Privacy Policy

Personal information is information about an identifiable individual, but does not include the name, title or business address or telephone number of an employee of an organization.

KRS Insurance Brokers Inc. (“KRS”) has partnered with Acera Insurance Services Ltd. (“Acera Insurance”). Acera Insurance – through our programs – is responsible for protecting your personal information in its possession or custody, including personal information that has been transferred to, or received from, a third party in the course of servicing your account.

We collect, use and disclose personal information for two reasons: to service your account and provide you with advice. Knowing you better helps us understand your insurance and financial needs, communicate effectively with you, and provide you with the services and products you want. We do not rent, share or sell personal information or marketing lists.

What will personal information be used for?

The personal information we collect, use and disclose may be used to:

• serve you better and communicate effectively with you;
• verify the identity of you and your business;
• determine your eligibility for insurance and financial products and services;
• acquire, renew or make changes to insurance and financial products and services;
• advertise and market the products and services provided by us, our affiliates, or our strategic partners and alliances, such as insurance companies, insurance brokers, agents, and other intermediaries;
• determine prices, fees and premiums;
• arrange for the adjusting of insurance claims;
• detect and prevent fraud;
• confirm insurance coverage to lien-holders, mortgagees, lessors, and to other parties as deemed necessary by you;
• compile statistics, conduct market research and report to regulatory and industry agencies;
• deliver relevant ads to you on our and third party websites and applications;
• share your information with third party service providers for external processing such as data or payment processing;
• comply with the law; or comply with tax requirements;
• share your information among our affiliates or strategic partners and alliances for any of the above purposes.

Personal information may be collected, used or disclosed for any of the Identified Purposes set out above.

The collection, use and disclosure of your personal information depend on how you do business with us.  We may gather information from the following sources:

• from you, on applications or on other forms filled out through telephone, e-mail or face-to-face interviews (for example your name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, occupation, financial and banking information, and health information)
• from your interactions with us (such as telephone calls, underwriting, your payment history and claims)
• from insurance companies, brokers, agents
• from adjusters and inspectors
• from government, consumer reporting agencies, credit organizations, financial institutions, medical professionals and other entities as required to underwrite a policy (for example obtaining information on your driving record and claims history)

If you provide personal information to us or through any of the previously mentioned sources, you do so with the understanding that your personal information may be used or disclosed for the Identified Purposes amongst us, the previously mentioned sources, or third parties and that Acera Insurance and third parties may verify such information, or obtain additional personal information about you by checking with government agencies, credit bureaus, motor vehicle agencies and other fact collecting and verifying entities to assist with the Identified Purposes. A fee may be exchanged between financial services providers if, at your request, we refer your name to such third party.

When we share your personal information with third parties, they may occasionally process and store your information outside of Canada. In such cases, your personal information will be governed by the laws of the foreign country and may be disclosed in accordance with those laws.

In the event that we engage in discussions regarding a potential merger, acquisition, or asset sale with a third party, it may be necessary for us to share your personal information with them in order to evaluate or finalize the business transaction. If your information becomes subject to new privacy policies due to such a transaction, you will be notified accordingly.

Your knowledge and consent are required before we may collect, use or disclose your personal information, except in special circumstances, such as during a fraud investigation, an investigation by the police, or in situations otherwise permitted by the law.

We accept any of the following as your consent for Acera Insurance’s existing use and future collection, use and disclosure of your personal information for the Identified Purposes unless you advise Acera Insurance, either orally or in writing, that you do not agree with the terms stated in this Policy, and that you wish to opt out of all or portions of it:

• signing a Personal Information Consent Form;
• your receipt of this Personal Information Policy or our Policy Summary;
• submitting an application for insurance;
• your receipt and acceptance of policy renewals;
• your provision of information to us, including your express written or oral consent as obtained through an application process; or
• your consent as provided by your authorized representative, such as a legal guardian, power of attorney, or other representative acting on your behalf.

In some circumstances, your specific consent may not be obtained. For instance:
Where the collection, use and disclosure of your personal information is in your interest and timely consent is unavailable.

In some circumstances, your consent may be implied. For instance:
If you obtain insurance or financial products for your family, employees, or anyone else, you represent that you have obtained consent from them, even though they might not be present during the application process, to the collection, use and disclosure of their personal information for the Identified Purposes.
If you have an existing insurance policy or financial contract with you and us request amendments to the policy or contract, it is assumed that the consent that you gave to us when buying the original policy remains in effect. We do not consider a regular updating of information in your file to be a new purpose and, therefore, we will not seek a new consent for this purpose.

You may withdraw your consent at any time upon reasonable notice, subject to legal or contractual restrictions. Please note, however, that withdrawing your consent may affect our ability to continue to provide you with the products and services that you have or would like to receive.
To withdraw your consent, you should contact our Privacy Officer at the address or telephone number listed. Unless we hear otherwise from you, you are giving to us your consent for the collection, use and disclosure of personal information as provided in this Policy for the Identified Purposes.

Your personal information is retained only as long as we need it to effectively provide products and services to you, and for a reasonable length of time thereafter in case we need to meet any potential obligations or legal or government requirements. Acera Insurance shall use care when storing or destroying your personal information in order to prevent unauthorized access.

Whether in electronic or paper-based format, Acera Insurance maintains strict security systems to safeguard your personal information from unauthorized access, disclosure or misuse. As well, when we no longer need your personal information, we take as much care to destroy it as we do when storing it.
In the event that we transfer your personal information to a third party for processing (for example, when printing correspondence, managing client statements, or for data processing), we will use reasonable means to ensure that client personal information is given a comparable level of protection while being processed by the third party. If not practical to obtain written assurances, we may choose to make a written notation in our own file(s).

You have a right to access your personal information that we have in our possession or control. You also have a right to know which third parties have received your information from Acera Insurance.

Please make your request in writing to Acera Insurance’s Privacy Officer, stating as specifically as possible which personal information you are requesting.
We will try to respond to such requests as soon as possible, and will advise you if for some reason we cannot respond right away. Acera Insurance may charge you a reasonable fee for providing access to your personal information, but only after first advising you of the approximate cost.
In providing you with a list of the organizations to which we have disclosed any of your information, we will try to be as precise as possible. When it is not possible to provide an exact list of such organizations to which we have actually disclosed your personal information, Acera Insurance shall provide a list of organizations to which we may have disclosed the information. Acera Insurance has the right to refuse your request for access to personal information if:

• the information is protected by solicitor-client privilege
• granting access would reveal confidential commercial information
• doing so would reasonably be expected to threaten the life or security of another individual
• the information was collected for purposes related to the detection and prevention of fraud
• the information was generated in the course of a formal dispute resolution process
• or the information would likely reveal personal information about another individual

Acera Insurance strives to ensure that the personal information we have on file about you is as accurate and up-to-date as necessary for the Identified Purposes for which it is to be used. If any information needs to be updated or amended to reflect a change in your situation, we make every effort to update our records. Acera Insurance shall amend personal information that is materially inaccurate or incomplete and, where appropriate, shall endeavour to advise other parties having access to the information in question.

If you have a complaint related to this Personal Information Policy or any of our procedures, contact our Privacy Officer. If your complaint is justified, we will take the steps necessary to resolve the issue, including amending our Policy and practices, if necessary.
If we are not able to resolve your concern, or if you have any other concerns about Acera Insurance’s Personal Information Policy and procedures, you may contact the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada. Acera Insurance’s Privacy Officer will provide you with this contact information upon request.

This Personal Information Policy spells out the responsibility of Acera Insurance’s (we, our, us), and your rights as our applicant, customer or former customer (you or your), regarding the collection, use and disclosure of your personal information.
This Personal Information Policy is subject to any amendments that will be available from Acera Insurance’s Privacy Officer.

Acera Insurance strives to ensure that the personal information we have on file about you is as accurate and up-to-date as necessary for the Identified Purposes for which it is to be used. If any information needs to be updated or amended to reflect a change in your situation, we make every effort to update our records. Acera Insurance shall amend personal information that is materially inaccurate or incomplete and, where appropriate, shall endeavour to advise other parties having access to the information in question. You can direct any queries about this Policy to Acera Insurance’s Privacy Officer at the telephone, e-mail address, or mailing address listed below. For more information, to file a complaint, to make enquiries, or to opt out of all or parts of this Policy, please contact Acera Insurance’s Privacy Officer :

Privacy Officer
1-800-670-1877
privacy@acera.ca

We generally enter into Strategic Alliances with other insurance brokerages, financial advisors, and financial service providers in order to provide required services to applicants and existing clients.