Privacy Policy
This data protection information applies to the use of the website www.engelvoelkers.com/en (hereinafter referred to as "website" and the Property Search App, a mobile application for property searches (hereinafter referred to as “property app“ and is valid from 1 September 2020.
The following information applies to both the website and the property app, unless expressly stated otherwise.
Engel & Völkers AG in its function of responsible authority (hereinafter also referred to as "Engel & Völkers" informs its users that
- by using the website, personal data about them will be processed, in particular:
personal data (e.g., e-mail address, first name, surname, title, address, telephone number – in the following “data” or “personal data”) provided by users at the time of registration on the website or during use of one of the services available on the website (e.g., in connection with contact requests and newsletter mails as well as for the determination of market prices);
personal data transferred from the user’s internet browser each time the user accesses the website and stored within log files, also known as server logs. This data comprises: IP address (Internet protocol address) of the accessing computer; name of the accessed site; date and time of access; related URL from which the user accesses the site; number of transferred data items; status report of successful access; session ID number;
- by using the property app, personal data about them will be processed, in particular:
e-mail address, first name, surname, title, address, telephone number provided by users at the time of sending an enquiry;
Whenever the app is accessed, the usage data of the respective app user is saved. This data comprises: operating system used and, if applicable, the browser type, current language setting of the smartphone, information about the user’s Internet service provider, name of the retrieved page and, if applicable, the origin page, date and time of retrieval, amount of data transmitted, status report on whether the retrieval was successful, session identification number.
Purpose of processing
Engel & Völkers, as a responsible authority,
- processes the personal data of website and property app users for the following purposes:
Fulfilment of users' contact enquiries (legal basis is the fulfilment of the contract and - in the event of the user data being passed on - the legitimate interest of Engel & Völkers in passing on contact or service enquiries within the Engel & Völkers Group to companies / licence partners that are competent in terms of subject matter or geography. The "Engel & Völkers Group" as defined above includes Engel & Völkers AG and its domestic and foreign affiliated companies within the meaning of § 15ff of the German Stock Corporation Act (Aktiengesetz) as well as the (master) licence partners affiliated to this group of companies. You can obtain a current overview of these licence partners here: https://www.engelvoelkers.com/en-de/company/locations/);
Fulfilment of the request for an evaluation of the property described by the user in line with the market price as well as the interest in making a sale transmitted with it (legal basis is the fulfilment of the contract as well as, in the event that the user enters contact details and these are passed on to companies of the "Engel & Völkers Group" with legal or geographical responsibility or to the company responsible for the evaluation, your consent as well as, in the event that the contact details are used for direct marketing, the legitimate interest of Engel & Völkers in marketing its own services);
Contact via telephone by Engel & Völkers or the Engel & Völkers Group (legal basis is the fulfilment of the contract or, if the telephone number is used to advertise similar goods and services, the legitimate interest to advertise Engel & Völkers services in the context of direct marketing);
The forwarding of e-mail newsletters (website only) containing the company’s own offers and advertising by the company or third parties to the legally permissible extent or based on consent. (Legal basis is either the consent or the legitimate interest of Engel & Völkers in the context of direct marketing, providing this is in accordance with data protection and competition rules);
For the functionality and optimisation of the Engel & Völkers website and property app. (Legal basis is the legitimate interest of Engel & Völkers toin continuously improveing the quality of the website and property app and ensure its ease of use);
Analysis of the website and property app for determining user behaviour. (Legal basis is consent.);
Identification and possible blocking of users who have installed a so-called adblocker and who thereby block advertising. (Legal basis is the legitimate interest of Engel & Völkers of providing users who do not block advertising with wholly or partially web-financed offers);
In order to prevent fraudulent activities or misuse on the website or in connection with the website or property app and to observe the legal stipulations for secure websites. (Legal basis is the legitimate interest of Engel & Völkers in eliminating faults, ensuring system security, and identifying unauthorised access attempts or accesses.)
The legal basis for the processing of personal data is GDPR Article 6(1)(a), if the processing is based on consent, Article 6(1)(b) if the basis for processing is a contractual relationship and Article 6(1)(f) if the basis for processing is Engel & Völkers’s legitimate interests.
If the legal basis is your consent, you are entitled to revoke your consent at any time without affecting the lawfulness of the processing carried out on the basis of the consent until revocation. If the legal basis is a legitimate interest, you are also entitled in principle to object to the processing of your personal data at any time for reasons arising from your particular situation. Article 21 GDPR applies in this respect.
Nature of provision of personal data and consequences of objection
The provision of personal data by users is voluntary. They may freely decide whether to make personal data available to Engel & Völkers and may subsequently revoke their consent to the processing of personal data which has already been made available. Revocation may mean that the Engel & Völkers website is no longer usable.
Access to data
The personal data is processed by Engel & Völkers and (with respect to individual items) particularly by
Employees (permanent employees such as employees and independent property consultants) and consultants authorised to administer the website and property app and provide the associated services.
Third-party supplier companies (e.g., IT service providers, hosting providers, etc.) to which Engel & Völkers has outsourced processing services as part of a job processing agreement.
Information about the data
As the responsible authority we are able to provide information about your personal data. However, this information may only be given for the following reasons:
In the case of fulfilment of legal obligations or obligations arising from regulations and guidelines under national or European laws.
For defence in court in the case of a legal dispute.
Disclosure of data
If your query relates to offers from other companies of the Engel & Völkers Group, Engel & Völkers transfers the personal data entered by you in this case to the respective company from the Engel & Völkers Group with your prior consent or on the basis of its legitimate interests. Other than this, your personal data will not be disclosed by Engel & Völkers.
Disclosure of data in non-EEA countries
Engel & Völkers will not transfer any personal data to non-EEA countries without your consent. The servers used by Engel & Völkers are located within the European Union.
If your query relates to companies of the Engel & Völkers Group outside the European Union, we will transfer your data after obtaining your consent.
In cases where personal data is transferred to countries that do not offer the same level of protection as within the European Union and you have not expressly agreed to the transfer of your data to those countries by way of your consent, Engel & Völkers will ensure that certain contractual obligations under applicable data protection law (including the execution of standard contractual clauses approved by the European Union) are agreed with each service provider, unless Engel & Völkers can invoke other legal grounds for the transfer of personal data.
Saving and deleting of data
Engel & Völkers saves personal data for the time necessary for achieving the purposes for which the data was collected and processed, including any retention period stipulated under the applicable legislation (e.g. retention of accounting records) and in any case for a maximum of 24 months after the personal data was collected.
Use of cookies and other tracking technologies
In addition to the above-mentioned processing of personal data, cookies and other tracking technologies are stored on your end device during or after your visit to Engel & Völkers.
Cookies are small text files that are sent when visiting our website or property app and stored in the user's browser. If the corresponding website is called up again, the user's browser sends the contents of the cookies back and thus enables the user to be identified. Third party technologies such as scripts, pixels, and tags, which Engel & Völkers integrates for advertising purposes, also set cookies on your end device.
Certain cookies are automatically deleted at the end of the browser session (so-called session cookies), others are stored in the user's browser for a specified time or permanently and then delete themselves automatically (so-called temporary or permanent cookies).
Which cookies does Engel & Völkers use in general?
Depending on their function and purpose, cookies are divided into various categories by Engel & Völkers.
"Essential" and "functional" cookies are required to enable Engel & Völkers to provide the online offering in a secure and user-friendly manner. This category includes, for example,
cookies that serve to identify or authenticate our users and
cookies that temporarily store certain user entries.
These cookies enable you to navigate through the Engel & Völkers online offers and use the functions as desired. Without these cookies, essential services of Engel & Völkers cannot be provided. They are only used when you visit our online offers and are usually deleted after closing your browser. They are also used to retrieve the optimised website display when accessed with a mobile device, so that your data volume is not unnecessarily depleted.
The legal basis for setting these cookies is the legitimate interest of Engel & Völkers that the online services can be used securely and easily and that the quality of the online services and content is constantly improved.
No consent is required for the use of "essential" and "functional" cookies. They cannot be deactivated.
Engel & Völkers also uses cookies for analytical ("analytical cookies") and advertising purposes ("advertising" cookies). Engel & Völkers uses the profiles created with the help of these cookies for statistical information on the use of Engel & Völkers online services and to display advertising or offers which are tailored to your interests ("interest-based advertising").
The legal basis for the use of these cookies is your consent.
Which cookies does Engel & Völkers use in particular?
You can find out which cookies Engel & Völkers uses in particular via this link.
This list also contains the duration of the storage and other helpful information.
How can you manage and prevent the use of cookies or delete cookies?
You can use Engel & Völkers without "analytical" cookies, "advertising" cookies and other web tracking mechanisms. Please click on this link to disable these cookies and tracking mechanisms. In this case, only the “essential” and “functional“ cookies remain, which are necessary for the use of the online offers.
You can also deactivate the storage of cookies via your browser settings and delete previously stored cookies in your browser at any time. Please note, however, that this online offer may not function or may only function to a limited extent without cookies.
We also recommend that you visit the website of www.YourOnlineChoices.com, where you can obtain information and assistance in connection with web tracking mechanisms.
A central opt-out option for various tools, in particular from US American providers, is also available at the following link: optout.networkadvertising.org.
Links to social media pages
This website contains links to the main social media network sites (e.g., Facebook and Twitter). These are not embedded social media plug-ins, but a link through which no personal data is transmitted to the social media operators.
Rights of data subjects
You have the right to information with regard to the processing of your personal data (for example, the origin of this data, the processing purpose, the modalities of the data processing). Under certain conditions, you are also entitled to object to data processing in the future, to restrict it or to request that the data be deleted. Finally, you can prevent the sending of advertising material or the implementation of market research or commercial communications at any time.
In summary, you are entitled to
information,
correction,
deletion (or to be forgotten),
limitation of processing,
data portability,
objection to the processing of your personal data,
lodge a complaint with the supervisory authorities.
Please note that your right to deletion is subject to certain restrictions. For instance, we are not obliged to or may not be permitted to delete any data which we need to retain for a further period under a statutory retention period. Data needed by us for the establishment, exercise, or defence of legal claims is also exempt from your right to deletion.
To exercise the above rights and to request information, users may write to the following e-mail address info@engelvoelkers.com or postal address Engel & Völkers AG, Vancouverstraße 2a, 20457 Hamburg, Germany. Similarly, users may at any time revoke consent tothe processing of their data or request that their data is corrected or deleted.
Contacts
The responsible authority for processing of data is Engel & Völkers AG located at Vancouverstraße 2a, 20457 Hamburg, Germany. In the event of questions regarding our data processors, we are happy to make a current list of these available to you.
If you have questions about this data protection declaration or about data protection, please contact the data protection officer at Engel & Völkers:
Dr. Stefanie Wegener
Mittelweg 10
20148 Hamburg, Germany
Swegener@wegener-ra.de
If you have a complaint about the way we process your data, you are entitled to lodge a complaint with the supervisory authority. Please contact:
Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg
Der Hamburgische Beauftragte für Datenschutz und Informationsfreiheit
Thomas Fuchs
Ludwig-Erhard-Straße 22, 20459 Hamburg
Mailbox@datenschutz.hamburg.de