Hornbeam & Co. Ltd Privacy Policy
This privacy policy explains how Hornbeam & Co. uses any of your personal information collected when you use our website at www.hornbeam.co (“our website”) or otherwise submitted or provided. The website is controlled and operated by Hornbeam & Co. (referred to herein as “Hornbeam & Co”, “we”, “our” or “us”).
By accessing and using our website, you signify your agreement to this policy including our use of cookies, as detailed below. If you do not agree with the policy, please do not use our website.
1. Information About Us
1.1 Hornbeam & Co. is incorporated in England and Wales under registered number 11591589. Our registered office is Hornbeam & Co. Ltd, 124 City Road, London EC1V 2NX.
1.2 Our Data Protection Officer is Georgie Baker, and can be contacted by email at hello@hornbeam.co
1.3 We may amend this privacy notice from time to time. If we do so, we will supply you with and/or otherwise make available to you a copy of the amended privacy notice.
1.4 Where we act as a data processor on behalf of a data controller (for example, when processing payroll), we provide an additional schedule setting out required information as part of that agreement. That additional schedule should be read in conjunction with this privacy notice.
2. The purposes for which we intend to process personal data.
2.1 To enable us to supply professional services to you as our client.
2.2 To fulfil our obligations under relevant laws in force from time to time (e.g. the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017 (“MLR 2017”)).
2.3 To use in the investigation and/or defence of potential complaints, disciplinary proceedings and legal proceedings.
2.4 To enable us to invoice you for our services and investigate/address any attendant fee disputes that may have arisen.
2.5 To contact you about other services we provide which may be of interest to you if you have consented to us doing so.
3. The legal bases for our intended processing of personal data.
3.1 At the time you instructed us to act, you gave consent to our processing your personal data for the purposes listed above.
3.2 The processing is necessary for the performance of our contract with you.
3.3 The processing is necessary for compliance with legal obligations to which we are subject (e.g. MLR 2017).
3.4 The processing is necessary for the purposes of following legitimate interests which we pursue.
3.5 It is a requirement of our contract with you that you provide us with the personal data that we request. If you do not provide the information that we request, we may not be able to provide professional services to you. If this is the case, we will not be able to commence acting or will need to cease to act.
4. Persons/organisations to whom we may give personal data
4.1 HMRC
4.2 Any third parties with whom you require or permit us to correspond.
4.3 Subcontractors.
4.4 An alternate appointed by us in the event of incapacity or death.
4.5 Insurance providers.
4.6 Professional indemnity insurers.
4.7 The Office of Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering Supervisors (OPBAS) in relation to practice assurance and/or the requirements of MLR 2017 (or any similar legislation).
4.8 The police and law enforcement agencies.
4.9 Courts and tribunals.
4.10 The Information Commissioner’s Office (“ICO”).
4.11 We may need to share your personal data with the third parties identified above in order to comply with our legal obligations, including our legal obligations to you. If you ask us not to share your personal data with such third parties, we may need to cease to act;
5. How and where do we store your data?
5.1 We only keep your personal data for as long as we need to in order to use it as described above in section 6, and/or for as long as we have your permission to keep it.
5.2 Some or all of your data may be stored outside of the European Economic Area (“the EEA”) (The EEA consists of all EU member states, plus Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein). If we do store data outside the EEA (this may be the case, for example, if our email server is located in a country outside the EEA), we will take all reasonable steps to ensure that your data is treated as safely and securely as it would be within the UK and under GDPR including:
5.2.1 Holding all personal data in securely encrypted online servers (such as Microsoft Azure).
5.2.2 Applying high end business Antivirus protection on both remote servers and local infrastructure.
5.3 Data security is very important to us, and to protect your data we have taken suitable measures to safeguard and secure any data we hold about you (even if it is only your email address).
5.4 Steps we take to secure and protect your data include:
5.4.1 Adding 2FA security for password logins as well as ensuring regular password changes and strong password policies within our practice.
5.4.2 Ensuring adequate staff training and keeping up to date with internal policies and procedures to enable us to perform our duties and remain compliant with GDPR.
6. Retention of personal data
6.1 When acting as a data controller and in accordance with recognised good practice within the tax and accountancy sector we will retain all of our records relating to you as follows:
6.1.1 Where tax returns have been prepared it is our policy to retain information for 6 years from the end of the tax year to which the information relates.
6.1.2 Where ad hoc advisory work has been undertaken it is our policy to retain information for 6 years from the date the business relationship ceased.
6.1.3 Where we have an ongoing client relationship, data which is needed for more than one year’s tax compliance (e.g. capital gains base costs and claims and elections submitted to HMRC) is retained throughout the period of the relationship, but will be deleted 6 years after the end of the business relationship unless you as our client ask us to retain it for a longer period.
6.1.4 Our contractual terms provide for the destruction of documents after 6 years and therefore agreement to the contractual terms is taken as agreement to the retention of records for this period, and to their destruction thereafter.
6.1.5 You are responsible for retaining information that we send to you (including details of capital gains base costs and claims and elections submitted) and this will be supplied in the form agreed between us. Documents and records relevant to your tax affairs are required by law to be retained by you as follows:
6.1.5.2 Individuals, trustees and partnerships with trading or rental income: five years and 10 months after the end of the tax year; otherwise: 22 months after the end of the tax year.
6.1.5.2 Companies, LLPs and other corporate entities; six years from the end of the accounting period.
6.1.6 Where we act as a data processor as defined in DPA 2018, we will delete or return all personal data to the data controller as agreed with the controller monthly/annually/at the termination of the contract.
7. Requesting personal data we hold about you (subject access requests)
7.1 You have a right to request access to your personal data that we hold. Such requests are known as ‘subject access requests’ (“SARs”).
7.2 Please provide all SARs in writing marked for the attention of Clara Couch in the organisation;
7.3 To help us provide the information you want and deal with your request more quickly, you should include enough details to enable us to verify your identity and locate the relevant information. For example, you should tell us: your date of birth; previous or other name(s) you have used; your previous addresses in the past five years; personal reference number(s) that we may have given you, for example your national insurance number, your tax reference number or your VAT registration number; what type of information you want to know; If you do not have a national insurance number, you must send a copy of:
- the back page of your passport or a copy of your driving licence
- a recent utility bill
7.4 DPA 2018 requires that we comply with a SAR promptly and in any event within one month of receipt. There are, however, some circumstances in which the law allows us to refuse to provide access to personal data in response to a SAR (e.g. if you have previously made a similar request and there has been little or no change to the data since we complied with the original request).
7.5 We will not charge you for dealing with a SAR.
7.6 You can ask someone else to request information on your behalf – for example, a friend, relative or solicitor. We must have your authority to respond to a SAR made on your behalf. You can provide such authority by signing a letter which states that you authorise the person concerned to write to us for information about you, and/or receive our reply.
7.7 Where you are a data controller and we act for you as a data processor (e.g. by processing payroll), we will assist you with SARs on the same basis as is set out above.
8. Putting things right (the right to rectification)
8.1 You have a right to obtain the rectification of any inaccurate personal data concerning you that we hold. You also have a right to have any incomplete personal data that we hold about you completed.
8.2 Should you become aware that any personal data that we hold about you is inaccurate and/or incomplete, please inform us immediately so we can correct and/or complete it.
9. Deleting your records (the right to erasure)
9.1 In certain circumstances you have a right to have the personal data that we hold about you erased. Further information is available on the ICO website.
9.2 If you would like your personal data to be erased, please inform us immediately and we will consider your request.
9.3 In certain circumstances we have the right to refuse to comply with a request for erasure. If applicable, we will supply you with the reasons for refusing your request.
10. The right to restrict processing and the right to object
10.1 In certain circumstances you have the right to ’block’ or suppress the processing of personal data or to object to the processing of that information. Further information is available on the ICO website.
10.2 Please inform us immediately if you want us to cease to process your information or you object to processing so that we can consider what action, if any, is appropriate.
11. Obtaining and reusing personal data (the right to data portability)
11.1 In certain circumstances you have the right to be provided with the personal data that we hold about you in a machine-readable format, e.g. so that the data can easily be provided to a new professional adviser. Further information is available on the ICO website.
11.2. The right to data portability only applies to personal data an individual has provided to a controller; where the processing is based on the individual’s consent or for the performance of a contract; when processing is carried out by automated means.
11.3 We will respond to any data portability requests made to us without undue delay and within one month. We may extend the period by a further two months where the request is complex, or a number of requests are received but we will inform you within one month of the receipt of the request and explain why the extension is necessary.
12. Withdrawal of consent
12.1 Where you have consented to our processing of your personal data, you have the right to withdraw that consent at any time. Please inform us immediately if you wish to withdraw your consent. Please note:
the withdrawal of consent does not affect the lawfulness of earlier processing; if you withdraw your consent, we may not be able to continue to provide services to you; even if you withdraw your consent, it may remain lawful for us to process your data on another legal basis (e.g. because we have a legal obligation to continue to process your data).
13. Automated decision-making
13.1 We do not intend to use automated decision-making in relation to your personal data.
14. Complaints
14.1 If you have requested details of the information that we hold about you and you are not happy with our response, or you think we have not complied with the GDPR or DPA 2018 in some other way, you can complain to us. Please send any complaints to: hello@hornbeam.co
14.2 If you are not happy with our response, you have a right to lodge a complaint with the ICO (www.ico.org.uk).
15. Contacting Us
15.1 If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us by email at: hello@hornbeam.co. Please ensure that your query is clear, particularly if it is a request for information about the data that we hold about you.
16. Changes to Our Privacy Policy
16.1 We may change this Privacy Policy from time to time (e.g.if the law changes). Any changes will be communicated to you and upon being made aware will be deemed to have accepted the terms of the updated Privacy Policy if you do not contact us within 7 days.
17. Cookies
17.1 A cookie is a small file of letters and numbers that we store on your browser or the hard drive of your computer if you agree. Cookies contain information that is transferred to your computer’s hard drive.
17.2 We use cookies to distinguish you from other users of our website. This helps us to improve your experience when using, and allows us to improve, our website. The cookies we use are “analytical” cookies. They allow us to recognise and count the number of visitors and to see how visitors move around the website when they are using it. This helps us to improve the way our website works, for example by ensuring that users are finding what they are looking for easily.
17.3 You may choose to block cookies by activating the appropriate setting on your browser, to refuse the setting of all or some cookies. If you use your browser settings to block all cookies you may not be able to access all or parts of our website.
17.4 Cookies used by this website: Google Analytics (third party tracking cookies.)
18. Where your personal data is stored
18.1 The data collected from you may be transferred to, and stored at, a destination outside the European Economic Area (“EEA”). It may also be processed by staff operating outside the EEA who work for us or for one of our suppliers. By using our website and/or submitting your personal data, you agree to this transfer, storage and processing.
19. Links to other websites
19.1 Our website may contain links to other websites. This privacy policy only applies to our website so when you link to other websites you should read their privacy policies.
20. Your rights
20.1 You have the right to request a copy of any personal information that we hold about you. To obtain a copy of this personal information, please write to us at the address set out below. We may charge a small fee for this service in accordance with applicable law. If we do hold information about you, you may ask us to remove or correct information you think is inaccurate.
21. Changes to our privacy policy
We keep our privacy policy under review and will place any updates on our website. This privacy policy was last updated on 7 March 2023.
How to contact Hornbeam & Co.
If you have any questions about our privacy policy or the personal information that we hold about you, please contact us by post at the following address:
Hornbeam & Co. Ltd, 124 City Road, London EC1V 2NX