Privacy Policy

1. Who we are

Heritage Appraisals is a Canadian professional practice providing Insurance Appraisals and Replacement Cost Valuations. The Principal acts as the privacy officer for the practice and is the contact point for any privacy enquiry.

2. Personal information we collect

• Enquiry data: name, email, organisation, property address and the message you submit through the contact form.
• Engagement data: billing details, property documentation and any information you choose to share to enable us to deliver the engagement.
• Payment data: online payment is not currently taken on this website. Where card payment is used, it is processed by Stripe and card numbers are never stored on our servers.
• Technical data: standard request information handled by our hosting provider. When you send an enquiry we store a one-way hash of your network address (for spam and rate limiting, not the address itself) and your browser's user-agent string.
• How you found us (enquiries only): during a visit, your browser keeps a small record in this site's session storage — which normally lasts for the tab's browsing session, although browser restore features or settings can affect how long it is kept — of the first page you landed on (the page path only), the domain of the external website that referred you (for example "google.com"), and any selected campaign tags in the link you followed (utm_source, utm_medium, utm_campaign, utm_content, length-limited). We do not copy full query strings, referrer paths or form fields into this record. This feature does not use a cookie. The record is only saved with your enquiry if you submit the contact form; it is then handled by the service providers described in this policy (such as our hosting, database and email providers) and is not sent to a separate advertising tracker by this feature. If your browser blocks session storage, nothing is recorded and the form works normally.

3. How we use personal information

• To respond to enquiries and prepare quotes.
• To understand which pages and campaigns lead to enquiries.
• To deliver and administer engaged services.
• To process payments and maintain accounting records.
• To comply with legal, regulatory and professional obligations (including professional body requirements).
• To safeguard the security and integrity of this website.

4. Legal basis and consent

We rely on your consent — given when you submit the contact form, sign an engagement letter or pay a deposit — to collect and use personal information. You may withdraw consent at any time by writing to us, subject to legal and contractual restrictions and reasonable notice.

5. Disclosure to third parties

We share personal information only as necessary, with:

• Stripe — for card payment processing, where used.
• Cloud hosting providers — for website operation and form submission storage.
• Professional advisors — accountants, legal counsel and our insurer where required.
• Regulators or law enforcement — where compelled by law.

Some of these providers may store data outside Canada (typically the United States or European Union). Where this occurs, the information is subject to the laws of those jurisdictions, including lawful access by their authorities.

6. Retention

Engagement files are retained for a minimum of seven (7) years following completion, in line with professional and tax record-keeping requirements. Enquiries that do not lead to engagement are retained for up to 24 months and then deleted.

7. Safeguards

We use technical and organisational safeguards appropriate to the sensitivity of the information, including encryption in transit (TLS), access controls, and confidentiality undertakings from any service provider with access to personal information.

8. Your rights

Subject to applicable law, you have the right to:

• Access the personal information we hold about you.
• Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information.
• Withdraw consent to further use, subject to legal and contractual limits.
• Lodge a complaint with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.

9. Children

This website is not directed to individuals under the age of 18 and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children.

10. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. The current version will always be posted at this URL with the "Last updated" date above.

11. Contact

Privacy enquiries can be sent to our contact form. You may also write to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada at priv.gc.ca.