info@libcus.com

01629 810 222

Chartered Accountants Specialising in R&D Funding

Privacy Notice

May 2018

At Libcus Limited, we take the security and privacy of data very seriously. Please find an overview of our security measures which are continuously maintained and adhered to along with our privacy policy below.

Contents

This Privacy Notice explains in detail the types of business/personal data we may collect about you when you interact with us. It also explains how we will store and handle that data and keep it safe.

We hope the following sections will answer any questions you have but if not, please do get in touch with us.

It is very likely that we will need to update this privacy policy, if so, we will notify you of any significant changes. Please come back and check regularly.

  1. Legal Processing
  2. When do we collect your business/personal data?
  3. What business/personal data do we collect?
  4. How and why do we use your business/personal data?
  5. How is your business/personal data protected?
  6. Website
  7. Clients/Enquirers
  8. Who will the data be passed to?
  9. Third Party Privacy Policies
  10. Data Subject Rights
  11. To stop the use of business/personal data for direct marketing?
  12. Our Contact Details
  13. To contact the Regulator

1. Legal Processing

Data protection law states there are several legal reasons why a company may collect and process business data. Libcus works on the following basis in regard to:

Contract – We will process your business and personal data to fulfil a Research & Development Tax claim in order to comply with our contractual obligations.

Legal Compliance – If the law or government requires us to, we may need to collect and process your data. An example might be passing on details of fraud to law enforcement. All our clients are subjected to an anti-money laundering search as laid down by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and the HMRC.

Legitimate Interest – In some cases we are required to store business and personal data to pursue our legitimate interests in a way which might reasonably be expected as part of running our business. This does not impact your freedom or rights.

2. When do we collect your business/personal data?

  1. When you speak to a Libcus Employee or visit our website.
  2. When both parties enter a contractual agreement.
  3. When you contact us by any means with queries, complaints etc.
  4. When you book any kind of appointment with us, for example, a meeting to discuss a R&D Tax claim.
  5. Libcus employees may access your business/personal data, including opinions, relating to conversations regarding R&D tax claims.
  6. When you’ve given a third party permission to share with us the information they hold about you.
  7. When a third party has gained permission for Libcus to contact you.

3. What business/personal data do we collect?

  1. Details of your interactions with us through phone contact, meeting, email or online. Examples might be notes from conversations with you, complaint details, comments, and web visits.
  2. Copies of documents you provide in order for us to process your claim. This will include details of your full name, work address, telephone number, and relevant financial information.
  3. Details of your visits to our website, and which site you came from to ours.
  4. Information gathered by the use of cookies in your web browser.

4. How and why do we use your business/personal data?

We want to give you the best possible service as the data privacy law allows.

Of course, if you wish to change how we use your data, you’ll find details in in section 10.

Remember, if you choose not to share your personal data with us, or refuse certain contact permissions, we might not be able to provide the services that you have asked for.

Here’s how we’ll use your business/personal data and why:

  • In order to process and submit a claim to the HMRC R&D unit on your behalf.
  • To respond to your queries regarding HMRC payments, and complaints. Handling the information you sent enables us to respond. We may also keep a record of these to inform any future communication with us and to demonstrate how we communicated with you throughout. We do this on the basis of our contractual obligations to you, our legal obligations and our legitimate interests in providing you with the best service and understanding how we can improve our service based on your experience.
  • With your consent, we will use your business/personal data, preferences and details to keep you informed of your R&D tax claim. 
  • We will use your business/personal data to send you communications required by law or which are necessary to inform you about any changes to the services we provide to you.
  • For example, updates to this Privacy Notice, marketing data misuse issues, and legally required information relating to your claim(s). If we do not use your personal data for these purposes, we would be unable to comply with our legal obligations.
  • To comply with our contractual or legal obligations to share data with law enforcement. Our anti-money laundering policy, required by both HMRC and the ICO, means that we need to use your business/personal data to carry out appropriate searches and monthly monitoring.

5. How is your business/personal data protected?

We will treat your data with the utmost care and take all appropriate steps to protect it.

We monitor our system to identify ways to further strengthen security.

Data Breach policy

All Clients and the regulator ICO, will be notified within 72 hours of a data breach being reported to us.

New Prospecting Data

All marketing cold calling of new business data is supplied to Libcus, by controlled regulated data suppliers. Records have been validated to receive calls and emails (B2B) and TPS / CTPS checked.

CRM data is secure and encrypted with logins and passwords, with daily backups removed from the business address on close of business.

6. Website

What specific information is obtained?

Our website does not collect specific, detailed information about you as a visitor to our site.

Where information is gathered through live chat or online email enquiry, we will inform you of this along with the explanation of why it is required. This information will be for purposes such as responding to an enquiry made. We will ask for this information in order for us to get in touch and provide the relevant information which has been requested from you.

Are any payment details stored?

Not applicable

What information is retained?

Cookies and tracking software are used on a temporary basis and expire when the site has been left. These are used for purposes such as website improvement. Google Analytics is also used for the same reason of website improvement and understanding how you use it. This information is not shared with anyone.

By using the website, you are consenting to the use of cookies to retain session information for the purposes listed above. This information is held in your web browser and is removed at the end of your session.

  • Browser used (Bing, Chrome, Internet Explorer etc.)
  • Location (based on IP address)
  • Device(s) used
  • Frequency on Site
  • Session duration (time spent on the site)
  • Page(s) visited
  • Page session duration (time spent on specific page)
  • Web Surfing Behaviours

Our Details

If you need to contact us then please find the relevant details on our website contact page.

7. Clients/Enquirers

We hold information about clients/enquirers as it is necessary for us to do so in order for us to conduct our business activities.

What business/personal information is held?

The business/personal information we collect and hold is the following: –

  • Full Name
  • Company Name
  • Company Address
  • Company Website Address
  • Email Address
  • Phone Number
  • Initial Requirements
  • Contracted Client Claim Information

8. Who will the claim information be passed to?

This information will not be passed on to anyone other than authorised employees of Libcus and relevant processors for example HMRC or clients’ accountants. Additionally, if a legal matter were to arise, then we may need to provide this information for those purposes.

  • In this instance, we provide only the information required to perform the service
  • The data will only be used for that exact purpose

Examples of these are:

  • HMRC
  • Clients
  • Client Accountants

What is the reason for holding/using the information held?

While you are a client of Libcus, the basis for processing your data is ‘contract’. When you are no longer an active client of Libcus the basis is ‘legitimate interest’ in case you may wish to use our services again at some time in the future. We may also retain information on new business enquiries on our services.

9. Third Party Data Policies

We also hold Privacy policy statements for the following:

  • IT Companies who support our business systems/data suppliers

10. Data Subject Rights

You have the right to ask for information we hold on you and your company.

The data we hold will be corrected if we are notified of errors.

You have the right to stop us processing your business/personal data under legitimate interest for individual reasons. We will comply unless we believe there is a legitimate overriding reason to continue processing.

11. To stop the use of business/personal data for direct marketing:

Click Unsubscribe Link in any email communication that we send you. We will then stop all communication with you. 

Write to:

Compliance Officer

Libcus Ltd
Diamond House, Diamond Court
Bakewell
Derbyshire
DE45 1EW

12. Our Details

If you need to contact us then please find the relevant details on our contact page on our website.

13. To contact the regulator, please see below:

0303 123 113 or go to www.ico.org.uk

Policy Updated – May 2018