HCF Privacy Policy
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| HCF is committed to best practice privacy protection and we will do our best to protect your personal information from the moment you share it with us.
We also observe our obligations under the:
- Privacy Act 1988 (Cth);
- Health Records and Information Privacy Act 2002 (NSW);
- Health Records Act 2001 (VIC); and
- Health Records (Privacy and Access) Act 1997 (ACT).
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What sort of personal information does HCF collect?
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| HCF only collects information that is relevant to the insurance cover or services you ask for. The sort of information we need includes: name, address, your family/single status and date of birth. We also need contact details, including your email address.
We may need to collect additional information if you ask for life insurance. We may ask you about your type of employment, medical history, financial reports and previous insurance history.
Any personal information we collect can be used for what is called a secondary purpose, meaning a purpose other than the original one. For example, we may use the information you have already given us to provide you with further health services. We would only use or disclose this information in such a situation if you would reasonably expect us to do so or if we have your permission. When dealing with particularly sensitive information, such as your health, the secondary purpose must be directly related to the primary purpose. For further information about privacy please go to www.privacy.gov.au. |
What happens if you don't give HCF this information?
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| It is your right not to give us any information. However, if you choose not to give us the personal information we need, we may not be able to consider your application for insurance, administer your policy or provide you with relevant health services. Also, we may not be able to manage or pay any claims you make under your policy. |
How does HCF collect your personal information?
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| We collect the personal information you give us through our website, during phone calls, visits to branches or our Dental and Eyecare Centres, or from written correspondence.
Sometimes we may need to collect sensitive information from third parties such as doctors or hospitals so we can assess risks or process claims. We may also need to ask for information from another health fund, if you are looking to transfer your membership. Under some circumstances, HCF may contact a service provider who has treated you in the past, if the information would be relevant to your current treatment. In some situations we may have to disclose necessary, relevant and appropriate information to satisfy legal obligations. |
How does HCF use your personal information?
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In general
Your personal information is collected so that we can comply with laws, manage our relationship with you, record your treatment, provide health insurance and related products and services to you, assess your insurance, health and related lifestyle needs, develop products and services that may better serve those needs, and assess your possible interest in such products and services.
Developing programs for the benefit of members
From the personal information that we collect from our members in providing health insurance, we are able to develop programs that are intended for the benefit of members. In some instances, participation in these programs is offered to all members. In other instances, the invitation to participate is targeted at specific members who are most likely to benefit from participation in the programs.
Where the program is designed to assist members generally, we will inform members via a general communication of the availability of the program. For example, via the web site or through HCF publications or advertisements and invite them to participate in the program by opting in to the program.
Where the program is designed to assist members with specific illnesses and conditions we will offer those members the choice of opting in to participate in the program.
In relation to all programs:
- Participation is entirely voluntary;
- Participation or non-participation will not affect your member benefits or premiums or your client relationship in any way; and
- If you do not wish to participate in a program after you are invited to join, you may decline the invitation or may, at any time, withdraw from any program in which you may have been enrolled.
If you do not wish to be contacted regarding participation in any programs developed by us, you may ask for your name to be added to a "no contact" list. Members on this "no contact" list will not be invited to join any programs developed by us for the benefit of members. |
Does HCF disclose information to third parties?
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| At HCF we recognise the trust you place in us when you provide personal information. We will not sell or rent your information in any circumstances. We will not share or disclose any information about you to any third parties, other than Government Agencies, health service providers (where it is used to improve their ability to provide you with health services), research companies contracted to HCF (to ask your opinions on improving HCF’‘s service, benefits or product offerings), and mail houses. These organisations are under contractual obligations not to disclose your personal information.
The programs that we develop for the benefit of members are frequently administered by third party service providers. In order for them to administer these programs it may be necessary for us to disclose your personal information to them. As with other service providers, these organisations are under contractual obligations not to disclose your personal information and to only use that information solely for use in the program, and may not be used by the service provider to offer other services to HCF members. At the conclusion of the program the service provider is required to return that information to HCF or destroy any personal information about the member provided by HCF. If you choose to participate in the programs, these third party service providers may collect personal information, including sensitive information from you. That personal information is not disclosed to HCF.
We do not normally give personal information about you to anyone who is not on your membership. You will need to give us written permission if you want someone who is not covered by your membership, such as a friend or carer, to deal with HCF on your behalf.
Our privacy obligations extend to everyone who is covered by your policy, including partners and children. However, our contract with the contributor requires us to have full and free communication with the contributor on all aspects of the policy, including the benefits claimed under the policy. We send all communications on policies that cover more then one person to the address supplied by the contributor. |
Is the information that HCF holds about me accurate?
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| HCF takes reasonable steps to ensure that the information we hold about you is accurate when we use it or disclose it. You should contact us if you think your personal information is wrong. If you need to update your contact details, you can do so through the members’‘ section of our website. |
Can anyone outside HCF access my information?
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We have put in place safeguards to protect the personal information we hold from misuse, loss and unauthorised access, modification or disclosure. We destroy or permanently de-identify personal information we no longer need, wherever possible.
In the case of clinical information collected in our Dental Centres, your information will be held for at least seven years from the last time a health service was provided. If someone under the age of 18 used the health service, the information will be held until that person has turned 25.
We do not transfer personal information outside Australia or health information outside New South Wales unless it is in accordance with Australian privacy laws and it is necessary:
- To prove your membership of foreign health funds and to confirm waiting periods have been served;
- To investigate HCF travel insurance claims; or
- For the administration or delivery of life or health insurance and related products and services.
Transferring information may be particularly relevant if an overseas dental clinician needs the information to provide treatment. |
How is information from the HCF website collected and used?
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HCF collects information when you:
- Complete an online form;
- Give us your email address; or
- Access and use any of our services through our website.
We collect data from our website to help us understand which are the most popular pages and when the peak usage times are, along with other information that helps us improve the content and make the navigation easier.
When you visit our website, it will send a cookie to your computer. This is a small piece of information stored on your hard drive which tells us that your computer has accessed our website. The cookie will not identify you unless you've already given us personal information such as your name and email address.
If you do not want to use cookies, you can set your browser to reject them. |
What about linked websites?
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| We provide links to third party sites. Since we do not control these websites, we encourage you to review the privacy policies posted on these third party sites. HCF is not responsible for any practices on linked websites that might breach your privacy. |
How to access your personal information
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If you have a question about this Privacy Policy or want to access your personal information you can contact us:
- At an HCF branch
- Phone 13 13 34
- Write to:
HCF Privacy/Compliance Officer
Level 6
403 George St
Sydney NSW 2000
A request for access needs to include a full description of the personal information requested. If making a request in person, you will be asked for two forms of identification, one of which must have a photograph on it. If you request information over the phone, we will ask you identity-related questions so we can verify you. Your request for privacy information will be documented, as will details of the request and the identity of the person who gave it to you.
You will not be charged for accessing your information, although we might have to charge the reasonable cost of processing your request, including photocopying, copying of radiographs, supplying written reports, administration and postage. |
How HCF will respond to your request
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| Under current privacy laws, HCF has up to 45 days to respond to you; however, we will respond within 48 hours of receiving your request. We will do our best to deal with your request within five working days.
If we cannot help with your request, you will receive a written explanation as to why. |
Need further information?
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| For more information about privacy in general, you can visit the Privacy Commissioner's website at www.privacy.gov.au. |
Do you want to contact HCF anonymously?
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| You can certainly contact HCF anonymously. If you choose not to be identified, however, we are limited in our ability to insure you, pay your claims or offer you services. |
Can you complain about a breach of privacy?
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If you want to complaint about a privacy breach, you can visit an HCF branch, call 13 13 34 or email service@hcf.com.au. We will do our best to resolve your complaint as quickly as possible. See Complaints Handling section below.
If you are not satisfied with the result of your complaint to HCF, you can refer your complaint to the Federal Privacy Commissioner by phoning 1300 363 992, or writing to:
Director of Complaints
Office of the Federal Privacy Commissioner
GPO Box 5218
Sydney NSW 1042
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HCF Spam Policy
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| Nobody wants to receive spam. That's why HCF has put a robust anti-spam policy in place, and why we fulfil our obligations under the Spam Act 2003 (Cth) at all times. We will not send you any unsolicited commercial electronic messages without your consent. HCF also promises not to use address-harvesting software under any circumstances.
HCF has created internal policies and procedures to educate its staff on the Spam Act legislation. We have developed clear guidelines and rules about the dissemination of commercial electronic messages, which we enforce.
You can unsubscribe from any mailing list to which you have subscribed, at any time. To unsubscribe, simply email us at service@hcf.com.au and advise us of your wish to unsubscribe. Otherwise, call 13 13 34 and speak to our Spam Policy Administrator (the HCF Compliance Manager). We will arrange for your details to be removed. |
Help stamp out spam
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| To help HCF combat spam, please do the following:
If you receive an offensive message that seems to come from an HCF email address, please assume it has been sent in error. Notify us immediately.
Please ensure that you unsubscribe from HCF mailing lists if you do not want to receive commercial messages from HCF.
If you do subscribe to an HCF mailing list, please ensure that we have your current details at all times. Update us on any changes to your email address. |
Complaints Handling
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HCF will try and resolve your complaint within two working days of receipt. We will contact you by telephone, email or letter, to let you know that we have received your complaint.
Some issues may be more complicated and take longer to resolve. We will try to settle more complicated complaints within 5 - 10 days, but in no more than 45 days (90 days for complaints regarding a Life Company decision), unless you have agreed to a longer period.
If we cannot settle your complaint quickly, we will write to you, giving you reasons for the delay.
Once we make a decision regarding your complaint, we will tell you in writing and include our reasons for reaching the decision.
HCF hopes to deal with any difficulties you may be experiencing to your satisfaction. If you are not satisfied with our response, please let us know. Otherwise, you can contact a number of External Dispute Resolution (EDR) schemes.
HCF Complaints
13 13 34
Internal Dispute Resolution Officer
HCF
GPO Box 4242
Sydney, NSW 2000
Private Health Insurance Complaints
1800 640 695
Private Health Insurance Ombudsman
Level 7
362 Kent Street
Sydney NSW 2000
Australian Communications and Media Authority (complaints for Spam)
02 9245 4000
1300 850 115 (Outside Sydney)
Level 2
55 Clarence Street
Sydney NSW
nswro@aca.gov.au
Financial Industry Complaints Service (complaints for Life Insurance)
1300 78 08 08
FICS
PO Box 579
Collins Street West
Melbourne Vic 8007
fics@fics.asn.au
Insurance Brokers Dispute Facility (complaints for General Insurance)
1800 064 169
The Office of the Insurance Brokers
Dispute Facility
Level 13
31 Queen Street
Melbourne 3000
fics@fics.asn.au
Privacy Complaints
1300 363 992
Director of Complaints
Office of the Federal Privacy Commissioner
GPO Box 5218
Sydney, NSW 1042
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| All updates to this policy will be posted here. Last update: 1 May 2007. |
| Download the HCF Privacy Policy in PDF format. |
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