Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy Information

Who We Are

Financial Expert Independent Ltd (“FEI”, “we”, “our”, “us”) is an Appointed Representative of Financial Expert Partnership Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Our FCA reference number is 565800.

We take your privacy seriously. This policy explains what personal information we collect, why we collect it, how we use it, and what rights you have in relation to it.

If you have any questions about this policy, please contact us at:

Email: info@financialexpertindependent.co.uk

Phone: +44 (0) 1270 747 989

Post: Compliance Department, Financial Expert Partnership Limited, 3 Chester Bridge, Crewe, CW2 7EF

What Information We Collect

When you interact with us — whether through our website, our advisers, our customer portal (bios.fepfs.co.uk/cp/), or our review forms — we may collect the following categories of personal information:

Contact and identity information

Full name
Email address
Telephone number (mobile and/or landline)
Home address and postcode
Date of birth

Financial and protection information

Details of existing insurance policies (provider, product type, sum assured, policy date)
Income and employment information, where relevant to a protection recommendation
Mortgage details, where relevant
Details of your will or trust arrangements, if disclosed

Health and medical information

Medical history and current health status, collected through our medical questionnaire process
This is “Special Category Data” under UK GDPR and is handled with additional care
We will always request your explicit consent before collecting this category of data

Technical and usage information

IP address and browser type when you use our website or online forms
Session identifiers to track form completion and match review responses to the correct adviser
Information about how you found us (campaign source codes where applicable)

We will never collect information that is not necessary for the services we provide.

How We Collect Your Information

Directly from you

When you complete a protection review form on our website
When you request a free policy review or submit your policy schedule
When you contact us by phone, email, or post
When you attend a meeting with one of our advisers
When you register with or use the B.I.O.S. Customer Portal
When you sign documents electronically or submit a medical questionnaire

From third parties

From insurance providers, in the course of arranging cover on your behalf
From other financial services firms where you have given permission for your information to be shared
We will never receive your personal data from third parties without your knowledge and consent

Why We Use Your Information (Legal Basis)

We process your personal data on the following legal bases under UK GDPR:

Contractual necessity: To provide you with financial advice and to arrange insurance contracts on your behalf.
Legal obligation: To comply with FCA requirements, anti-money laundering legislation (Money Laundering Regulations 2017 and Proceeds of Crime Act 2002), and other applicable financial services regulation.
Legitimate interest: To manage our client relationships, improve our services, and ensure we meet our regulatory obligations under the FCA Consumer Duty.
Explicit consent: For Special Category Data (health and medical information), and for marketing communications where required.

We will not use your information for any purpose that is incompatible with the purpose for which it was collected.

How We Use Your Information

To assess your protection needs and provide personalised financial advice
To arrange and administer insurance policies on your behalf
To conduct identity verification as required by anti-money laundering legislation
To carry out periodic reviews of your protection arrangements
To send you information about changes to your policies, regulatory updates, or relevant new products (where you have consented)
To handle complaints and resolve disputes
To maintain records as required by the FCA and applicable law
To facilitate access to our free will writing service (Will Writing Network) and trust services
To provide access to the B.I.O.S. Customer Portal, where you can view your plans, sign documents, manage consents, and access supporting services

Who We Share Your Information With

We share your information only where necessary and always with appropriate safeguards:

Insurance providers: We share relevant personal and health information with insurers when arranging protection on your behalf. This is a necessary part of the advice and arrangement process.
Will Writing Network: If you use our free will writing service, relevant contact and personal information is shared with Will Writing Network, our specialist will writing partner.
Financial Expert Partnership Limited: As our principal firm for FCA regulatory purposes, FEP has oversight access to ensure regulatory compliance.
I.O.S. system (Kenneth / YET CRM): Your client data is stored and managed within the B.I.O.S. CRM platform, which is operated on behalf of FEI.
Regulatory bodies: The FCA, Financial Ombudsman Service, and other relevant authorities where required by law.
Professional indemnity insurers: In the event of a claim or complaint investigation.

We do not sell your personal data. We do not share your data with third parties for their marketing purposes.

Your Rights Under UK GDPR

You have the following rights in relation to your personal data:

Right of access: You can request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Right to rectification: You can ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data.
Right to erasure: You can ask us to delete your data where there is no legitimate reason for us to continue holding it. Note that regulatory record-keeping obligations may prevent full deletion in some cases.
Right to restriction: You can ask us to restrict processing in certain circumstances.
Right to data portability: You can ask us to provide your data in a structured, machine-readable format.
Right to object: You can object to processing based on legitimate interest.
Right to withdraw consent: Where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw consent at any time. This will not affect the lawfulness of processing before withdrawal.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at info@financialexpertindependent.co.uk or by post to the address above. We will respond within 30 days.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk or by calling 0303 123 1113.

How Long We Keep Your Data

We retain personal data for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, and to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations. Our standard retention periods are:

Active client records: For the duration of the client relationship plus 7 years after it ends.
Insurance policy records: For the duration of the policy plus 7 years.
Medical questionnaire data: For the duration of any policy where health data was relevant, plus 7 years.
Prospect and lead records: Up to 2 years from initial contact, unless a client relationship is established.
Complaint records: 3 years from resolution, or longer if required by the FCA.

After the relevant retention period, data is securely deleted or anonymised.

Data Security

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data against unauthorised access, loss, or disclosure. These include:

Encrypted storage of personal and health data within our B.I.O.S. system
Secure access controls to our Customer Portal (bios.fepfs.co.uk/cp/)
Electronic identity verification for compliance purposes
Staff training on data handling and confidentiality
Professional Indemnity Insurance of £1,000,000 per adviser, providing additional protection for clients

No data transmission over the internet is completely secure. However, we take all reasonable steps to protect your information.

Cookies

Our website (feadviser.co.uk) uses cookies to improve your experience and to enable our review tools to function correctly. You will be asked to consent to non-essential cookies when you first visit the site.

Session identifiers used by our review forms (to match your answers to the correct adviser) are technical cookies necessary for the form to function and do not require separate consent.

You can manage your cookie preferences at any time through your browser settings or by contacting us.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify existing clients of material changes by email or through the Customer Portal. The current version will always be available at feadviser.co.uk/privacy-policy.

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