STEER AND CO IS READY FOR POPIA
Category Advice
With the much anticipated Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) now in full operation, Steer & Co as an 'estate agency' needs to be fully compliant. While the thought of yet another administrative burden brought about by new legislation affecting businesses in the property industry causes much upheaval, it is the intention behind this POPIA that doesn't scare us. We take the protection of the information we gather on a daily basis seriously, which makes compliance with this new Act, although a big investment in terms of time, easier given that many of the requirements of the Act were already in practice at Steer & Co.
The Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) is intended to balance the protection of an individual's Constitutional rights to privacy with the needs of a business to have access to and to process a person's Personal Information to perform the task they are set out to do.
As one of our steps in enforcing POPIA, we have notified all clients of how we have and continue to implement POPIA on a daily basis. Our staff are bound by the relevant confidentiality provisions and we will only pass on a client's Personal Information to third parties who need it for the purposes of their work, related to what we do in fulfilling our mandate.
We undertake to protect a client's Personal Information in the prescribed manner and to collect and store such information only for the specific task for which it was given.
In summary, we undertake to process a client's Personal Information in a manner that complies with all applicable laws with their privacy rights being protected, as required by law.
We certainly take the protection of personal information seriously, even more so than previously, and respect our client's rights in terms of such legislation. Steer & Co certainly welcomes the comfort such legislation brings to clients of estate agencies in general, as we strive to be a leader in this space.
Author: Nina Vass