Legal

Last updated: 12 July 2022

1.1 Peacock & Co Solicitors Limited, trading as Peacock & Co and Peacock & Co Solicitors, is a limited company registered in England and Wales under company number 11842919, whose registered office is at 94 High Street, Wimbledon Village, London SW19 5EG. On this page, where we refer to “us” or “our” or “the Firm”, this is a reference to Peacock & Co Solicitors Limited.

1.2 We use the word “partner” to refer to any of the directors of Peacock & Co Solicitors Limited, who are Kim Peacock, Katherine Carroll, Charles Hylton-Potts, Ema Jones and Amie Younger, or any person or an employee who is a lawyer with equivalent standing and qualifications.

1.3 Peacock & Co is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Our SRA number is 657411. The SRA number for our Epsom office is 658716.

1.4 The SRA Standards and Regulations contain the rules of professional conduct which apply to solicitors and may be viewed on the website of the Solicitors Regulation Authority (sra.org.uk).

1.5 Our VAT registration number is 608 842 134.

2.1 The most up-to-date version of our Terms of Business, which apply to all engagements between us and our clients and which is referred to in our client care letters, may be found at the following link:

Terms of Business

3.1 We are an equal opportunities employer. We do not discriminate against staff, clients or others on any protected grounds or other irrelevant basis.

3.2 We conduct a diversity survey of all our staff every year. The most recent report may be found at the following link:

Diversity Report

What is a complaint?

4.1 A complaint is a report by a client that their expectations of what they consider to be a good service have not been met.

4.2 A complaint can also be made by a prospective client if we have:

4.2.1 Unreasonably refused a service to a complainant; or

4.2.2 Persistently or unreasonably offered a service that the complainant does not want.

General

4.3 It is important to us that we provide services of the highest quality to all of our clients. We aim to ensure that any complaints that clients may have are identified and dealt with in accordance with this procedure.

4.4 We have an established procedure for dealing with complaints from clients. The procedure has been established so that we can resolve as many problems as possible within our offices and avoid having complaints and problems reported and escalated, and to preserve the goodwill of our clients, even if things have gone wrong.

4.5 Our procedure also assists the Firm in identifying the cause of any problem of which the client has complained offering any appropriate redress, and correcting any unsatisfactory procedures.

4.6 We expect honesty and realism from any employee or partner when things have gone wrong and in turn we will support all employees / partners.

4.7 Such complaints must be dealt with sympathetically and quickly. Our reputation depends on this, as it is all part of our high standard of service and incorporates client care.

4.8 Clients are notified in our Client Care Letter / Terms of Business of their right to complain. If the client asks for a copy of our standard procedure, it is at this point forwarded to them in writing.

4.9 A documented review of this policy / process will take place annually to verify its effective operation across our Firm.

4.10 Should you have any concerns regarding our service, please contact our Client Care Partner, Charles Hylton-Potts on [email protected]. An alternative Client Care Partner will be appointed in the event that a concern is raised in respect of Charles Hylton-Potts or in relation to a matter he is supervising.

Making a complaint

4.11 You can register the complaint with the person dealing with your matter, the Partner supervising your matter as detailed in the Client Care Letter sent to you, or the Client Care Partner, Charles Hylton-Potts.

4.12 The Client Care Partner is responsible for ensuring that complaints are handled effectively and in accordance with this procedure.

Investigating and resolving the complaint

4.13 We will acknowledge the complaint within seven days. The complainant will also be advised in what timescale they will be given an initial/substantive response. We aim to respond in full within 28 days. However, if the complaint is of a more complex nature we will require more time but we will let the complainant know when they will receive a full response.

4.14 We will conduct a full investigation and an independent review of the matter.

4.15 We will reply to the complainant, usually in writing to tell him/her of our views on the complaint and how we propose to resolve it, hopefully to the complainant’s satisfaction.

4.16 If the complainant is dissatisfied with the outcome, or the way the complaint has been handled, the complainant may write to the Client Care Partner who will make such further investigations as are necessary.

4.17 The Client Care Partner will inform the complainant of the conclusions and any alternative proposals to resolve the complaint, usually within 28 days of this being referred to him/her.

4.18 If still unresolved at this stage, the complainant may take their complaint to the Legal Ombudsman. You will have to bring your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman within six months of receiving a response from us and no later than one year from the date of the act or omission being complained about; or one year from the date on which you should have realised that there was cause for complaint. However, the Legal Ombudsman can choose to extend this time limit where it is fair and reasonable to do so.

4.19 We will record and report centrally all complaints received from clients.

4.20 We will identify the cause of any problems of which the client has complained offering appropriate redress and correcting any unsatisfactory procedures.

Legal Ombudsman

4.21 The Legal Ombudsman is the independent and impartial complaints handling body established by the Legal Services Act 2007 to deal with complaints against Solicitors.

4.22 The Legal Ombudsman may:

4.22.1 Investigate the quality of professional service supplied by a solicitor to a client;

4.22.2 Investigate allegations that a solicitor has breached rules of professional conduct;

4.22.3 Investigate allegations that a solicitor has unreasonably refused to supply a professional service to a prospective client;

4.22.4 Investigate allegations that a solicitor has persistently or unreasonably offered a professional service that the client does not want.

4.23 Before it will consider a complaint the Legal Ombudsman generally requires that the Firm’s internal Complaints Procedure has been exhausted. If the Legal Ombudsman is satisfied that the Firm’s proposals for resolving a complaint are reasonable, it may decline to investigate further.

4.24 The Legal Ombudsman’s contact details are as follows:

Address: PO Box 6167, Slough, SL1 0EH

Telephone: 0300 555 0333

Website: www.legalombudsman.org.uk

Email: [email protected]

Solicitors Regulation Authority

4.25 The Solicitors Regulation Authority can help you if you are concerned about our behaviour. This could be for things like dishonesty, taking or losing your money or treating you unfairly because of your age, a disability or other characteristic. You can raise your concerns with the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

Introduction

5.1 Peacock & Co Solicitors Limited is the owner and operator of peacock-law.co.uk (our site).

5.2 By using our site, you accept these terms of use and agree to comply with them. If you do not agree to these terms of use, you must not use our site.

5.3 You should also refer to our Privacy Policy, which sets out the terms on which we process any personal data we collect or you give to us, and our Cookie Policy, which sets out information about the cookies on our site.

5.4 Use of our site does not, under any circumstances, create a client-lawyer relationship between us and you.

Changes to these terms

5.5 We may revise these terms of use at any time by amending this page. Every time you wish to use our site, please check these terms to ensure you understand the terms that apply at that time, as these will bind you.

Changes to our site

5.6 We may also update and change our site, or the content on it, from time to time. However, we are under no obligation to update it: content may be out of date at any given time; and we do not guarantee that our site, or any content on it, will be free from errors or omissions.

Access to our site

5.7 We do not guarantee that our site, or any content on it, will always be available or be uninterrupted. We will not be liable to you if for any reason our site is unavailable at any time. We may suspend or withdraw or restrict the availability of all or any part of our site.

Reliance on content

5.8 The content and publications on our site are provided for general information only, and are relevant only to matters in England and Wales. They are not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely. You must obtain professional advice on your specific circumstances and objectives before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of any content or publication on our site. Please contact us to do so.

5.9 Although we make reasonable efforts to update the information on our site, we make no representations, warranties or guarantees, whether express or implied, that the content on our site is accurate, complete or up-to-date.

Intellectual property rights

5.10 We are the owner or the licensee of all copyright and other intellectual property rights in our site, and in the content and other material published on it. All such rights are reserved.

5.11 You must not use any part of our site or the publications or content on our site for commercial purposes. You may only use it, only as permitted below, for personal use or use within the organisation for which you work.

5.12 You may print off or download and temporarily store pages from our site or any publications on our site, but only to view them.

5.13 You must not modify the paper or digital copies of any pages or materials you have printed off or downloaded in any way, and you must not use any illustrations, photographs, videos or graphics separately from any accompanying text.

5.14 You must not otherwise use, copy, alter, transmit or permanently store any pages, publications or content without our prior written consent.

5.15 “Peacock & Co” and the figurative mark “Peacock & Co Solicitors” are UK registered trade marks of Peacock & Co Solicitors Limited. You are not permitted to use them without our approval.

Linking

5.16 Where our site contains links to other websites and resources provided by third parties (for example, www.lawfirms.co.uk), these links are provided for your information only and should not be interpreted as approval by us of those linked websites or information you may obtain from them. We have no control over the contents of those websites or resources, or how they might use your personal or other information. We are not liable for the content of those linked websites or any loss or damage you may suffer by use of, or reliance on the content on, any linked website.

5.17 You may link to our site, provided you do so in a way that is fair, legal and does not damage our reputation or take advantage of it. You must not establish a link in such a way as to suggest any form of association, approval or endorsement on our part where none exists. We reserve the right to withdraw linking permission without notice.

5.18 Our site must not be framed on any other website.

Testimonials

5.19 Any testimonials or feedback comments provided through our site will be considered non-confidential. You retain the ownership rights in such material, but you grant us an unrestricted, royalty-free licence to use, store and copy that content and to distribute and make it available to third parties for our marketing and promotional purposes.

Viruses and malware

5.20 Whilst we have taken reasonable steps to ensure that our site is free from bugs or viruses, we do not guarantee that it is, or that it is secure. You should use your own virus protection software.

5.21 You must not misuse our site by knowingly introducing viruses, trojans, worms, logic bombs or other material that is malicious or technologically harmful. You must not attempt to gain unauthorised access to our site, the server on which our site is stored or any server, computer or database connected to our site. You must not attack our site via a denial-of-service attack or a distributed denial-of service attack. By breaching this provision, you would commit a criminal offence under the Computer Misuse Act 1990. We will report any such breach to the relevant law enforcement authorities and we will co-operate with those authorities by disclosing your identity to them.

Electronic communications

5.22 The transmission of information via the internet is not completely secure. Electronic communications may, for example, be intercepted, transmit viruses, arrive late or never arrive. We cannot guarantee the security of our communications, whether transmitted to our site or between us by e-mail, and what they contain. By transmitting information to us or communicating with us by e-mail, you accept the risks involved. You should scan all e-mails and any attachments for viruses before opening them.

Limitation of liability

5.23 We do not exclude or limit in any way our liability to you where it would be unlawful to do so. This includes liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence or the negligence of our employees, agents or subcontractors and for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation.

5.24 We exclude all implied conditions, warranties, representations or other terms that may apply to our site or any content on it.

5.25 We will not be liable to you for any loss or damage, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty, or otherwise, even if foreseeable, arising under or in connection with:

5.25.1 use of, or inability to use, our site; or

5.25.2 use of or reliance on any content displayed on our site.

5.26 In particular, we will not be liable for: loss of profits, sales, business, or revenue; business interruption; loss of anticipated savings; loss of business opportunity, goodwill or reputation; or any indirect or consequential loss or damage.

Applicable law

5.27 These terms of use, their subject matter, formation and any contract arising from them (and any non-contractual disputes or claims) are governed by English law. We both agree to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.

Last updated: 10 May 2024

General

6.1 Peacock & Co takes data privacy seriously. Your privacy is important to us and we are committed to keeping your information secure and managing it in accordance with our legal responsibilities under applicable data protection laws. We are registered with the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) as a data controller under registration number ZA504921.

6.2 Please read this Privacy Statement carefully as it contains important information to help you understand how and why we process any personal information that you give to us or we collect about you.  We have a policy, that we follow firm-wide, which is based on EU data protection principles.

6.3 This statement explains how we may collect and process information about:

6.3.1 visitors to our site;

6.3.2 prospective clients;

6.3.3 clients;

6.3.4 other people who are relevant to the legal advice and services enquired about by a prospective client or that we are providing to a client.

We have a separate policy explaining how we collect and process information about job applicants, employees and contractors.

What information will we collect from or about you?

6.4 We may collect information from or about you:

6.4.1 as a visitor to our site;

6.4.2 as a prospective client;

6.4.3 as a client;

6.4.4 as a person relevant to the legal advice and services enquired about by a prospective client or that we are providing to a client, e.g. a colleague, employer, beneficiary, trustee or the other party in a transaction or a dispute;

6.4.5 if you request information or assistance from us.

6.5 In particular, we may collect the following information from or about you which is defined as “personal data”:

6.5.1 Personal details such as your name, marital status, date of birth, address, National Insurance Number, telephone number and email address, employer/company and job title;

6.5.2 Identity information such as passport, driving licence, bank statement, utility bill and/or national identity card;

6.5.3 Credit history and records relating to you, your partner or anyone else you are financially linked with (we obtain this information from credit reference and fraud prevention agencies);

6.5.4 Family, lifestyle and social circumstances, and your relationships (personal or business) with others;

6.5.5 Business activities of the person whose details we are processing;

6.5.6 Financial details such as your income, savings and investments, and your bank or credit card details;

6.5.7 Transaction data such as details about payments to and from you in relation to services we supply to you or others;

6.5.8 Employment/self-employment details and activities;

6.5.9 In feedback forms, your opinions about our service and facilities.

6.6 We may also collect information that is referred to as being “special category data”. This could include:

6.6.1 Physical or mental health details;

6.6.2 Racial or ethnic origin;

6.6.3 Religious beliefs or other beliefs of a similar nature;

6.6.4 Criminal convictions;

6.6.5 Sexual orientation.

6.7 We do not generally process special category data unless you have voluntarily provided this to us, or it is relevant to the legal service you have enquired about or asked us to provide you with.  For example, if we are assisting with a discrimination claim in an employment context, in Family & Matrimonial matters, or where you have advised us of an issue, such as your health, which could mean that you may be classed as a “vulnerable client”, i.e. due to your personal circumstances or personal characteristics you are particularly vulnerable to financial detriment.  We will process sensitive information where you have provided this information to us and have agreed that we can use this information to deliver services to you.  Where possible we shall seek to minimise the collection and use of such special categories of personal data.

6.8 We also collect technical data from visitors to our site, such as the internet protocol (IP) address, browser type and version, time zone setting and location, browser plug-in types and versions, operating system and platform and other technology on the devices that are used to access our site.  We may also collect information about visits to our site, including the full Uniform Resource Locators (URL), clickstream to, through and from our site (including date and time), pages viewed, page response times, download errors, length of visits to certain pages, page interaction information and methods used to browse away from the page.

How is your personal data collected?

6.9 On various occasions, including through forms on our site or in communications with us, we invite or request you to submit your contact details, identity information, financial details, and other information about you or your organisation or third parties relevant to your enquiry or matter, or to send us e-mails, which will, of course, also identify you.

6.10 We may collect your personal details, identity information, financial details and transaction data from providers of payment services.

6.11 We may also collect personal details, identity information and credit history from publicly availably sources such as Companies House or HM Land Registry, or third parties such as credit reference or fraud protection agencies.

6.12 We may also collect technical data using automated technologies or interactions, or receive this data from third parties such as Google, Inc. who provide us with analytics on our site, or our search engine optimisation provider.  Please see our Cookies Policy for further details.

How do we use this information?

6.13 We will only use your personal information in relation to the matter that we are dealing with. In each case, the purpose for which you have given us, or we have collected, the information is clear.

6.14 If you are a prospective client, we will mainly use your information to provide you with quotations and information about our services and to take the necessary steps for you to engage us where you choose to do so. We may also use it for marketing, subject to your consent where we are required to obtain this.

6.15 If you are a client, we will mainly use your information for the provision of legal advice that is necessary for the performance of the contract between us which will include:

6.15.1 To provide legal services to you;

6.15.2 To provide and service your relationship with us;

6.15.3 To comply with legal obligations for the prevention of financial crime and money laundering.

6.16 We may also use it for:

6.16.1 Administering any accounts;

6.16.2 Processing your bank/credit card details in order to obtain payment;

6.16.3 The prevention and detection of fraud;

6.16.4 Market research;

6.16.5 Marketing;

6.16.6 Credit reference checks (where appropriate).

6.17 We will process your information in order to meet our contractual obligations to you, where we have a legitimate interest to do so, where we are permitted by law or to comply with applicable laws and regulation.

6.18 If you are a person relevant to the legal advice and services we are providing to a client or in relation to an enquiry, we shall use your information to provide the advice and services or enquiry.

Who will we share your information with?

6.19 We will not disclose your data outside of the firm, except to service providers acting on our behalf or in other very limited circumstances, for example, with your agreement or where we are legally obliged to do so.

6.20 Under our Code of Conduct there are very strict rules about who we can share your information with and this will normally be limited to other people who will assist with your matter. This may include:

6.20.1 Experts and Barristers required to work on your matter;

6.20.2 Medical Experts;

6.20.3 Private Investigators;

6.20.4 Healthcare professionals, social and welfare organisations;

6.20.5 Courts and Tribunals;

6.20.6 Regulatory authorities and professional bodies to comply with our or your legal obligations, our professional obligations, or pursuant to a service we are providing you;

6.20.7 Credit reference agencies to check your identity in accordance with our legal obligations;

6.20.8 Property Search Companies to identify any issues that might influence your decision to buy or sell a property;

6.20.9 Insurers for the purpose of providing you with appropriate financial cover for an identified insurable risk, or in connection with any claim made by you against us;

6.20.10 Property Agents, Brokers, Lenders, and other Solicitors involved in your transaction representing other party(ies) in your matter to enable them and us to fulfil our obligations to our respective clients;

6.20.11 Other Government Departments such as HMRC, Companies House, Probate Registry, Court of Protection or HM Land Registry to fulfil your and our legal obligations;

6.20.12 Our external assessment bodies to achieve and maintain any Regulatory or Quality Assurance Standards and accreditations which meet our legal obligations and our legitimate interest to ensure we may provide quality legal services to our clients;

6.20.13 Case management and software companies supporting the delivery of our legal services and management (including Leap Legal Office and Practical Law);

6.20.14 IT providers as part of our IT support and management;

6.20.15 Our accountants and other professional advisors;

6.20.16 Where you authorise us, we may also disclose your information to your family, associates or representatives.

How we retain your personal information

6.21 We will only retain your personal data for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes we collected it for, including for the purposes of satisfying any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements.

6.22 Our retention periods are:

What to do if you do not want to receive information from us

6.23 If we propose to use your details to send you information about our services, events or legal developments which we believe may be of interest to you (other than information that you have specifically requested), your consent will be obtained to do so; alternatively, you can let us know your preferences by contacting us using the details at the end of this statement.

Transfer of information abroad

6.24 We do not operate outside of the UK.

6.25 Our data is retained and backed up in data centres in the European Economic Area. We do not transfer your personal data outside the European Economic Area, unless you are based outside that area and we correspond with you.  In this case, you consent to such transfer.

Security

6.26 We have robust information security management systems in place to protect your personal information.

6.27 Unfortunately, the transmission of information via the internet is not completely secure, and electronic communications between us are at your risk. Please refer to paragraph 5.22 of our Terms of Use for more information.

What rights do you have?

6.28 You have a series of rights under the “UK General Data Protection Regulation” including the right to access a copy of the information we hold about you, unless we have a lawful ground to refuse this.

6.29 You will not have to pay a fee to access your personal data (or to exercise any of the other rights). However, we may charge a reasonable fee if your request is clearly unfounded, repetitive or excessive. Alternatively, we may refuse to comply with your request in these circumstances. We may need to request specific information from you to help us confirm your identity and ensure your right to access your personal data (or to exercise any of your other rights). This is a security measure to ensure that personal data is not disclosed to any person who has no right to receive it. We may also contact you to ask you for further information in relation to your request to speed up our response.  We try to respond to all legitimate requests within one month. Occasionally it may take us longer than a month if your request is particularly complex or you have made a number of requests. In this case, we will notify you and keep you updated.

6.30 You have the right to request copies of your personal information to be transferred to you or a third party.  If you think any of the personal information we hold about you is inaccurate, you may also request it is corrected or erased. You also have a right, in certain circumstances, to object to our processing of your personal information or restrict our processing, to require us to stop processing your personal information and/or to withdraw your agreement to processing based on ‘consent’, but this does not apply where we have other legal justification to continue processing your data or an overriding legitimate interest.

6.31 To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details at the end of this statement.

Cookies

6.32 Our site uses cookies.  Full details of the cookies we use and what they do can be found in our Cookies Policy.

Anti-money laundering policies and procedures

6.33 For a brief explanation of our AML policies and personal data collected in relation to them, see our Terms of Business.

Who can you complain to if you are unhappy about what we have done with your information?

6.34 You have the right to make a complaint at any time to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK supervisory authority for data protection issues (www.ico.org.uk). We would, however, appreciate the chance to deal with your concerns before you approach the ICO so please contact us in the first instance.

Updates

6.35 We will keep this Privacy Statement under review and make updates from time to time. Any minor changes to this Privacy Statement will be posted on this page and we will communicate any major changes to you.

Contact Us

6.36 If you have any questions about our Privacy Statement, or want to exercise any of your rights, please send us an e-mail at [email protected] with the subject line “Data Privacy”, or alternatively send a signed letter addressed to our Data Protection Manager, Charles Hylton-Potts, to 94 High Street, London SW19 5EG. Telephone queries can be made to 020 8944 5290.

7.1 A cookie is a small file of letters and numbers that may be stored on your browser or the hard drive of your computer. Cookies contain information that is transferred to your computer’s hard drive. They help make our site work and provide information to us about how users interact with our site. We use this information to evaluate the performance of our site.

7.2 On your first visit to our site, a banner will appear alerting you to the use of cookies by our site. By continuing to browse our site, having seen that banner, you are agreeing to our use of cookies.

7.3 The types of cookies we use on our site are:

7.3.1 Strictly necessary cookies. These are cookies that are required for the operation of our site.

7.3.2 Analytical/performance cookies. They allow us to recognise and count the number of visitors and to see how visitors move around our site when they are using it. This helps us to improve the way our site works, for example, by ensuring that users are finding what they are looking for easily.

7.3.3 Functionality cookies. These are used to recognise you when you return to our site.

7.4 Information on the cookies we use on our site are set out in the table below.

7.4 Analytics: Our site uses Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google, Inc. (“Google”). Google Analytics uses cookies (see above), to help us analyse how users use our site. The information generated by the cookie about your use of the website will be transmitted to and stored by Google on servers in the United States – Google are signed up to Privacy Shield, which requires them to provide protection of personal data similar to that required in Europe.

7.5 You may refuse the use of these cookies via the settings in your browser as explained below. You can also opt out of being tracked by Google Analytics in the future by downloading and installing Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on for your current web browser: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=en.

7.6 You can block cookies by activating the setting on your browser that allows you to refuse the setting of all or some cookies, although this may affect your access to, or use of, our site (and other websites). The way to clear cookies varies from one browser to another. You should look in the “help” menu of your web browser for full instructions. For your reference, please click the following links for details on how to manage cookies in each of the major web browsers:

• Internet Explorer (https://support.microsoft.com/en-gb/kb/278835)
• Firefox (https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/clear-cookies-and-site-data-firefox?redirectslug=delete-cookies-remove-info-websites-stored&redirectlocale=en-US)
• Chrome (https://support.google.com/chrome/?hl=en&answer=95647#topic=9796470)
• Opera (https://security.opera.com/)
• Safari (https://support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/safari/sfri11471/mac)
• Safari for iPad and iPhone (https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT201265)

Fraud warning and guidance

8.1 Cyber-crime is on the increase, and you should be on the look-out for it to ensure that you do not become a victim of it. The website of the Solicitors Regulation Authority contains a ‘Scam Alert’ database which provides members of the public with information about known scams in which the identity of a legitimate law firm or a legitimate lawyer has been used by persons unknown for what are assumed to be criminal purposes (sra.org.uk).

8.2 You should be alive to the possibility that a fraudster might deliberately misrepresent himself or herself as a member of our team, or as someone acting on our behalf or working with us, for criminal purposes.

8.3 Such scams normally originate by e-mail. Often the e-mail will either promise the recipient a share of a large sum of money (for example a gift from a lottery winner, the benefit of a recently discovered life insurance policy, or an inheritance from the estate of a deceased person) in return for paying a modest sum up front (an advance fee type fraud) or request personal or financial information about the recipient or the recipient’s bank account allegedly in order that money can be paid to them (an identity theft type fraud). In an attempt to give legitimacy or respectability to the scam, sometimes the e-mail will direct the recipient to a false website that intentionally replicates the look of a legitimate website (a cloned website). Such e-mails are invariably fraudulent and should not be replied to or acted upon unless or until their provenance can be established.

8.4 If you receive an unsolicited and poorly worded e-mail from someone you do not know who is using a free e-mail service and/or an unusual e-mail address and it contains information or an offer which appears too good to be true, it very likely is not true.

8.5 If you receive an e-mail purporting to come from us or a member of our team, or if you are directed to a website which purports to be our site, and you have doubts or concerns about the provenance of the e-mail or website, before taking any action please either contact the member of our team you normally deal with or e-mail Charles Hylton-Potts at [email protected] and they will tell you whether the e-mail came from us or whether it is our site.

8.6 We have produced some guidance containing crucial information on protecting your funds and personal data. You can download this here.

Statement of compliance

9.1 As a firm, we value our reputation for ethical behaviour and for financial probity and reliability. We recognise that over and above the commission of any crime, any involvement in the facilitation of tax evasion will also reflect adversely on our image and reputation.

9.2 We do not tolerate tax evasion, or the facilitation thereof in any circumstances, whether committed by or facilitated by a client, personnel or associated persons/companies.

9.3 We are committed to fighting tax evasion and have rigorous policies and procedures in place to detect and prevent the facilitation of tax evasion offences.

9.4 We provide regular training on the requirements of the Criminal Finances Act 2017 to all personnel.

9.5 We require all personnel to demonstrate the highest standards of honesty at all times and appropriate disciplinary action will be taken wherever tax evasion or the facilitation thereof by any personnel has been proven.

9.6 We undertake due diligence on all associated persons/companies to mitigate the risk of facilitation of tax evasion offences and, as part of our due diligence procedures, all agreements with third parties contain suitable provisions to enable termination of such agreements where associated persons/companies are not complying with the provisions of the Criminal Finances Act 2017.

10.1 Advertised discounts are invitations to treat and not contractual offers. An offer shall be deemed to be made when we supply an actual quotation for the services in question.

10.2 Acceptance of such an offer shall be conditional upon signature of a Client Care Letter (including acceptance of our Terms of Business at section 2 above), compliance with our identification procedures and, where required, payment of funds on account.

10.3 Any discount shall apply only to our fees for the services in question, not to any disbursements we may incur, nor to ancillary fees such as bank transfer or electronic identification fees.

10.4 A discount may be withdrawn in the event that you do not settle a relevant invoice within the payment period specified in our Terms of Business.

10.5 A discount is non-transferrable.

10.6 We reserve the right to withdraw a discount scheme at any time and without prior notice.

10.7 For any “Will Voucher” scheme, the 10% discount may be applied to a single simple will, simple mirror wills for you and your spouse/partner or, for more complicated wills, from the overall fees for the preparation of your will(s) and any letter(s) of wishes.  The discount shall not apply to any ancillary trusts, lasting powers of attorney or other services we provide.

Last updated: 8 July 2020

11.1 Peacock & Co takes data privacy seriously. Your privacy is important to us and we are committed to keeping your information secure and managing it in accordance with our legal responsibilities under applicable data protection laws. We are registered with the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) as a data controller under registration number ZA504921.

11.2 This Privacy Statement sets out the basis upon which we will process personal information we collect from you when you apply for a job with us or through your employment with us (in each case including work experience).

11.3 Our main Privacy Statement describes our processing of information of the visitors to our site.  This may also apply to you.

What information will we collect from or about you or others?

11.4 This may include:

• In all cases, your name, address, telephone number(s), e-mail address, date of birth, marital status, education, employment and salary history and qualifications, information on your CV, details of referees and references, CCTV footage from our office, your photograph and information in any correspondence with you;
• If you are a job applicant and are interviewed, any information we record in our preparatory and interview notes, and any correspondence following the interview with you or internally;
• If you are offered a job, become an employee or are an employee, also your address history, National Insurance number, passport information and other identity documentation, bank and tax details, payroll records, credit history, next of kin information, DBS check, offer correspondence, employment contract, non-disclosure agreement, job title, description and location, start date and (if different) date of continuous employment, salary and bonuses, pension and other benefit information, performance and training records, any grievance or disciplinary matters, and details about your annual leave, sick leave and pay, parental leave and pay, other absences, and information about your use of our information and communications systems;
• If you are an ex-employee, also any notice correspondence, your P45, on-going contact details, and any references given about you.

Special categories of Personal Data

11.5 Special categories of personal data include information about an individual’s physical or mental health, racial or ethnic origin, religious or other beliefs, criminal convictions, sexual orientation and biometric data.

11.6 We do not generally process such information, unless you have voluntarily provided it to us, for example, where you have notified us of a disability to allow for reasonable adjustments to be made.

11.7 We may collect health information on sickness self-certification forms and “fit to work” certificates.

11.8 A DBS check may reveal a criminal conviction.

11.9 We carry out diversity surveys of our employees.  This is on an anonymous basis.

How is your personal data collected?

11.10 We may collect information:

• When you apply for a job with us, or during an application, at interview, or during the offer and employment process;
• From a recruitment agency if they arrange an application for you;
• During your employment, either from you or created internally;
• From third parties such as credit reference agencies, former employers, the DBS, your doctor (such as on a “fit-to-work” certificate).

How do we use this information?

11.11 We set out below the purposes for which we may use your information and the legal bases we rely on to do so. Where a legitimate interest is involved, we state what the legitimate interest is.

11.12 In the case of a job applicant, we process the information above primarily to pursue legitimate interests, provided your interests and fundamental rights do not override those interests.

11.13 In the case of an employee, we process the information above primarily to allow us to perform our contract of employment with you and to enable us to comply with legal obligations.  In some cases, we may use your personal information to pursue legitimate interests, provided your interests and fundamental rights do not override those interests.

Who will we share your information with?

11.14 As a job applicant, your information will primarily be used internally.  It may be shared with third party service providers who help run our internal business operations including background checks, e-mail distribution and storage of documentation.

11.15 If you have applied through a recruitment consultant, any information we might give to you will instead be shared with them until an offer is accepted.

11.16 There may be other rare occasions where we need to share your information to fulfil a purpose set out above.

11.17 As an employee, we may need to share your information with a range of third parties including:

• Providers who need to know the information in order to provide us or you with a service, such as pensions or benefits;
• The Solicitors Regulation Authority and any professional association, body or scheme we or you are governed by or a member of;
• Third party service providers who process information on our behalf to help run our internal business operations including background checks, payments, training, telecommunications, e-mail distribution, storage of documentation, practice management and legal research;
• Other third party service providers, such as our insurers and underwriters, lender exchanges, property search providers, SEO, website and social media providers;
• Third parties who also provide products or services to our clients, through us or directly, such as barristers and experts, banks and other lenders, accountants, tax advisors and IFAs;
• Credit reference agencies to check your identity and obtain credit references;
• Regulators or law enforcement bodies in order to comply with any statutory, regulatory or legal obligation or court order;
• Entities who may or do acquire any rights in us for the purpose of a business sale or re-organisation;
• Our advisors, for the purpose of assisting us to better manage, support or develop our employees and comply with our legal and regulatory obligations.

11.18 These parties may be located in the UK, other countries in the European Economic Area (EEA) or elsewhere in the world. Whenever we or service providers transfer your personal information outside of the EEA, unless the recipient is in a “safe country”, we or the service providers will impose the standard contractual obligations on the recipients of that information to protect your personal information to the standard required in the EEA or shall ensure that the recipient (if a US company) is signed up to Privacy Shield.

How we retain your personal information

11.19 The personal information that you provide will be retained by us in accordance with applicable laws as follows:

Security

11.20 We have robust information security management systems in place to protect your personal information.

11.21 Unfortunately, the transmission of information via the internet is not completely secure, and electronic communications between us are at your risk. Please refer to paragraph 5.22 of our Terms of Use for more information

Updates

11.22 We will keep this Privacy Statement under review and make updates from time to time. Any changes to this Privacy Statement will be posted on this page.

Cookies

11.23 Our site uses cookies.  Full details of the cookies we use and what they do can be found in our Cookies Policy.

Your Rights

11.24 You have a series of rights under the General Data Protection Regulation including the right to access a copy of the information we hold about you, unless we have a lawful ground to refuse this.

11.25 You will not have to pay a fee to access your personal data (or to exercise any of the other rights). However, we may charge a reasonable fee if your request is clearly unfounded, repetitive or excessive. Alternatively, we may refuse to comply with your request in these circumstances. We may need to request specific information from you to help us confirm your identity and ensure your right to access your personal data (or to exercise any of your other rights). This is a security measure to ensure that personal data is not disclosed to any person who has no right to receive it. We may also contact you to ask you for further information in relation to your request to speed up our response.  We try to respond to all legitimate requests within one month. Occasionally it may take us longer than a month if your request is particularly complex or you have made a number of requests. In this case, we will notify you and keep you updated.

11.26 You have the right to request copies of your personal information to be transferred to you or a third party.  If you think any of the personal information we hold about you is inaccurate, you may also request it is corrected or erased. You also have a right, in certain circumstances, to object to our processing of your personal information or restrict our processing, to require us to stop processing your personal information and/or to withdraw your agreement to processing based on ‘consent’, but this does not apply where we have other legal justification to continue processing your data or an overriding legitimate interest.

11.27 To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details at the end of this statement.

Who can you complain to if you are unhappy about what we have done with your information?

11.28 You have the right to make a complaint at any time to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK supervisory authority for data protection issues (www.ico.org.uk). We would, however, appreciate the chance to deal with your concerns before you approach the ICO, so please contact us in the first instance.

Contact Us

11.29 If you have any questions about this Privacy Statement, or want to exercise any of your rights, please send us an e-mail at [email protected] with the subject line “Data Privacy”, or alternatively send a signed letter addressed to our Data Protection Manager, Charles Hylton-Potts, to 94 High Street, London SW19 5EG. Telephone queries can be made to 020 8944 5290.

The rate of interest which apply or have applied to our main client account as from certain dates as are follows:

• 13 November 2024 – 1.3% for balances of up to £25,000; 1.35% for balances over £25,000 up to £100,000; 1.8% for balances over £100,000
• 1 July 2024 – 1.4% for balances of up to £25,000; 1.45% for balances over £25,000 up to £100,000; 1.9% for balances over £100,000
• 10 November 2022 – 1.2% per annum
• 27 September 2022 – 1.15% per annum
• 17 August 2022 – 0.85 per annum
• 5 August 2022 – 0.6% per annum
• 1 January 2018 – 0.1% per annum