specific objectives, needs and financial situation. The information may not be appropriate to your individual needs and you should seek advice from your financial adviser before making any financial decisions.

13.2  This Site is for informational purposes only and is not intended to provide commercial, financial, investment, accounting, tax or legal advice. It is provided to you for your own personal use. It is not for purposes of resale, distribution or public display or any other uses by you in any form or manner whatsoever.

13.3  The performance of the Site and all information contained within, or accessed from the Site are provided to you on an “as is” basis, without warranties of any kind whatsoever, including any implied warranties or warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose or non-infringement of the rights of third parties.

13.4  Avenyou shall not be responsible for any problems or technical malfunction of any telephone network or computer on-line systems, servers, Internet access providers, computer equipment, software or any combination thereof, including any injury or damage to your hardware or another person’s hardware or software, as a result of using the Site. Avenyou reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to modify, disable and discontinue temporarily or permanently, any part or all of the Site.

13.5  We may alter or withdraw any information contained on the Site without liability or notice to you. As a visitor to our Site, you acknowledge and agree that any reliance on or use of any information available on the Site shall be entirely at your own risk. In no event will Avenyou nor any of its data providers be liable for any direct, indirect, consequential or exemplary damages arising from the use or the performance of the Site.

14.  Acknowledgement 

I agree that by accessing and/or using the Site, I will be deemed to have read and understood, and to have agreed to be bound by, the terms of this Privacy Form. I acknowledge that this Privacy Form shall continue to apply on all future occasions that I access and/or use the Site, and consent to these terms on an ongoing basis.

Credit Guide

This Credit Guide provides you with the key information that you need to know to make an informed and confident choice when engaging our products and services. 

This Credit Guide summarises our goals and standards, offerings, fees, and commissions. Please don’t hesitate to ask if you need more information or clarification.

Overview

We hold the necessary mortgage broking experience and qualifications in accordance with the National Consumer Credit Protection Act, 2009 to provide you with assistance. We are required to meet specific competency standards relating to educational and professional development. You can be confident that we are held accountable to not only our organisation’s high ethical standards / values, but also have a responsibility to maintain the regulatory standards that are set by both Commonwealth and State governments. 

Our mission is to ensure we offer our clients the best service and most appropriate products to suit their individual needs through our professionalism and attention to detail. Ultimately, our goal is to ensure applicants are provided with a loan that meets their objectives. 

We guarantee to listen to your needs and your instructions, ensuring that there is collaborative agreement through each step of the finance application process. 

Our relationships and alliances with likeminded quality organisations ensure we are positioned to offer the best quality service as well as offering complementary financial services where appropriate.

Suitability of Loans to Your Financial Objectives 

By law, before entering into a specific credit contract, we are obliged to conduct a Preliminary Credit Assessment to determine what kind of loans would be suitable for you. In consultation with you, we will explore and discuss with you your financial situation, financial objectives and borrowing needs before we determine which loan product may suit your requirements. 

For the purposes of the Preliminary Credit Assessment, we will need to ask you some questions in order to assess whether the loan or lease is not unsuitable. The law requires us to: 

• make reasonable inquiries about your requirements and objectives; 
• make reasonable inquiries about your financial situation; and 
• take reasonable steps to verify that financial situation. 

The assessment will be conducted prior to recommendation of a particular product. The assessment will involve collection and verification of financial information to determine the appropriate loan amount and the loan costs associated with entering a credit contract. This will ensure that your circumstances will be assessed appropriately and that the options suggested will not place you in financial hardship. Once completed, this Preliminary Credit Assessment is only valid for 90 days. A copy of the Preliminary Credit Assessment will be available to you, on request – this will be available up to 7 years after we provide you with credit assistance. 

Prior to the Preliminary Credit Assessment being conducted, we may provide you with Product summaries that highlight various key features and benefits of the product. We may also provide you with Product Comparison documents that allow you to compare the features and benefits of each product and assess the suitability to your requirements.

Lenders Available

We aim to provide you with information from a range of lenders and products / loans. Once you have chosen a loan that is suitable for you, we will help you obtain an approval. 

Fees, Charges, Commission and Disclosures

Fees payable by you to third parties – When the credit application (loan) is submitted, you may need to pay the lender’s application fee, valuation fees, or other fees that are associated with the loan application process, even if the loan is ultimately unsuccessful. 

Fees payable by you to the licensee – If a fee is payable by you, this will be disclosed in a Credit Quote that will be provided to you. If a Credit Quote is not supplied, this will indicate that we do not charge consumers any fees. 

Payments received by the licensee – Please take notice that the licensee may receive fees, commissions, or financial rewards from Lenders or Lessors in connection with any finance we arrange for you. These fees are not payable by you. 

The commission / brokerage amount depends on the amount of the finance and may vary from product to product. We can provide you with information about a reasonable estimate of those commissions and how the commission is worked out if you require. 

Commissions are paid based on a percentage of the loan balance that is drawn down which in most cases will be net of any amounts you hold in an offset account. The way commissions are calculated and paid to us by lenders may vary. By following the responsible lending requirements, we will ensure the loan recommended to you is not unsuitable for your situation and objectives.  

Fees payable by the licensee to third parties – We may pay fees to call centre companies, real estate agents, accountants, or lawyers and others for referring you to us. These referral fees are generally small amounts in accordance with usual business practice.

These are not fees payable by you. On request you can obtain a reasonable estimate of the amount of the fee and how it is worked out. 

From time to time, we may also remunerate other parties through payments, rewards or benefits. 

Tiered Servicing Arrangements  – Through your broker’s relationships with lenders they may have access to tiered servicing arrangements. The benefits of this access to these arrangements can include faster processing, better information or greater levels of assistance provided for obtaining loan approval. Your broker will advise you of any tiered service arrangements that are in place with a particular lender that they have proposed at the time recommendations are made. 

Access to this program is not based solely on the volume of new or existing lending your broker’s customers have with each respective lender and does not entitle them to any additional commissions outside of what they have disclosed to you, any additional payments or preferential customer discounts. 

Other disclosures, benefit or interests

Your AFG broker is prohibited from accepting gifts or inducements over $350. Any benefit given to your broker greater than $100 and less than $350 will be recorded in a Gifts Register. A copy of your broker’s register is available to inspect on request. If you wish to inspect the register, please contact your broker. 

Referrals 

We may receive obtain referrals from a range of sources, including accountants, financial planners, real estate agents and others. If you were introduced or referred to us, we may pay the referrer a commission, fee or remunerate them in other ways. Details of any commission or fees being paid to the referrer will be included in the Credit Proposal Disclosure document provided to you. 

Credit & Valuation Reports 

We may be provided access to free services such as credit report and valuations from our lenders. Details of any relevant services we may receive because of a recommendation we make to you, will be included in the Credit Proposal Disclosure document we provide to you. 

Multiple Roles 

I may act in other roles or capacities related to the credit assistance provided to you. Each business activity is separate however I may be paid remuneration in my other business activities as a result of the credit assistance provided to you. Further details any relevant remuneration we may receive because of a recommendation we make to you, will be included in the Credit Proposal Disclosure document we provide to you. 

Where I am unable to act in more than one capacity, I will refer you to another party who will provide you services due to a conflict of interest that cannot be managed appropriately by me. 

Related Parties 

We have relationships with a number of related parties and associates. Details of any remuneration or possible conflicts these relationships will be included in the Credit Proposal Disclosure document provided to you. 

Shareholding 

I may directly or indirectly hold shares in AFG or the lenders I recommend. Details of any material holdings will be included in the Credit Proposal Disclosure document provided to you. If my material holding does not enable me to act in more than one capacity, I will refer you to another party who will provide you services due to a conflict of interest that cannot be managed appropriately by me. 

Ownership Structures 

I may act in other roles or capacities related to the credit assistance I provide to you. Each of business activities are separate from another however I may be paid remuneration in my other business activities as a result of the credit assistance we provide to you. Further details any will be included in the Credit Proposal Disclosure document I provide to you. Where I am unable to act in more than one capacity, I will refer you to another party who will provide you services that I am unable to due to a conflict of interest that cannot be managed appropriately by me. 

AFG & AFG Home Loans 

AFG Home Loans Pty Ltd (including AFG Securities Pty Ltd) are wholly owned subsidiaries of AFG. AFG may receive additional remuneration for any white label AFG Home Loans or securitised AFG Securities products that are settled. The remuneration received is in addition to those amounts paid to AFG as a mortgage broker aggregator and/or licensee. Details of this remuneration will be disclosed in your AFG Home Loan documentation. 

About Credit Representatives 

Your broker is authorised to engage in credit activities by Avenyou Finance Solutions Pty Ltd. The licensee shares responsibility in the conduct of your broker.

Complaints 

Irrespective of our status as a licensee, representative or credit representative, our reputation is built on matching the appropriate product(s) to the individual’s requirements. We go to great lengths to ensure satisfaction with our services and offerings. However, there may be instances from time to time, where applicants may be dissatisfied with the outcomes of our consultation process. If you have a complaint about the service that we provide, the following steps or avenues for resolution are available to you. 

Step 1 

Most complaints arise from miscommunication and can usually be fixed quickly. So, please contact Christopher Luu (Known as: Chris) first and express about your concerns. 

Step 2 

If the issue is not satisfactorily resolved within 5 working days by talking with Christopher Luu (Known as: Chris), we will apply our internal complaints process to manage your complaint appropriately. In this instance, the complaint will be internally escalated to our Complaints Officer. You may also contact the Complaints Officer directly. 

Note: In some instances your broker may also be fulfilling the role of the Complaints Officer. This will not affect the capacity to have your complaint dealt with appropriately. By using our internal complaints process we hope to assist you to resolve your complaint quickly and fairly. The maximum timeframe in which to provide a written response to you is 30 days, although in pursuit of best practice and the reputation of our organisation, we aim to resolve these issues in a much shorter time frame. 

Step 3 

Although we try hard to resolve a customer’s concern in the most considerate and direct manner, if you are not completely satisfied after the above steps have been attempted, you still have other avenues available to resolve the dispute. This is then managed externally and independently. 

This external dispute resolution (EDR) process is available to you, at no cost. Two EDR schemes may be listed below. This indicates that the Credit Representative and their authorising Licensee are both required to be members (independently) of an ASIC approved EDR scheme. Where a Credit Representatives EDR is displayed, please contact that EDR scheme in the first instance for complaint escalation.

Things you should know 

We don’t make any promises about the value of any property you finance with us or its future prospects. You should always rely on your own enquiries. 

We don’t provide legal or financial advice. It is important you understand your legal obligations under the loan, and the financial consequences. If you have any doubts, you should obtain independent legal and financial advice before you enter any loan contract.