Copyright & PrivacyMana tārua me te noho matatapu

When we say ‘personal information’, we mean identifiable information about you, including:

• Identity including your name, date of birth, gender, age, ethnicity, and marital status
• Contact details including address, email address, and telephone numbers
• Financial details including banking details and card payment details
• Transaction details including details about payments to and from you and other details of services you have requested
• Technical information including internet protocol (IP) address, browser type and version, time zone setting and location, browser plug-in types and versions, operating system and platform and other technology on the devices you use to access our platforms
• Profile information including requests made by you, your feedback and survey responses

Usage information including information about how you use our platforms, facilities and services.

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

• register with, or use, any of our products, services or facilities, or interact with our Platforms
• complete and submit forms that we provide (for example, applications to receive rates correspondence by email, applications to pay rates by direct debit, applications for consents, licences, approvals, permits, funding or other authorisations)
• contact us requesting or enquiring about information or services
• provide us with feedback
• prepare and submit a written submission
• subscribe to any of our newsletter or update services
• conduct transactions through this website (or any of our other Platforms)
• participate in a promotion or competition carried out by us or by a third party with official affiliation or support from us
• participate in market research or surveys carried out by us or by a third party on our behalf
• volunteer with us)
• submit a query, complaint, comment or similar to us via Facebook Messenger
• follow or post comments in response to our social media or other facilities such as Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube
• apply for employment with us
• attend a meeting that is filmed or recorded (you will know which meetings are being filmed/recorded as there will be a sign
• warning of this before you enter into the meeting room)
• we may monitor and record phone calls
• provide us with services

We may collect personal information about you from other organisations, entities or persons, such as:

• Land Information New Zealand for our rating purposes
• Your city/district council for our rating purposes or for other purposes with your authorisation
• Quotable Value and Valor (and other registered valuers) for our rating purposes
• Solicitors/conveyancers
• the New Zealand Police
• credit reporting agencies
• our suppliers, contractors and service providers in relation to products, services and facilities they provide on our behalf
• other organisations, entities and persons where you have expressly authorised them to provide us with information.

We, and our internet service providers, may also collect information indirectly through your use of our Platforms and the services and functionality offered through them (for example through browser cookies).  See the paragraph below on Website Information Collection.

We only collect your personal information when it is necessary for a specific purpose connected with the services we provide. The purpose for collecting and using your information varies according to the services you are using. In general, we collect your personal information fairly with your consent, for example in the performance of a contract with you, or to comply with laws and regulations.

Some of the purposes for which we may collect and use your personal information are:

• to positively confirm your identity (this is to avoid inappropriate release or use of your information)
• responding to your enquiries, comments, complaints or requests for information or services
• processing your application for consent, licence, approval, permit, funding or other authorisation
• processing your application to use or register for our products, services or facilities, including to gain access to information on our Platforms made available only to registered users, and ongoing management of your use or registration
• consultation, market research and surveys
• to provide you with products, services, or resources
• to provide information about events, news, services or facilities that may be of interest to you
• to update the information we hold about you
• to administer and improve the Platforms
• processing transactions that you may conduct through any of our other Platforms
• to process payments received or made by us
• assessing suitability for employment

We may also use your personal information for the purpose of:

• complying with any relevant legislation or regulations
• quality improvement (such as compliance with our audit obligations or for continuous improvement of our products and services)
• statistical analysis, in which case your personal information will be aggregated and used in a way that will not identify you personally

With your consent, we will also use your contact details to contact you about HBRC activities, services and consultations that may affect or be relevant to you.  You can opt out if you do not want this.  

Access to your information is confined to authorised users only, including our officers and employees. We may share your information with:

• any person we engage to provide you with products or services on our behalf or to assist with delivery of our products or services (for example, agents, suppliers, contractors and other service providers), but only where necessary for the provision of those products or services
• Council Controlled Organisations in order to assist with the functions and services they provide
• anyone authorised by you to receive it
• where the information is going to be used in a way that could not identify you (such as statistical reporting)
• our lawyers, auditors and other professional advisors, but only to the extent necessary for the purpose for which we are engaging the relevant professional advisor
• where we are permitted or required to by any law or regulation or for legal proceedings or other investigations
• any person, if that information is held in a public register, e.g. information held on property files or the rating information database.

If you don’t give us with all of the personal information we need, we may not be able to adequately respond to your correspondence, process any applications you have submitted, provide the products, services or facilities you have requested, register you to gain access to certain features of our Platforms, process payments, or otherwise deal with any requests or enquiries.

In some circumstances, failure to provide information when requested may result be unlawful or result in legal consequences. These circumstances and the potential consequences will be explained when your personal information is requested.

Looking after your information is a priority for us. We take reasonable steps to protect your personal information from misuse, loss, damage, or unauthorised disclosure and limit access to those who need access in order to assist us in performing our duties and obligations. 

If we provide you with any passwords or other security devices it is important that you keep these confidential and do not allow them to be used by any other person. You should notify us immediately if the security of these passwords or devices is breached to prevent the unauthorised disclosure of your personal information.

If we become aware of any breach involving your personal information, we will comply with the requirements of the Act relating notification of privacy breaches.

When you interact with our Platforms, we may use technology solutions such as “cookies” to personalise and improve your experience. Cookies give us details such as your IP address, operating system, browser, search terms, pages accessed and links clicked, dates and times of visits, immediate previous site visited, and domain (whether you are accessing from New Zealand or elsewhere).

You can refuse cookies by changing your browser settings and you can clear them from your hard drive. If you disable cookies, it may limit your access to some of our content and features.

Analytics Services Provided by Others

We also use Google Analytics to provide aggregated reports on website activity.  Google Analytics relies on the use of cookies. For details on what information is collected via these cookies, and how it is stored and used, see Google's privacy policy.

All information collected through cookies and analytics is aggregated, so can’t be used to identify individuals.

We may record phone calls to the HBRC 0800 number (0800 108 838) and the main phone line at each HBRC location for quality and training purposes or to ensure that we have an accurate record of your call. We will let you know at the time of the call if we are recording a call. Recordings will be securely stored and will be managed in accordance with this privacy statement. 

Camera surveillance

We use CCTV and fixed or mobile cameras to help detect, investigate, and prevent criminal activity, and to protect the safety and security of our staff, visitors, and property. We will display clear signs in all areas where camera surveillance may be in operation.

Surveillance footage will only be viewed by authorised people in accordance with the purpose it was collected for or to ensure the system is operational. Camera footage is stored securely and automatically deleted after 90 days unless required for an ongoing investigation or legal proceedings.

We may pass footage of potentially unlawful activity to Police or other enforcement agencies, either on our initiative or following a request.

Drones and non-surveillance cameras (such as webcams)

We use drones and fixed and mobile cameras across the region to:

• monitor wildlife
• monitor and manage pests
• monitor environmental conditions, including erosion, river conditions, river flow, gravel extraction
• surveying and mapping
• emergency response and management
• infrastructure design, inspection and maintenance
• communications purposes, such as reporting, presentations, or publications

We will notify people when camera or drone surveillance is taking place through permanent or temporary signage. Where signs aren’t feasible, we will provide notice through Council social-media platforms.

We try to minimise the personal information we collect by positioning cameras to avoid capturing personal information and operating drones at heights and angles designed to minimise the collection of identifiable images.

We may need to retain footage collected for non-surveillance purposes for extended periods or indefinitely (e.g. to allow year-by-year comparison of river conditions or erosion). Where practical, we will blur faces or other identifying features before storing footage permanently.

Our use of drones is conducted in accordance with the Civil Aviation Authority’s rules and guidance.

Livestream footage from some water- and weather-monitoring cameras is available on our Extreme Weather Hub Dashboard. We have endeavoured to position cameras in locations, and at angles and heights, that minimise the collection of personal information. Footage is stored for 26 days before being overwritten.

Livestreaming of public Council meetings and photo/video footage at Council events

In the interests of making our decision-making process transparent and accessible, all public meetings of Council and its Core Committees are currently being livestreamed, recorded, and are also made available to the public on HBRC’s YouTube channel after the meeting.

Most of the filming will cover elected members as they speak and debate at the meeting, and of staff presenting reports and answering elected member questions.  However, the filming may also include shots of the public in the background and of anyone speaking at the meeting (such as in the public forum or at hearings on submissions).

Other types of public meetings and events organised by HBRC may be livestreamed, but you will be notified of this by signage at the entrance to the venue and/or by other communication prior to or at the meeting/event.

We may also take photos or video footage at events organised by HBRC and/or our CCOs for internal or external publications. Signage on display or other communication at an event will let you know if photography or filming will be taking place. If you do not want to be included in any photos or video footage, please talk to one of our staff present at the event or the photographer.

Requesting access to camera footage

If you would like to request access to HBRC controlled camera footage you can contact us at info@hbrc.govt.nz

If you make a submission in a HBRC public submission process, your submission (including your name, contact details and any other personal information in your submission) will be available to the public and published on our website, and/or in relevant Council reports, agendas and minutes.

When publishing public submissions online and in Council documents, we can choose to redact words and/or sentences that include:

• offensive or threatening language or remarks, including swear words or words in breach of legislation;
• any information that identifies people, including our staff;
• personal contact details.

We collect rating information for our rates collection purposes (including the names and postal addresses of ratepayers) from the district and city councils (or their valuation providers) in our region pursuant to the Local Government (Rating) Act 2002 (LGRA) and the Ratings Valuations Act 1998.  We also receive notifications of change of ownership of properties from LINZ (that includes the new ratepayers’ names and contact details).    

We are required by the LGRA to make certain rating information about properties in our region, including the names and postal addresses of ratepayers, publicly available.  Ratepayers may request to have their name and/or postal address withheld from our publicly available ratings information database under section 28C of the LGRA.  Ratepayers do not need to provide reasons for this request. 

To make a withholding request, contact us at info@hbrc.govt.nz.    

Where the HBRC website links to third-party websites or digital services, this privacy statement does not apply to those websites or services.  We recommend you read the third-party website or service’s privacy statement.

HBRC does not accept any responsibility or liability for the content, availability, or reliability of any linked websites. 

If you are using one of HBRC’s mobile applications, you acknowledge and accept that we can:

• choose to send you ’Push Notifications’. This is a message that pops up on a mobile device at any time. ’Push Notification’ preferences can be configured in the application's settings (you have the option to disable the notification when you open the app for the first time, and you can also go to your mobile phone setting to disable the notification).
• access your device’s location function and collect, use, and disclose this information as set out in this privacy statement (you can disable the ‘share location’ setting if you don't want our Platforms to access your location).

You have the right to know what information we hold about you, to request a copy and to request that we correct your information if inaccurate.

Accessing your information or obtaining a copy of your information

You can ask whether we hold any personal information about you and request access to the personal information that we hold about you. If you request to access your information, we take steps to confirm your identity (set out below). Once we have verified your identity, we will provide the confirmation and/or access unless one of the Privacy Act grounds for refusal applies.

Updating and correcting your information

If you think we have information about you that is inaccurate, you can ask us to correct it. If we do not agree that the information is incorrect, we'll make note of your request on the disputed information as a "statement of correction".

We will try to respond to your request as quickly as possible, and no later than 20 working days after you make your request. In some cases, there may be a reasonable charge associated with retrieving and providing a copy of your information to you. If so, we will advise you of this prior to sending your information.

If you want to check personal information that we hold about you or have any other access or correction requests, please contact us at info@hbrc.govt.nz. Please quote your name and address and, if possible, provide brief details of what information you want a copy of (this helps us to more readily locate your information).

Proof of identity

We must make sure we only give personal information to the right person. This is part of how we keep your personal information safe and is required by the Privacy Act 2020. 

You must provide two forms of identity document (ID) (at least one must be photographic).   

Accepted forms of photographic ID include:

• a passport
• drivers licence
• student identification
• KiwiAccess (18+) card
• firearms licence. 

Your second form of ID must include your name, such as:

• a birth certificate
• Community Services Card
• SuperGold card
• a bank/credit card statement
• a bill (like a power or rates bill)
• a second form of accepted photographic ID. 

Online, email, or postal request

We will accept photocopies, scans, or photographs of your ID but you must also provide a clear photograph of you holding your photographic ID.

If you send us copies of your ID, we will keep them only long enough to confirm your identity. While we hold your identity information, it is stored securely. 

In-person

If you prefer, you can have a HBRC staff member check your ID in person by visiting our reception.

We reserve the right to amend this privacy statement from time to time by posting an updated privacy statement on this website. We will collect, use, hold and disclose your personal information in accordance with our most recently updated version of the privacy statement.  We recommend that you regularly review this privacy statement when you visit this website.

If you have any questions or complaints about the handling of your personal information, please contact our Privacy Officer in the first instance at info@hbrc.govt.nz and we will do our best to assist. 

If you are still not satisfied, you can make a complaint to the Privacy Commissioner.  Further details on how to do this are available from the Office of the Privacy Commissioner website.