This privacy statement sets out how personal information provided to the Hutt City Council will be managed.
This privacy policy explains how Hutt City Council collects, uses, shares, and protects your personal information. We are committed to being open and transparent about how we handle personal information and to protecting your privacy.
We must comply with the Privacy Act 2020. We support this policy with service-specific privacy statements, internal policies, and privacy impact assessments to make sure personal information is handled appropriately.
Privacy Statements
We provide privacy statements whenever we collect personal information from you. These explain why we are collecting the information, how it will be used and shared, whether providing it is optional, and how you can access or correct it.
Privacy statements are available before you provide your information and can be found on the relevant service, activity webpage or form.
We collect personal information only where it is necessary to carry out our functions. Examples include:
- providing council services and facilities
- carrying out regulatory functions such as building control, parking enforcement, and animal control
- operating leisure, cultural, and community programmes and facilities
- consulting and engaging with the community
- supporting the health, safety, and wellbeing of staff and the public
- promoting council services and events
- research and data analysis to support decision making
Types of personal information we collect
- contact and identification details
- demographic information for surveys and research
- images, video, and audio recordings from CCTV, wearable cameras, meetings, events and calls to council
- vehicle and licence plate information for parking and traffic management
- financial information for rates, fees, and payments
- medical or health information where needed for recreation programmes or events.
- Information necessary to the recruitment process when you apply to work for us.
Some information is required by law and is not optional. Our privacy statements explain what information is required, what is optional, and what may happen if you choose not to provide it.
In some situations, we collect personal information from other organisations rather than directly from you. When this happens, we take reasonable steps to let you know what information we have collected and where it came from, unless an exception under the Privacy Act 2020 applies.
Examples include vehicle information from NZTA for parking and traffic management, and electoral information during local government elections.
We only share personal information where it is necessary to deliver council services, meet legal obligations, or where you have agreed.
Examples include sharing information with valuation providers for rating purposes, the National Dog Database, and secure payment service providers.
We share information with Council Controlled Organisations to assist with the functions and services they provide.
In limited circumstances, we may also share information where the law requires it, where you authorise us to do so, or to prevent or lessen a serious threat to health or safety.
We use CCTV, wearable cameras, photography, and video recording in some public spaces, council facilities, meetings, and events. This is done for purposes such as safety, accountability, service delivery, and public participation.
Phone calls to Council may be recorded for quality assurance, training, and to help us accurately manage enquiries and requests.
Where recording is taking place, we take reasonable steps to let people know, for example through signage or meeting notices. Recordings are stored securely and accessed only for lawful purposes.
Some information you provide to us is information that we are required by law to make publicly available. This includes building and resource consent information and rating information, as well as information provided in some submissions.
You may request that your name and/or postal address be withheld from the public rating information database. You do not need to give a reason and can change your request at any time.
We take reasonable steps to protect personal information from loss, misuse, or unauthorised access. Safeguards include physical, technical and organisational measures.
Access to personal information is limited to staff and contractors who need it to do their job. Unauthorised access or disclosure is treated seriously and may result in disciplinary action.
We manage and dispose of records in line with the Public Records Act 2005.
You have the right to access your personal information and ask for it to be corrected.
If you are already dealing with a council service or team, you can contact them directly in the first instance.
If you are unsure who to contact, or want to make a formal request under the Privacy Act 2020, email informationrequests@huttcity.govt.nz.
If we do not agree to make a correction, you can ask us to attach a statement of correction to the record.
We use cookies and similar tools to understand how our websites are used and to improve our online services. These tools are not used to identify individuals unnecessarily.
If you use third‑party sign‑in options or embedded services, those providers may collect information under their own privacy policies. They do not have access to the personal information we hold in our systems.
The personal information Hutt City Council is collecting includes your: name, phone and/or email address, payment method(s) and payment plan details.
We are collecting this information to enable one-off and recurring online payments. This is necessary to support the management of property rates payments
Your information will be used only for the reasons we mentioned above and only designated Hutt City Council staff will be allowed to see it. It will also be shared with Westpac Bank, Payble and Civica or Attura where necessary to process your payments.
Providing this information is mandatory for using the Payble platform. If you choose not to provide it, you will not be able to use the Payble platform to manage your rates payments.
Hutt City Council stores personal information with reasonable safeguards against loss and disclosure. Reasonable safeguards include physical and technological protections against unauthorised access.
Hutt City Council will not keep information for longer than is necessary or as required by legislation. When no longer needed, information is destroyed securely.
You have the right to access and correct your personal information.
To access or correct the information you provided for this service, contact 0800 488 824 or rates@huttcity.co.nz.
To access or correct other personal information Hutt City Council may hold about you, or make a formal request under the Privacy Act 2020, email: informationrequests@huttcity.govt.nz
Questions and Support
The council has a Privacy Officer. If you have any concerns about privacy, email privacy@huttcity.govt.nz.
If you are not satisfied with how we have handled a privacy concern, you can complain to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner.