Privacy Policy

Look, We Get It

Privacy policies are usually boring as heck, but they're actually important. We're an architectural firm, not a data mining operation, so we only collect what we genuinely need to work with you and run our business. Last updated in November 2024, and yeah, we actually review this stuff regularly.

This policy covers our website, client interactions, and any consultations or project work we do. If you're based in Canada (like us) or anywhere else, we follow PIPEDA and respect your privacy rights.

What Info We Actually Collect

Personal Details

When you reach out or work with us, we'll ask for stuff like your name, email, phone number, and project address. Pretty standard. If we're doing a full project together, we might need more details like property info, budget ranges, and your design preferences. Can't design your dream space without knowing what you're after, right?

Website Stuff

Like most websites, ours collects some technical data - IP addresses, browser type, pages you visit, how long you hang around. It helps us figure out if our site's actually working well or if something's broken. We're not tracking you across the internet or anything creepy like that.

Project Materials

Throughout a project, we'll collect photos, documents, site measurements, and all the technical stuff needed for architectural work. This becomes part of your project file and we keep it secure.

How We Use Your Info

Honestly, we use it to do our job. Here's the breakdown:

Responding to your inquiries and keeping communication flowing
Creating designs, drawings, and all the architectural work you're hiring us for
Managing projects from start to finish
Sending you updates about your project (we won't spam you with marketing junk unless you ask for it)
Meeting legal requirements like building codes and permits
Improving our services based on feedback and experience
Occasionally showcasing completed work in our portfolio (but we always ask permission first)

Who Sees Your Data

We don't sell your info. Period. But architecture's a collaborative field, so sometimes we need to share details with:

Project Partners

Engineers, contractors, consultants - anyone who needs to know project details to do their part. They're bound by confidentiality too.

Regulatory Bodies

City planners, building departments, heritage committees - when permits and approvals are needed.

Service Providers

Cloud storage, email services, accounting software - the tools we use to run our business securely.

Legal Obligations

If we're legally required to disclose something, we will. But it's rare and we'd let you know unless prohibited.

Cookies & Tracking

We use cookies - not the chocolate chip kind, unfortunately. They're small files that help our website remember you and work properly. We use essential ones that make the site function, and some analytics cookies to see what's working and what's not. You can disable them in your browser settings, but some features might not work as smoothly.

We don't use advertising cookies or let third parties track you through our site. What happens on our site stays on our site.

Your Rights (Yeah, You've Got 'Em)

Under Canadian privacy law, you can:

Access - Ask to see what personal info we have about you
Correct - Fix any wrong or outdated information
Delete - Request we remove your data (though we might need to keep some stuff for legal reasons)
Object - Tell us to stop using your info for certain purposes
Withdraw consent - Change your mind about how we use your data
Complain - File a complaint with the Privacy Commissioner if you think we messed up

Just shoot us an email at info@quintharalvenros.info and we'll sort it out.

How We Keep Things Secure

We take security seriously. Our systems use encryption, secure servers, and access controls. Only team members who actually need to see your info can access it. We also have backups (because losing years of architectural work would be a nightmare) but those are encrypted too.

That said, no system's 100% foolproof. We do our best, but if there's ever a breach, we'll let you know ASAP and tell you what happened.

How Long We Keep Your Data

Project files and related documents - we keep those for at least 10 years after project completion. That's partly because of professional requirements and partly because architectural records can be important down the line for renovations or legal stuff.

Marketing inquiries and general contact info - if we haven't heard from you in a few years, we'll clean out old records. No point keeping stuff we don't need.

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