Financial Counsellor Portal Terms & Conditions

  1. These terms and conditions apply

    These terms and conditions apply to your access to and use of the FC Portal. By clicking the '[I have read and understood the FC Portal terms of use]' checkbox or otherwise using or attempting to use the FC Portal, you confirm you have read and understood and accept and agree to all of these terms and conditions, without alteration or exception. If you do not accept these terms and conditions, do not click the '[I have read and understood the FC Portal terms of use]' checkbox or otherwise use or attempt to use the FC Portal.

    These terms and conditions apply separately and in addition to our General Website Use Terms and do not vary, waive or replace any of those terms in any way. In the event of any inconsistency between these terms and conditions and any of those other terms, these terms and conditions prevail to the extent of the inconsistency as regards your access to or use of the FC Portal.

    Acceptance by you of these terms and conditions binds you and anyone acting for you or on your behalf (including, but not limited to, any of your employees, officers and agents) to comply with these terms and conditions.

     

  2. Read carefully

    You should read these terms and conditions carefully and obtain such independent advice as you require in relation to them.

    In the terms and conditions:

    ‘Anglicare WA’ means Anglicare WA ABN 32 797 454 970 of Geoffrey Sambell Centre, 23 Adelaide Terrace, Perth, Western Australia, 6004;

    ‘Energy Ahead’ means the Energy Ahead program delivered by Anglicare WA and available to Synergy residential customers experiencing financial hardship; 

    ‘Energy Coach’ means a current energy coach authorised by Anglicare WA to perform energy assessments and access the FC portal for the purposes of Energy Ahead;

    'FC Portal' means Synergy's Financial Counsellor Portal web-based online tool, accessed through the Website or another web address notified by Synergy;

    'Privacy Policy' means Synergy's published privacy policy as amended or replaced from time to time, which includes the steps taken by us to maintain customer confidentiality, the current version of which is available on the Website, or on request from our customer contact centre on 13 13 53.

    'Customer Information' means any information related to a Synergy customer available through the FC Portal or otherwise disclosed to you for the purpose of providing financial counselling services to the Synergy customer to which the information relates.

    'Registered Financial Counsellor' means a current accredited or associate financial counsellor registered with the Financial Counsellors' Association of Western Australia Inc (FCAWA) ABN 13 592 166 805.

    'we', 'our' or 'us' means Synergy;

    'you' or 'your' means the person who is a Registered Financial Counsellor or Energy Coach and accepts these terms and conditions;

    'Website' means Synergy's website located at www.synergy.net.au, as altered or replaced from time to time; and

    'Website Use Terms' means Synergy's published terms and conditions for use of the Website, as amended or replaced from time to time, a copy of which can be obtained from our Website or on request from our customer contact centre on 13 13 53.

    Headings used in these terms and conditions are not representations and do not form part of any agreement.

     

  3. Conditions of access to and use of the FC Portal

    Your registration and ongoing access to the FC Portal is conditional on you being and remaining a Registered Financial Counsellor or Energy Coach. Should your accreditation or registration status change such that you are no longer a Registered Financial Counsellor or Energy Coach, you must:

    1. notify us immediately on fcportal@synergy.net.au;
    2. immediately cease access of the FC Portal; and
    3. if directed by us, immediately and securely destroy any Customer Information in your possession or control obtained through the FC Portal, whether physical, digital or otherwise that you are not otherwise required by law to retain.

    The FC Portal and any Customer Information available through it must only be accessed, stored, used or otherwise dealt with (as relevant):

    1. in your capacity as a Registered Financial Counsellor or Energy Coach;
    2. for the express purpose only of assisting the Synergy customer to which the Customer Information relates in respect of payment difficulties or financial hardship (in your capacity as a Registered Financial Counsellor or Energy Coach); and
    3. for the period and to the extent authorised by the Synergy customer to which the Customer Information relates.

  4. Protection of Customer Information

    In accessing, storing, using or otherwise dealing with Customer Information available through the FC Portal, you acknowledge that:

    1. the Customer Information is confidential;
    2. you will not disclose Customer Information to any third party without the Synergy customer's authorisation;
    3. you will maintain and exercise adequate technical and procedural controls necessary to maintain the privacy, confidentiality and integrity of the Customer Information;
    4. you will act in a manner consistent with the principles detailed in our Privacy Policy;
    5. you will adhere to all laws and regulations which relate to the access, storage and use of the Customer Information; and
    6. you will otherwise uphold all professional and commercial standards applicable to Registered Financial Counsellors or Energy Coaches (as applicable).

  5. Warranty and acknowledgement

    You acknowledge these terms and conditions and warrant your compliance with your obligations created by them:

    1. at the time of registering for access to the FC Portal;
    2. at each instance you search for, access, store, use or otherwise deal with information obtained through the FC Portal.

  6. Customer authority warranty

    By accessing Customer Information in respect of a Synergy customer, you warrant:

    1. you are authorised to act on behalf of that customer and acknowledge that we may rely upon any instructions and information submitted through the FC Portal; and
    2. any instructions and information submitted through the FC Portal is accurate, complete and not misleading.

    If a Synergy customer who has previously provided you authority to access their Customer Information advises you that they do not want you accessing their information you must notify us immediately on fcportal@synergy.net.au and cease access to their Customer Information in the FC Portal.  We may also terminate your access to the FC Portal.

    If you fail to comply with this clause, or these terms and conditions generally, we may deny, suspend or terminate your access to the FC Portal in our sole discretion.

  7. Withdrawal of Customer authority

    If a Synergy customer who has previously provided you authority to access their Customer Information advises us that they do not want you accessing their information, we will terminate your access to their Customer Information in the FC Portal.  We will endeavour to give you notice of the termination.  We may also terminate your access to the FC Portal.

  8. Your privacy

    We will take reasonable steps to protect any confidential information concerning you or your affairs that is transmitted or otherwise made available to us through or relating to your use of the FC Portal, consistent with our Privacy Policy and our statutory and contractual obligations. We will not otherwise be liable in any way for any unauthorised access to, or use of, that information.

     

  9. User identification and password

    Your user identification name will be your registered email address with the Financial Counsellors' Association of Western Australia Inc (FCAWA) or Anglicare WA (as applicable).   

    You must select a unique password that meets any password criteria required by us, which we will use to identify you when you access and use the FC Portal.

    You must use your user identification name and password to:

    1. access and use the FC Portal; and
    2. enable us to identify you.

    We may lock or suspend your access to the FC Portal after [5] unsuccessful password attempts or if we reasonably suspect your account has been compromised or you have breached these terms and conditions.

  10. Password security

    You must keep your unique user identification and password and any record of them secret, secure and protected. You must not disclose your unique user identification and/or password to any third party or use your user identification and/or password for any unauthorised purpose.

    Without limiting your obligations under this clause you must:

    1. only keep one record of your user identification and password;
    2. keep your record of the user identification, password, account number and confidential identification details you have provided separate and apart from each other;
    3. not disclose or share your user identification and/or password with any other person;
    4. not allow any other person to read and/or watch you enter the FC Portal, or hear your user identification and/or password; and
    5. notify us immediately on 13 13 53 if you become aware of unauthorised access to or use of your user identification, password or other confidential identifying code, or of the loss or theft of a record of any of your user identification and password, or if you suspect that your user identification and/or password have become known to any other person.

  11. Terms and conditions may change

    The only terms and conditions which are binding upon us in relation to your access to or use of the FC Portal are:

    1. those set out in or expressly incorporated by these terms and conditions; and
    2. those which are imposed by law and which may not be lawfully excluded.

    We may amend or replace these terms and conditions, in whole or in part, at any time. If we do, we will notify you of the change when you next attempt to access the FC Portal and you must agree and accept the updated terms and conditions to continue to access the FC Portal.

  12. Termination

    The FC Portal is being provided at the sole discretion of Synergy.  In addition to any other rights under these terms and conditions, we may terminate without notice your use of the FC Portal at any time with immediate effect and without explanation.

  13. If the FC Portal is offline or unavailable

    It is your responsibility to use other means of obtaining information if for any reason you are unable to use the FC Portal.

    We are not liable to you for or in connection with:

    1. failure of the FC Portal to perform in whole or in part, any function which we have specified it will or may perform or to perform that function in whole or in part to any particular level or standard; and
    2. the unavailability of the FC Portal in whole or in part because of the failure of the communication network, ancillary equipment or any other circumstance.

  14. Liability

    We will not be liable to you (or any of your officers, agents or employees) for any direct or indirect loss or damage (including without limitation consequential loss or damage, loss of profit or anticipated profit, loss of data, loss of use, damage to goodwill and loss due to delay) however caused (including without limitation due to breach of contract, negligence and/or breach of statute) which may be suffered or incurred or which may arise from or in connection with your use of the FC Portal or your use of or reliance upon any of the information, services and/or material contained in the FC Portal or otherwise provided by us to you.

     

  15. Exclusions and limitations

    The information and data contained in or available via the FC Portal ('Information and Data') is provided or otherwise made available by us in good faith. However, changes or events may occur which cause some or all of the Information and Data to be inaccurate or out of date. Accordingly, we do not warrant or guarantee in any way the accuracy, completeness or currency of any of the Information and Data, and any reliance by you upon any of the Information and Data is entirely at your own risk.

    All other conditions, warranties and guarantees in relation to any matter (including any rights of recovery or to compensation), whether or not implied by law, are, to the maximum extent permitted by law, excluded.

  16. Links to other sites

    The FC Portal may contain links to websites maintained by other organisations. We have no affiliation with those other websites, do not endorse any material on those other websites and do not provide any warranty, or assume any responsibility regarding the quality, accuracy, source, merchantability, fitness for purpose or any other aspect of the material on those other websites.

     

  17. Copyright

    We own copyright in the contents of the FC Portal. Subject to clauses 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 of these terms and conditions, you may access and display these pages on a computer or a monitor, and print out any page or part of any page of the FC Portal you are permitted to access for the purpose referred to in clause 3. All other use, copying or reproduction (including reproduction on any other website) of any part of the FC Portal is prohibited.

  18. Viruses

    We do not represent or warrant that the FC Portal and any information or material contained in, downloaded or accessible from or through use of the FC Portal, is free from computer viruses (including macro viruses) or any other defect or error which may affect your software or systems. You should protect your software and systems by installing and implementing your own security checks and systems.

     

  19. Cookies

    The FC Portal may use a feature of your internet browser called a "cookie" to manage security and store report parameter information. If your browser does not support cookies, or you have disabled this functionality, you may be unable to use the FC Portal.

  20. Governing law

The law of Western Australia governs these terms and conditions and your use of the FC Portal, and you and we submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the Courts of Western Australia and the Federal Court of Australia.

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Synergy acknowledges the Traditional Custodians throughout Western Australia and their continuing connection to the land, water and community. We pay our respects to all members of the Aboriginal communities and their cultures; and to Elders past, present and emerging.