Focus on Privacy

Introduction to Privacy

Privacy Legislation in British Columbia

PIPA protects consumers and helps to ensure that a consumer’s personal information is only being used for purpose that they have given consent. Among other things, PIPA provides that consumers must have an option to withhold consent, or to withdraw consent, if the uses for which consent is sought are not absolutely necessary to be collected/used for the purpose provided. PIPA requires that any organization (including an individual REALTOR® or a brokerage) collecting, using and disclosing personal information must obtain consent from the consumer to do so.

In 2018, the Federal Privacy Commissioner, in conjunction with the British Columbia and Alberta Privacy Commissioners, published a whitepaper setting out guidelines for obtaining meaningful consent from consumers, which they have indicated will be used going forward when considering matters of whether consent to the collection, use, and disclosure of personal information has been properly obtained. These guidelines focus on clear disclosure of the purposes for collecting, using, and disclosing an individual’s personal information, the degree of control individuals have with respect to their information, easy manners of withdrawal of consent, and accountability on the collector to ensure compliance with applicable privacy laws.

This website is intended to provide you with information and resources to help you understand and comply with the legislation administratively within your brokerage and in interactions with consumers.

What is Personal Information

In the usual course of real estate transactions, REALTORS®, brokerages, and real estate boards and associations require significant amounts of information about identifiable individuals and companies.

Personal information includes any identifiable information about a person, including his/her name, address, phone number, and financial information, and may include information about that person’s property (such as listing and selling price, lease rate, listing term, etc.).

Generally personal information does not include:

• Information that is not about an individual, because the connection with a person is too weak or far-removed (for example, a postal code on its own which covers a wide area with many homes).
• Dial *611 from your Rogers cell phone. Please note: depending on call volume, this may be a lengthy process.
• Information about an organization such as a business.
• Information that has been rendered anonymous, as long as it is not possible to link that data back to an identifiable person.
• A person’s business contact information that an organization collects, uses, or discloses for the sole purpose of communicating with that person in relation to their employment, business, or profession.

Personal information is normally collected in initial dialogue with consumers in understanding their real estate interests and may be directly supplied by the consumers. It is also gathered through the contracts and other documents they fill out during a real estate transaction or through various conversations they have with their REALTOR®.

This information must be protected. Doing so, protects your reputation and that of the profession as a whole.

Enforcement

PIPA is enforced by British Columbia’s Privacy Commissioner, who has broad power to:

• Initiate investigations and audits to ensure compliance, regardless of whether a complaint is received;
• Make binding orders, including requiring an organization to provide access, disclose how information has been used, disclose the names of those to whom information has been disclosed, and even stop collecting, using, and disclosing personal information in contravention of PIPA; and
• Bring any failure to meet its PIPA obligations to the attention of an organization.

Privacy Notice & Consent Form

The Purpose.

Privacy laws in British Columbia regarding the collection, use, and disclosure of personal information require that anyone collecting such information must have a reasonable reason for doing so, must disclose that purpose, and must obtain consent to collect, use, and disclose the personal information. Compliance with privacy laws is mandatory.

If a REALTOR® intends to use a consumer’s personal information, they are required by law to disclose what the information will be used for and obtain the consumer’s consent. While not a mandatory form, BCREA’s Privacy Notice and Consent form was developed as a tool to help REALTORS® comply with their obligations under privacy laws. It serves as a form of disclosure and a way to request and obtain consent from consumers for the most common uses of their personal information in a real estate transaction that fall outside those outlined in the Council’s disclosure notice.

While there are a number of forms that contain a privacy provision; they are specific to the collection and use of information as outlined on those particular forms. They do not cover other uses a REALTOR® may have for personal information collected from consumers, such as to help consumers sell, buy, or lease real estate. This means that these forms alone are not sufficient for a REALTOR® to comply with applicable privacy laws if they want to collect a consumer’s personal information to use for purposes beyond those outlined in these individual forms.

For further information about specific cases, REALTORS® should seek advice from their managing broker.