The Wills Register Privacy Policy

Protecting your personal information is extremely important to The Wills Register. This is our privacy policy which sets out how we use and protect your personal information. This will take effect during May 2018 and may be subject to change in the future. You can find the most recent version of this policy on willsregister.co.uk

If you have any specific concerns around the privacy of your personal data or require further information about how we manage your personal information, please contact us directly:

By Post: The Wills Register, PO Box 331, Folkestone, Kent, CT20 2GH
By Phone: 01303 248644
By email: [email protected]

Your Data Protection Statement
Introduction

Your personal data is data which by itself or with other data available to us can be used to identify you. Where there are two or more people named, this data protection statement applies to each person separately.

The types of personal data we collect and use
  1. Full name and personal details including contact information (e.g. home address, email address, home/mobile telephone numbers.
  2. Date of birth, gender, marital status, visual impairment, mental capacity and understanding of written English.
  3. Full name and address and date of birth of any children, grandchildren, step children and step grandchildren.
  4. Your testamentary wishes (e.g. details of your chosen executors, guardians of your minor children, your funeral wishes, bequests and beneficiaries and division and beneficiaries of your residuary estate).
  5. Any other data deemed necessary to perform our contract (e.g. any other financial dependents, details of any mortgage, any life insurance, foreign property, any foreign wills and details of any holdings in private businesses).
  6. Your bank details to establish a standing order or direct debit for the charge if you choose to use our will safe facility to store your original will document or for transferring a legacy when acting in the administration of an estate.
  7. Hard copy ID evidence such as passport/drivers licence/utility bill for ID in releasing a will to an executor or ID of a beneficiary when acting in the administration of an estate.
Using your personal data: the legal basis and purposes
We will process your personal data:
  1. As necessary to perform our contract with you for the relevant service: a) To take steps at your request before entering into it; b) To decide whether to enter into it; c) To manage and perform that contract; d) To update our records.
  2. Special category (sensitive) data: Where you have consented, we will process any medical & health and any other sensitive information solely for the purpose of drafting your will (e.g. a blind person will need a special attestation clause inserted in their will).
  3. Based on your consent: (e.g. you are an executor applying for the release of an original will).
  4. As necessary for our own legitimate interests.
Sharing your personal data
Subject to the applicable data protection laws we may share your data with:
  1. The Wills Register Group of companies.
  2. Subcontractors and other persons that help us provide our services.
  3. Companies and other persons providing services to us.
  4. Our legal and other professional advisors.
  5. Companies, your financial adviser and other persons who may have assisted you in providing us with your personal data (e.g. while taking your will instructions).
  6. The Court of Protection or other bodies or persons as necessary in the event of your lost capacity.
  7. In defending any claim against us.
  8. Your Executor(s) and their Attorney(s) and all Courts, government departments, bodies, companies and persons necessary after your death and in the administration of your estate.
  9. When we restructure or sell our business or its assets or have a merger or re-organisation.
Criteria used to determine retention periods (whether or not you become a customer)
The following criteria are used to determine data retention periods for your personal data.
  1. Retention in case of queries. We will retain your personal data as long as necessary to deal with your queries (e.g. if we decline your request to draft your will for any reason).
  2. We will keep your personal information in accordance with our internal retention policies. We will determine the length of time we keep it for based on the minimum retention periods required by law, regulation or will writing industry procedures. We will only keep your personal information after this period if there is a legitimate and provable business reason to do so.
The GDPR provides the following rights for individuals:
Your rights are as follows noting that these rights don’t apply in all circumstances.
  1. The right to be informed about our processing of your personal data.
  2. The right to request access to your personal data and information about how we process it.
  3. The right to rectification if your personal data is inaccurate or incomplete.
  4. The right to have your personal data erased.
  5. The right to restrict processing of your personal data.
  6. The right to data portability, move, copy or transfer your personal data.
  7. The right to object to processing of your personal data.
  8. Rights in relation to automated decision making and profiling.
Transferring your data outside the EU

The data that we collect from you may be transferred to, and stored at, a destination outside the European Economic Area ("EEA") to third-party suppliers, delegates or agents. We’ll take all reasonably necessary steps to make sure that your data is treated securely and in accordance with this privacy policy.

We’ll only transfer your data to a recipient outside the EEA where we’re permitted to do so by law (for instance, (A) where the transfer is based on standard data protection clauses adopted or approved by the European Commission, (B) where the transfer is to a territory that is deemed adequate by the European Commission, or (C) where the recipient is subject to an approved certification mechanism and the personal information is subject to appropriate safeguards, etc.).

Unfortunately, sending information via e-mail is not completely secure; anything you send is done so at your own risk. Once received, we will secure your information in accordance with our security procedures and controls.

You may request that we send a printed copy of your will to a destination outside the EEA. This will be sent by normal post at your own risk.

Security

We take all reasonable precautions to keep your personal information secure, including safeguards against unauthorised access, use or data loss. Unfortunately, sending information electronically or by post is not completely secure. Any of your personal data sent electronically or by post to or from us is sent at your own risk.

Making a data protection complaint

If you have any questions about this privacy policy or wish to exercise any of your rights, including changing your marketing preferences, please get in touch with us using the contact details above.

If you have any concerns about the way we process your personal data, or are not happy with the way we’ve handled a request by you in relation to your rights, you also have the right to make a complaint to the Information Commissioner's Office. Their address is:

First Contact Team
Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
SK9 5AF