BOC Gas: Privacy

Thank you for visiting the BOC New Zealand web site, and for your interest in our company and our products. We take the protection of your private data and personal information seriously and rely on mutual cooperation. The protection of your privacy is of the utmost importance to us. Therefore, it goes without saying that we comply with statutory provisions for privacy and data protection and in particular, the Privacy Act 1993 (NZ) and the National Privacy Principles developed thereunder. Our employees are obligated to treat all information confidentially and they receive regular training in the areas of data protection and data security. In the sections below, we briefly explain how we protect your data and personal information and what it means for you when you make use of our online offering.

BOC New Zealand is committed to compliance with local data protection and privacy legislation in all jurisdictions in which it operates. We will use our reasonable endeavours to ensure that all information held by BOC New Zealand is gathered, processed, used, disclosed and disposed of in accordance with such legislation.

BOC New Zealand recognises the responsibility it has to all its employees, customers and suppliers, to maintain the highest standards of integrity and efficiency when handling personal data. We recognise that applying such standards is important to those whose data we handle, the successful operation of our business and contributes to maintaining confidence in BOC New Zealand, its practices and procedures. A key building block of personal data protection and privacy legislation is using data relating to employees, customers and suppliers for the purpose or purposes of which they are aware and would reasonably expect. It is this building block which underpins the following principles and commitments to which BOC New Zealand adheres.

BOC New Zealand will collect personal information in a fair and lawful manner, and not in an unreasonably intrusive way.

BOC New Zealand will generally collect personal information for the primary purposes of:

maintaining customer records;
delivery;
supply of goods and services;
account keeping;
invoicing;
debt collection;
locating and/or retrieving BOC New Zealand equipment and gas containers;
credit reference checks;
credit listing

and for the secondary purposes of:

marketing activities;
marketing planning;
product development;
product recalls; and
customer and market research

A person’s personal information may be disclosed to our agents, distributors, contractors and related entities, to facilitate the primary and secondary purposes mentioned above, or as otherwise required by law. When required by law, this information will be released to the relevant authorities upon proper application.

We are also permitted to use or disclose personal information held about you:

if you have consented to the use or disclosure;
if we reasonably believe that the use or disclosure is necessary to lessen or prevent a serious, immediate threat to someone's health or safety or the public's health or safety;
if we reasonably suspect that unlawful activity has been, is being or may be engaged in and the use or disclosure is a necessary part of our investigation or in reporting the matter to the relevant authorities;
if such use or disclosure is required under or authorised by law (e.g. responding to a subpoena, a warrant or other order of a court or legal process);
if we reasonably believe that the use or disclosure is necessary for prevention, investigation, prosecution and punishment of crimes or wrongdoings or the preparation for, conduct of, proceedings before any court or tribunal or the implementation of the orders of a court or tribunal by or on behalf of an enforcement body; or
if you have requested a service such as installation or hire of a product and we are required to disclose the information to a contractor in order to perform the service.

All customers will have the opportunity to opt out from receiving marketing material including those sent by email, phone, fax and post.

BOC New Zealand will take reasonable steps to ensure that information collected on its customers is accurate, complete and up-to-date. If BOC New Zealand is made aware of an error or change in a person’s personal information, then it will use its reasonable endeavours to correct such errors within 30 days of being notified of the error.

BOC New Zealand will ensure that personal information that BOC New Zealand holds is stored in a secure environment that can only be accessed, modified and disclosed by authorised parties with the knowledge of BOC New Zealand. You also have a responsibility to protect and keep secret your passwords and account information to ensure data security particularly when you are online.

BOC New Zealand cannot ensure and warrant that personal information transmitted to it or from its online products and services will not be accessed by an unauthorised person (eg a hacker) or that unauthorised disclosures will not occur, and users do so at their own risk. However, once such information is received by BOC New Zealand, it will use every effort to ensure its security on its systems.

BOC New Zealand will take reasonable steps to destroy or permanently de-identify personal information if it is no longer needed for the purposes for which BOC New Zealand is authorised to use it.