About Us

Protection of Privacy

The BC Financial Services Authority (BCFSA) is committed to protecting your privacy through responsible personal information management practices in accordance with British Columbia's Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FOIPPA) and other applicable laws, such as the six statutes administered by the Authority.

For more information regarding our website privacy policy, please visit the following website: http://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/admin/privacy.page

Personal information

Personal information is recorded information about an identifiable individual, such as:

  • Name
  • Address
  • Birth date
  • Personal email address
  • Personal telephone number

Personal information does not include certain types of contact information which enable individuals at a place of business to be contacted, such as:

  • Individual's business position, title or name
  • Business telephone number
  • Business address
  • Business email
  • Business fax number

Retention and Storage of Personal Information

We maintain and dispose of our records in accordance with the Information Management Act and FOIPPA. When destroying documents, we follow government standards designed to safeguard the confidentiality of personal information and to ensure obliteration.

Updates

BCFSA will, as appropriate, review and update this privacy statement to ensure it is consistent with current privacy management and website administration practices. We periodically review and revise our privacy policy to better reflect the changing nature of technology and the internet and are committed to ensuring your personal information remains fully protected.

Access to Records

Under FOIPPA, individuals have the right to access information in the custody or control of the BCFSA. If you would like to access personal information or records in our possession, you must make a written request. You can make a request using this fillable form.

Please be specific in your request. In accordance with FOIPPA, fees can be applied if the retrieval and production of records exceeds three hours, so it is important to be as specific as possible in your request.

Completed FOI requests should be sent to:

FOI Analyst
BC Financial Services Authority
2800 - 555 West Hastings Street
Vancouver, BC V6B 4N6
Phone: 604-398-4672
Fax: 604-660-3365
FOI@bcfsa.ca

How to make a Formal Request

1.Make a formal FOI request

If you require a formal request for information, either mail your request to our office, email it to FOI@bcfsa.ca or drop it off in person. Keep your request clear, concise and focused in order to reduce processing time and possible fees.

2.Review and acknowledgment

Your request will be reviewed to determine whether the information you are seeking is routinely available, or if further searching, compiling, and review is required. We will contact you within one business day to confirm your request, provide you with a file number, and to advise of any delays we expect.

The Act allows a maximum of 30 business days for us to respond to your request; we will respond sooner if possible.

You should also be aware that the Act does allow, in certain cases, for the 30-day time period to be extended and for fees to be charged. We will notify you as soon as possible if there is a need to extend the time limit for responding to your request or to charge fees.

3.Gathering of information

Once your request is received, we will contact the appropriate department(s) to retrieve the records you are seeking. Your identity is kept confidential throughout the process.

You will be advised if there is a large quantity of records, and/or if there is likely to be a fee associated with your information request.

4.Review of information

We will review the information for completeness and privacy concerns. If there is information that we cannot provide, we will remove that information from the document and mark it with the relevant section(s) of the Act to explain why it has been withheld.

5.Fees

Your formal request may be subject to fees. These fees are listed in Schedule 1 of the FOIPPA Regulation. We will provide you with an estimate if it appears that your request may result in fees. Note that we are prohibited from charging fees for requests for your own personal information.

6.Release of information

We prepare your information release and send it to you by email, mail, or advise you that it is ready to be picked up.

How to File a Complaint

Sometimes a request for information is subject to exceptions under the Act. If you are not satisfied with our response to your request, you may contact the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner for British Columbia.

The Commissioner is an independent Officer of the Legislature of British Columbia who monitors how public bodies respond to your requests for access to information and how they protect the privacy of your personal information.

The Commissioner ensures that your rights under the Act are protected and that disputes are resolved in a fair and unbiased manner.

Complaints and review requests can be sent to:

Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner
PO Box 9038, Stn. Prov. Govt
4th Floor, 947 Fort Street
Victoria BC V8V 3K3
Telephone number: 250 387-5629
Facsimile number: 250 387-1696
Website: www.oipc.bc.ca