POPIA & The Estate Agent

Things are about to change in the world of data protection, and it will effect everyone in the property industry: from landlords and letting agents, through to sellers and tenants, everyone will be touched by the new regulations in one way or another.

The key question will be obvious –“What does it mean for me as Estate Agent?” and “What do I need to know and what must I do?”

We thought it would be a good idea to give you a brief overview of how the changes may affect you and give you a little information on what your next actions in this regard should be.

We hope it makes your “POPIA”-life that little bit easier. 😉


What is POPIA?

The Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA), is South Africa's data protection Act. POPIA is South African legislation that will regulate the collection, storage, and dissemination of personal information.  The purpose of POPIA (or rather “POPI” as more often referred to) is, inter alia, to promote the protection of personal information processed by public and private bodies and thus give effect to the constitutional right to privacy, whilst balancing this against competing rights and interests, particularly the right of access to information.


What does it mean for me as Estate Agent?

1. Only process information you definitely need. 

A typical property transaction generates a huge amount of personal data processing: from basic personal and contact details in the early stages, all the way through to banking- and FICA information at the other end of the process.

During this process, it is very tempting to gather as much information as possible, ‘just in case it may’ come in handy, possibly to prevent further delays down the line.
Remember however you need to be able to justify why you needed information obtained and kept, and if extra information is really just supplemental, there is no need to have and store this...

Simply put: If you can’t justify having certain information or the information is no longer relevant, delete it!

2. Get consent.

Make sure you have proof of your client’s consent to use their personal information.


What do I need to do?

Being an estate agent not only involves lots of past, present, and prospective future clients, it also includes plenty of liaison with other professional entities. Regardless of whether an initial enquiry progresses all the way to a successful sale, purchase, or lease, thát’s a huge amount of data to think about.
 
Thus, whether you are a letting agent, estate agent, a managing agent or a landlord, you’ll obviously have clients to engage with and that means you’ll be holding their data in one way or another.

The steps that your business needs to take in order to be POPI- complaint will largely depend upon what ‘data protection methods’ you already have in place.

With this in mind, it’s a good idea to go through a checklist to see just where your property business may need attention:

1. Run a complete audit of all the personal data your business holds, including where you obtained it and how it is shared;
   
   
2. Go over current privacy policy, terms and conditions relating thereto, as well as  cookie policies and update them wherever necessary;
   
   
3. Review procedures and update them so your business is in line with the rights of your clients;
   
   
4. Put plans in place that clearly state how you will respond to access requests for clients;
   
   
5. Clearly outline why you are lawfully collecting data in your privacy policy;
   
   
6. Outline exactly how you will detect and deal with any data breaches;
   
   
7. Assign a member of your staff to oversee your company’s data protection compliance moving forward.

THE NEED TO KNOW:

• Only process data that is essential to the service you provide.
  
  
• Be able to demonstrate what data you process, and why, and who else you’ve shared it with.

And whatever you do….. do NOT dismiss POPI or NOT find time to comply. 
And do NOT put off asking for help if you need it.


MARLENE VAN DEN HEEVER
ASSOCIATE ATTORNEY 
VAN ZYL KRUGER INC