Privacy policy
A bit about us and our relationship to you
We own electricity and gas networks throughout the North Island of New Zealand. You can see our power lines along roadsides, and we often have lines, pipes and cables under the road. If you buy electricity or gas from a retailer, our job is to bring it to your door, safely, reliably and efficiently.
Here are some other ways we might interact with you:
- We may own lines or pipes on your land, or nearby.
- Your home, business or development may connect to our networks.
- You may deal with, or work for, our contractors or suppliers.
- You may work for retailers or other businesses that we provide services to.
- You may apply for a job with us.
- You may contact us with a question or complaint.
- You may simply visit our website or social media pages.
Powerco is about more than electricity and gas. It’s about people. You are the reason we do what we do. And we care about your privacy.
We care about your privacy
NZ’s Privacy Act applies to us when we deal with personal information.
What’s personal information? It’s information about an identifiable individual. It’s the stuff that can identify you.
This privacy policy is for people outside Powerco. It tells you about:
- The kinds of personal information we may collect and hold about you
- Why we collect, hold, use and share that personal information
- How we get it
- Who we might share it with outside of Powerco
- How we store your personal information
The kinds of personal information we collect and why we collect, hold, use and share personal information
Our business is to keep the lights on and the gas flowing, and we collect, hold, use and share personal information to help us do that. We’re likely to collect basic personal information such as your name, address, phone number and email address. The other kinds of personal information we may collect about you depends on our interaction with you. The particular reason why we may collect, hold, use and share your personal information also depends on our interaction with you. Powerco’s contractual arrangements with electricity retailers include the sharing of customer information (including email addresses and phone numbers). This information is provided by retailers to Powerco so that it can effectively operate its electricity network, which includes contacting customers regarding outages and conducting surveys.
To find out more, click on the sections below that apply to you (or the business you work for).
The kinds of personal information we collect
about your property
such as ICP, connection type, access, pets and stock on the property, meter location, plans and maps, property photos, GIS data, fault history, installation inspection dates, network category codes, number of people at the property, energy investments (eg solar, pumps, electric fence), retailer
meter data
consumption data from meters connected to our network eg aggregated monthly consumption
about your service providers
details of your service providers that we may need to deal with eg your electrician, builder, gasfitter, surveyor, lawyer, architect, insurer
claims, complaints or disputes
eg the date of the event, what happened, who was involved, what others involved say about what happened, any documents or other information provided to us in relation to the event, emails and other correspondence about the event, recordings of phone calls with us about the event, details relevant to insurance claims, and information that helps us assess the event if we need to pay you, we’ll collect information such as your bank account number
health and safety
eg details of incidents that may involve you
sensitive information
in limited circumstances we may collect sensitive information eg medically dependent or vulnerable people at an address
communications
eg recordings of your calls to us, notes of discussions and meetings, and emails
online interactions
eg details of your visits to our website and social media pages, fields you complete in online forms, details about competitions you enter, and other online interactions we have with you
website analytics, cookies
eg age and demographics (via Google ads and Facebook), IP address, cookie ID, advertising ID, device ID, city, region, browsing behaviour
publicly available information
eg details from LINZ and the Companies Office website, results of online searches, media reports, Council records and archives
Why we may collect, hold, use and share your personal information
We may collect, use, hold and share your personal information in order to:
• bring electricity and gas to your door, safely, reliably and efficiently
• connect your home, business or development to our networks
• upgrade your supply or change your connection
• disconnect your supply
• understand the requirements and performance of our networks
• tell you about planned outages and keep you updated
• respond to interruption in your supply or unplanned outages
• plan and arrange works on our networks
• update and maintain our customer records
• contact you (including in an emergency)
• answer your questions
• respond to claims, complaints or disputes that involve you
• keep our networks, our people and the public safe
• meet our internal and external reporting requirements
• carry out training, monitoring and quality control
• run and improve our website
We may also collect, hold, use and share your personal information for other reasons permitted by NZ’s Privacy Act eg with your permission or where the law permits or requires it.
The kinds of personal information we collect
about your team
such as names, contact details, job title and addresses, skills and experience, relevant vehicle used
tenders
if you respond to a Powerco request for tender or proposal, we’ll collect the personal information provided in your response and information provided by referees
due diligence
eg details of health and safety site inductions, work experience, cv, records of learning, key personnel, referees
payment
if we need to pay you, we’ll collect information such as your bank account number, GST number, tax declaration, contact for accounts receivable, and we’ll ask you to provide a bank deposit, bank statement or certified bank letter, and to disclose conflicts of interest
health and safety
eg health and safety records, location (when working on lines), results of regular health and safety audits which may include photos
claims, complaints or disputes
eg the date of the event, what happened, who was involved, what others involved say about what happened, any documents or other information provided to us, emails and other correspondence about it, recordings of phone calls with us about the event, details relevant to insurance claims, and information that helps us assess the event
communications
eg recordings of your calls to us, notes of discussions and meetings, and emails
online interactions
eg details of your visits to our website and social media pages, fields you complete in online forms, details about competitions you enter, and other online interactions we have with you
website analytics, cookies
eg age and demographics (via Google ads and Facebook), IP address, cookie ID, advertising ID, device ID, city, region, browsing behaviour
publicly available information
eg details from LINZ and the Companies Office website, results of online searches, media reports, council records and archives
Why we may collect, hold, use and share your personal information
We may collect, use, hold and share your personal information in order to:
• plan, manage and perform works on our networks
• meet our legal, regulatory and contract responsibilities
• contact you and your team
• assess tenders and proposals you submit
• assess your ability to do the job safely, reliably and efficiently
• instruct, engage and pay you
• respond to claims, complaints or disputes that involve you
• keep our networks, our people and the public safe
• meet our internal and external reporting requirements
• carry out training, monitoring and quality control
• run and improve our website
We may also collect, hold, use and share your personal information for other reasons permitted by NZ’s Privacy Act eg with your permission or where the law permits or requires it.
The kinds of personal information we collect about your property
such as the address and legal description of land you own, occupy or have an interest in, registered interests over the land, results of LINZ searches, ICP, connection type,access, pets and stock, meter location, plans and maps, property photos, GIS data
owners and occupants
name and contact details of owners and occupiers such tenant, lessee, forestry manager, farm manager
about your service providers
eg your electrician, builder, gasfitter, surveyor, lawyer, architect, insurer
about your trees
such as tree site and notices given and received under tree regulations, emails and other correspondence about your trees near our network, GPS data
payment
if we need to pay you, we’ll collect information such as your bank account number, GST number, tax declaration, contact for accounts receivable, and we’ll ask you to provide a bank deposit, bank statement or certified bank letter, and to disclose conflicts of interest
health and safety
eg details of incidents that may involve you
claims, complaints or disputes
eg the date of the event, what happened, who was involved, what others involved say about what happened, any documents or other information provided to us, emails and other correspondence about it, recordings of phone calls with us about the event, details relevant to insurance claims, and information that helps us assess the event
communications
eg recordings of your calls to us, notes of discussions and meetings, and emails
online interactions
eg details of your visits to our website and social media pages, fields you complete in online forms, details about competitions you enter, and other online interactions we have with you
website analytics, cookies
eg age and demographics (via Google ads and Facebook), IP address, cookie ID, advertising ID, device ID, city, region, browsing behaviour
publicly available information
eg details from LINZ and the Companies Office website, results of online searches, media reports, council records and archives
Why we may collect, hold, use and share your personal information
We may collect, use, hold and share your personal information in order to:
• get the property rights we need to install and operate our networks
• access and maintain our networks when we need to
• pay you if we need to
• respond to claims, complaints or disputes that involve you
• keep our networks, our people and the public safe
• meet our internal and external reporting requirements
• carry out training, monitoring and quality control
• run and improve our website
We may also collect, hold, use and share your personal information for other reasons permitted by NZ’s Privacy Act eg with your permission or where the law permits or requires it.
The kinds of personal information we collect
about your team
such as your contact person’s name, job title, phone and email and the names and contact information of key personnel who we may deal with
payment
if we need to pay you, we’ll collect information such as your bank account number, GST number, tax declaration, contact for accounts receivable, and we’ll ask you to provide a bank deposit, bank statement or certified bank letter, and to disclose conflicts of interest
health and safety
eg details of incidents that may involve you
claims, complaints or disputes
eg the date of the event, what happened, who was involved, what others involved say about what happened, any documents or other information provided to us, emails and other correspondence about it, recordings of phone calls with us about the event, details relevant to insurance claims, and information that helps us assess the event
communications
eg recordings of your calls to us, notes of discussions and meetings, and emails
online interactions
eg details of your visits to our website and social media pages, fields you complete in online forms, details about competitions you enter, and other online interactions we have with you
website analytics, cookies
eg age and demographics (via Google ads and Facebook), IP address, cookie ID, advertising ID, device ID, city, region, browsing behaviour
publicly available information
eg details from LINZ and the Companies Office website, results of online searches, media reports, council records and archives
Why we may collect, hold, use and share your personal information
We may collect, use, hold and share your personal information in order to:
• plan, manage and perform works on our networks
• meet our legal, regulatory and contract responsibilities
• contact you and your team
• understand your requirements, provide you with services and to pay you
• respond to claims, complaints or disputes that involve you
• keep our networks, our people and the public safe
• meet our internal and external reporting requirements
• carry out training, monitoring and quality control
• run and improve our website
We may also collect, hold, use and share your personal information for other reasons permitted by NZ’s Privacy Act eg with your permission or where the law permits or requires it.
The kinds of personal information we collect
job applicant details
if you apply for a job with us, we’ll collect the contents of your cv and job application as well as information provided to us by your referees or recruitment agencies, assessments
stakeholder communications
eg notes of consultation with you as a stakeholder in our community, answers to surveys you complete online or at events
health and safety
eg details of incidents that may involve you
claims, complaints or disputes
eg the date of the event, what happened, who was involved, what others involved say about what happened, any documents or other information provided to us, emails and other correspondence about it, recordings of phone calls with us about the event, details relevant to insurance claims, and information that helps us assess the event if we need to pay you, we’ll collect information such as your bank account number
communications
eg recordings of your calls to us, notes of discussions and meetings, and email
online interactions
eg details of your visits to our website and social media pages, fields you complete in online forms, details about competitions you enter, and other online interactions we have with you
website analytics, cookies
eg age and demographics (via Google ads and Facebook), IP address, cookie ID, advertising ID, device ID, city, region, browsing behaviour
publicly available information
eg details from LINZ and the Companies Office website, results of online searches, media reports, council records and archives
Why we may collect, hold, use and share your personal information
We may collect, use, hold and share your personal information in order to:
• carry out training, monitoring and quality control
• run and improve our website
• run our competitions that you enter
• respond to claims, complaints or disputes that involve you
• assess your job application if you apply for a job with us
• engage with our stakeholders
• keep our networks, our people and the public safe
• meet our internal and external reporting requirements
We may also collect, hold, use and share your personal information for other reasons permitted by NZ’s Privacy Act eg with your permission or where the law permits or requires it.
How we get personal information
We collect personal information directly from you when you interact with us.
We may also collect personal information about you from others where we consider it appropriate or necessary to do so, such as our contractors and suppliers, your retailer, your service providers eg lawyer, surveyor, property manager, insurer.
If you choose not to provide us with your personal information, we may not be able to properly provide the assistance or services you require.
Who we might share personal information with
We share personal information within Powerco for the reasons we collect it. See ‘The kinds of personal information we collect and why we collect, use, hold and share personal information’.
We may share personal information outside Powerco:
- if sharing that information is connected to the reason why we collected it eg with our contractors, suppliers and retailers to keep the lights on and gas flowing to customers - safely, efficiently and reliably
- with our professional advisors when we use professional services
- with legal and regulatory authorities, and to others who we are permitted or required by law or regulation to share it with
- with a court, tribunal or authority in the course of proceedings or investigations
- with anyone else as permitted by the Privacy Act or with your consent
How we store your personal information
We take reasonable steps to secure the personal information we hold from risks such as loss and interference and unauthorised access or use. For example, our systems are password protected and we use security measures for the internet.
Access to some kinds of personal information (such as consumption data from your meter) is restricted to authorised people within Powerco, who need to access those records as part of their role.
Personal information may be electronically archived.
We may send data to providers (in NZ or overseas) to hold or process for us e.g., cloud storage providers. The data we send may include personal information. Because the providers are our ‘agents’, the personal information is treated as being held by us (not ‘shared’ with the provider), and we’re responsible for how it’s dealt with.
We take reasonable steps to destroy personal information when we no longer need it for the reasons we collected it.
How you can ask to access and correct your personal information
Under NZ’s Privacy Act, you can ask to access personal information we hold about you. You can also ask us to correct personal information we hold about you.
To make a request, please email privacy@powerco.co.nz and we’ll explain the process.
If there’s a valid reason why we can’t meet your request, we’ll give you an explanation.
Get in touch
We’d love to hear from you! If you have any questions or comments about our privacy policy, please email privacy@powerco.co.nz.
If you’re not ok with the way Powerco has dealt with your personal information, you can make a complaint to our Privacy Officer. Please email privacy@powerco.co.nz.
Updates to our privacy policy
We regularly review and update our privacy policy so it’s accurate and relevant. The changes will take effect when posted here.
This privacy policy was last updated 1 June 2021.