Privacy & Data Protection Policy

Privacy Policy & Personal Data Protection

At Howden Belgium SA/NV (hereinafter “Howden”, “we”, “us”) we need to collect and process your personal data as insurance broker and provide associated services. We thank you for the trust you place in us, and we are committed to protecting your privacy. 

This Privacy Policy reflects our commitments to responsibly using personal data in accordance with applicable legislation as part of our business operations.

The policy transparently informs you about the data we collect, the purpose of its collection, how we use it, and the rights you have regarding the processing of this data.

Who we are?

Howden registered with the Crossroads Bank of Enterprises under the company number 0745.664.635, processes your personal data on its own behalf as the data controller.

Howden Belgium SA
Belgicastraat 1,
1930 Zaventem
Belgium
 
T: +32 471 014 904
T: +32 476 660 713

The data controller, within the meaning of European regulations on data protection, is the natural or legal person who determines the purposes and means of processing personal data.

For any questions, suggestions, or complaints regarding your personal data, you can contact us at [email protected] or [email protected].

What data do we collect?

Depending on your specific context and the type of insurance involved, we may collect diverse types of data that are necessary to provide you with insurance solutions and personalized services. We may collect this personal data directly from you or may be provided by a third party.

The categories of data collected, considering the processing purposes, include:

  • Identification data (name, surname, address, etc.).
  • Household composition (marital status, number of children, etc.).
  • Financial data (your real estate properties, etc.).
  • Profession (job title, education, etc.).
  • Location data (postal or IP address, the location of an insured property, etc.).
  • Internet data (information collected by cookies such as Google Analytics, etc.).
  • Health data: when strictly necessary for the conclusion, execution of the insurance contract, or management of a claim. For these "sensitive" data, your explicit prior consent is required.
  • Data relating to potential criminal convictions and offenses. These data will be processed with an increased degree of confidentiality.

Any other data that you voluntarily provide to us. Your data will only be processed in the context of the insurance for which you use us unless you wish otherwise and indicate otherwise.

Sources of personal data

We collect personal data from diverse sources, including:

  • Other insurance market participants, such as Insurers.
  • Individuals and their family members.
  • In the event of a claim, third parties including the other party to the claim, including witnesses, experts (including medical experts), lawyers and claims handlers.

For what purposes does Howden collect and process data?

Howden will make reasonable use of your personal data for various purposes. For each purpose, only the necessary and relevant data is processed.

We collect, store, and process your personal data when necessary for:

  • Managing the customer relationship or potential customer.
  • Proposing, managing, and executing insurance contracts.
  • Claims management.
  • Managing complaints and continuously improving our services.
  • Fulfilling legal and regulatory obligations to which we are subject, such as AML obligations or combating fraud.
  • Complaints handling.
  • Responding to any request from judicial authorities or supervisory authorities requiring access to data.
  • Prospecting and marketing management.
  • Conducting statistical analysis, actuarial studies, and data analysis.
  • Improve the browsing experience on websites.

Your personal data is then processed on one or more of the following legal bases:

  • Processing is based on a legal obligation.
  • Processing is necessary for the performance of a contract.
  • Processing is based on your consent: If the legal basis for processing is your consent, you have the right to withdraw it at any time, without prejudice to the lawfulness of the processing conducted before the withdrawal of consent.
  • Processing is based on the legitimate interests of Howden, for example to fight against fraud or for direct marketing purposes. In doing so, we always ensure that there is a balance between our interests and yours, for example by granting you a right to object.

Job applications

When submitting a spontaneous application or applying for a posted job, your personal data is collected to allow our Human Resources department, and if applicable, our specialized recruitment partners, to thoroughly analyze your application. Only the data strictly necessary for candidate selection is collected and recorded. The questions pertain only to the nature and conditions of the position for which the candidate is applying.

Our firm does not collect or process sensitive information about you. We will only collect criminal record information if necessary to verify that the candidate meets the legal requirements for integrity and moral conduct required for the position.

Howden stores your personal data during and after the recruitment and selection process. At the end of this process, applicants' data will be retained for a maximum of one year from the receipt of the application solely to inform them of potential future vacancies. After this period, the personal data will be deleted.

If we conclude an employment contract based on your application, your personal data will be processed for the purpose of creating an employment relationship.

How and where is the information shared?

Howden may transfer your data:

- To third-party external service providers such as insurance companies, experts, IT service providers, support, hosting, and similar vendors who assist us in our operations.

- To authorities and third parties involved in legal proceedings or as required by law.

- To other third parties with whom we may share personal data in the context of a current or proposed reorganization, merger, sale, joint venture, assignment, portfolio transfer, or other business transaction.

Personal data may be transferred to countries within the European Union or outside of the European Union. If this is the case, the individuals concerned are precisely informed, and specific measures are taken to govern these transfers.

Your rights

In accordance with applicable regulation, data subjects have the following rights:

  • The right of access your data, if applicable, to rectify them, and to request their communication to third parties (right to data portability).
  • You have the right to withdraw your consent for certain processing.
  • You have the right to object to the processing of your data, the right to request the restriction of the processing, and the right to erasure.

To exercise these rights, you simply need to send your dated and signed request:

by email

[email protected]
[email protected]

or

by writing mail

Howden Belgium
Belgicastraat 1
1930 Zaventem.

We may ask you to provide us with a legible photocopy of both sides of your identity card.

To better know your rights, you may consult the Belgian Data Protection Authority website : Droits des citoyens | Autorité de protection des données (autoriteprotectiondonnees.be)

In all cases, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Data Protection Authority (DPA) by using the following contact information:

Autorité de protection des données - Gegevensbeschermingsautoriteit
Rue de la Presse 35,
1000 Brussels.

Tel.: +32 2 274 48 00

https://www.dataprotectionauthority.be

How long do we keep your personal data?

We will retain your personal data for as long as it is necessary for the defined purposes of processing. The processed data is stored throughout the contractual relationship, the legal retention period, and any additional retention periods mandated by applicable laws and regulations.

Security Measures

Howden places significant importance on the security of all personal data.  We have appropriate safeguards in place, in accordance with our data protection obligations, for the protection of any Personal Data which we process. Our security controls are aligned to industry standards and good practice, providing a control environment that effectively manages risks to the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of your information.

 For example, our security and privacy policies are periodically reviewed and enhanced as necessary and only authorised personnel have access to user information.  While we cannot ensure or guarantee that loss, misuse, or alteration of data will not occur, we use our best efforts to prevent this.

Additionally, we ensure that our staff remain aware of our data protection obligations and are required to undertake annual training and testing.

Use of cookies

Cookies are pieces of information that a website transfers to your hard drive to store and sometimes track information about you. During your browsing on our Howden Belgium website, information may be stored by these cookies.

They are utilized to enhance navigation or enable us to measure our site's traffic. Our privacy policy allows all users to decide whether they wish for their data to be collected via our cookie manager, accessible on the banner from the homepage of our site during your initial visit.

If you want to change your initial choice, click on this link.

For more information on the use of cookies, please visit our “Cookie Policy”.

Review of the Policy

Please note that we may update this statement from time to time, for example, to comply with new legal requirements. We encourage you to review this statement regularly to be informed of how we use your personal data.

Last update: September 2024