In these Terms and Conditions references to:
"you", "your" and "yours" means the person(s) accessing the Website. "the Society" "we", “our” or "us" means Yorkshire Building Society and includes Yorkshire Building Society trading under the names of Chelsea Building Society, the Chelsea, Norwich & Peterborough Building Society and N&P.
"parties" means both you and us together. "My Voice" means our research community hosted at www.myvoice.ybs.co.uk (the "Website"). "community provider" means STRAT7 Researchbods, a division of STRAT7 Limited (“Researchbods”) who will administer the Website on our behalf.. "YBS Group" or "Yorkshire Group" refer to Yorkshire Building Society, the trading names under which it operates (Chelsea Building Society, the Chelsea, Norwich & Peterborough Building Society, N&P and Egg) and its subsidiary companies.
THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS ARE IMPORTANT. YOU SHOULD READ THROUGH THEM CAREFULLY AND CONTACT US ON 0345 1200 100 or hello@myvoice.ybs.co.uk IF THERE IS ANYTHING YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND.
Use of the Website
1. By joining My Voice and/or accessing any part of the Website you agree to accept and be bound by these Terms and Conditions. If you do not agree with any of them then you should stop using the Website immediately.
2. We have the right to amend the contents of the Website at any time.
3. Access to some pages of the Website is limited to specific users or members who will have to enter a password to access these pages. Any access or attempted access to these pages will be unauthorised and in breach of these Terms and Conditions.
Changes to these Terms and Conditions
4. We have the right to amend these Terms and Conditions at any time for the following reasons:
i. to reflect changes or anticipated changes in law, regulations or codes of practice or to respond to a decision by a court, ombudsman or regulator;
ii. to reflect changes in our costs, including administrative costs, involved in providing My Voice;
iii. to reflect changes in technology;
iv. to reflect changes to the functionality of My Voice, including the removal of any out of date functionality; and
v. to correct any mistake in the way the Terms and Conditions are drafted or to change the drafting to make them fairer or clearer (such a change would never be to your detriment).
Any changes will be posted on the Website in advance of the change. If you do not agree with any change that we make, you should stop using the Website immediately and should unsubscribe from My Voice. By continuing to use the Website following changes to these Terms and Conditions you indicate your consent to the modified terms of use.
General Terms
5. We will never post a link on our Website that takes you directly to internet banking and we will never ask for your internet banking user ID or password.
6. Messages sent over the internet cannot be guaranteed to be completely secure as they are subject to possible interception, loss or possible alteration. We are not responsible for them and will not be liable to you or anyone else for any damages or otherwise in connection with any message sent by you to us or any message sent by us to you over the internet.
Purpose of My Voice
7. My Voice will facilitate the provision of feedback by a cross-section of customers who opt in to take part in research activities on us and our products and services, including any of the brand names under which we trade. Members will be invited to participate in activities (including but not limited to surveys, polls, discussion rooms) on a regular basis, and the results will be used to improve the products and services we provide.
8. By accepting these Terms and Conditions you are consenting to us and/or our third party community provider or any other third party research provider we appoint contacting you by email in connection with My Voice.
9. In addition you will, if you choose, have the opportunity to contribute to discussion forums and opinion polls.
Membership of My Voice
10. To qualify for My Voice you must be a current customer of ours, aged 18 or over. If you cease to be our customer you will no longer be entitled to participate in My Voice or use the Website and we may remove your access rights. Otherwise, membership will continue unless you ask to retire from My Voice.
11. You can retire from My Voice at any time by:
i. Emailing us at hello@myvoice.ybs.co.uk;
ii. Clicking on the UNSUBSCRIBE link included in our communications (e.g. email invitations, newsletters).
iii. Logging into the Website, going to your ‘Profile’ and deleting your account.
Governance of My Voice
12. Our Insight and New Propositions team, in conjunction with Researchbods, are responsible for managing the Website; including maintaining membership and ensuring that research outcomes are communicated across the Society.
13. By agreeing to join My Voice, you agree that the Society can use the results of activities, including your ideas, for research purposes only. All responses to research activities will be confidential and anonymous, and no individual responses will be identified in any of our communications without obtaining your consent to do so. Your user name will be included next to any comments you post in the social hub and/or in the discussion rooms. By posting comments in the social hub and/or participating in the discussions rooms you agree to your user name being included with your comments. You may change your user name at any time by going to your “Profile” and changing your username.
14. My Voice will be operated in accordance with the Market Research Society Code of Conduct which has been drawn up to protect providers, buyers and responders of research; it safeguards standards, promotes confidence and champions professionalism.
How My Voice Works
15. You will be invited to take part in a number of activities throughout the year, depending on the type of research that is taking place. Members will be contacted by email to invite them to participate in activities.
16. You may not be invited to take part in every activity that is carried out.
17. Participation is entirely voluntary and members can choose not to participate in any activity that they are invited to take part in.
18. In addition, you will have the opportunity to contribute to discussion forums/rooms and opinion polls. We really value your contribution but please note that any content that you post to the Website must be in accordance with the rules set out in the “User Material and Content” section below.
19. We and/or our community provider reserve the right to remove any content which we, or our community provider, consider does not adhere to these rules.
20. Wherever possible, members will be updated on the outcome of surveys, polls and discussions and how these have been implemented, by way of updates on the Website home page and by regular e-newsletters.
Your Personal Data
21. By agreeing to join My Voice and use the Website you are consenting to your Personal Data being used in accordance with this section.
22. To enable you to sign up to use the Website and create a unique user log-in, you will be required to provide us with the following information: name; email address; gender; date of birth; place of residence; personal income; information on products you have with us. Any information which is personally identifiable (“Personal Data”) will be handled by us in accordance with our Privacy Policy. Please read our Privacy Policy to ensure you understand how we use your information.
23. Your Personal Data will be processed in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998.
24. Your Personal Data will be viewed and stored by the community provider and any other third party research provider we appoint from time to time.
25. Personal Data will be treated in confidence at all times and will be used only for the Purpose (as defined below).
26. Any information you provide in the process of signing up to My Voice or during your use of the Website (for example completing surveys, responding to polls and contributing to discussion topics on forums) including Personal Data (“Survey Data”) will be used by us in order to identify improvements in our services and products and/or new services and products (the " Purpose").
27. Survey Data may be collected, stored and analysed on our behalf by the community provider, and any other research suppliers to us (in each case only for the Purpose). Survey Data may be collected, stored and analysed on our behalf by the third party provider of My Voice, and potentially other suppliers to us (in each case only for the Purpose). Survey Data may be collected, stored and processed outside of the European Economic Area, but only for the Purpose. We will take reasonable care to protect any Survey Data against unauthorised access and/or accidental disclosure.
28. All Survey Data other than Personal Data shall be considered non-confidential and non-proprietary. We shall have no obligations with respect to such material. By posting Survey Data on the Website you give us the right to use such material and we shall be free to copy, disclose, distribute, incorporate and otherwise use such material for the Purpose.
29. Please be aware that your Website user details (your username - the only required field) and any additional profile information (for example signatures, biography, location, occupation, interests, birthday, web address, blog and gallery) (“User Details”) may also be viewed by other Website users if you post any content on our Website (for example in any of the discussion rooms and/or social hub which we open from time to time). If you do not wish your User Details (other than your username, which must be provided to allow participation) to be viewed in this way but still want to participate in forums, simply create a username without providing any of the additional information.
User Material and Content
30. We really value our discussion with you, but we reserve the right to delete:
i. Any message that contains profanity and/or swearing;
ii. Any message that contains content that is likely to offend or which is or may be discriminatory;
iii. Any message relating to a query to or from staff members past or present;
iv. Any message which is unlawful, abusive, libellous, obscene or threatening;
v. Any message which constitutes or encourages conduct that would be considered a criminal offence, give rise to civil liability, or otherwise be contrary to the law of or infringe the rights of any third party, in any country in the world;
vi. Any message which advertises products or services for profit or gain;
vii. Any message that contains any personal information for example: telephone number/bank account details/addresses etc.
31. We shall fully co-operate with any law enforcement authority or court order directing us to disclose the identity of anyone posting any material when requested to do so.
32. The views expressed by My Voice members on the Website belong to those of the individual members and do not reflect those of YBS Group.
Notification and Take Down Procedure
33. We do not control the comments, messages, links or uploads that are posted by My Voice members on the Website. We do not accept any liability for any such comments or messages and will not be liable for any infringing content which is uploaded and/or linked by community members.
34. If you believe that any content on the Website is defamatory, infringes copyright or any other legal right please let us know by email to hello@myvoice.ybs.co.uk.
Rewards for Participating
35. We may at our sole discretion offer rewards for participation in research activities, or entry into free prize draws for cash and other incentives.
Prize Draw Terms and Conditions
36. Please read these Prize Draw Terms and Conditions carefully. By entering any My Voice prize draws you agree to be bound by the Prize Draw Terms and Conditions set out below:
i. Researchbods, 11 Soho Street, London, W1D 3AD is the licensed operator of the prize draws.
ii. Employees of Researchbods, its Group companies or their families, agencies or anyone else directly connected with the prize draw are not eligible to enter. No trade, consumer groups or third party applications are acceptable. One entry per person. My Voice activity may include commenting on a forum, entering a quick poll, taking part in a survey, depth interview, focus group or any other research activity.
iii. Winners will be drawn at random by Researchbods at the end of each stated eligibility period as specified in the communication relating to the relevant prize draw. Prize draws will take place as specified in the communications relating to the eligible My Voice activity.
iv. Researchbods will contact winners within 28 days of the closing date of the prize draw.
v. Researchbods’ decision will be final and no correspondence will be entered into.
vi. All prizes are non-transferrable and a cash alternative will not be offered at any time.
vii. Researchbods reserves the right to disqualify incomplete, altered or illegible entries.
viii. Winners may be required to take part in publicity associated with the prize draw.
ix. These Prize Draw Terms and Conditions are governed by English law and are subject to the jurisdiction of the English courts.
x. Each prize draw promotion will have different prizes, start and close dates and may also have additional restrictions. This information, together with how to participate in the particular prize draw will be provided in the communications relating to the eligible My Voice activity.
No Offer
37. Information or opinions provided by us or through a third party on the Website should not be used for financial services advice and does not constitute an offer to sell or is solicitation of an offer to buy any products, services, securities or financial instruments. Nor does any such information constitute advice or recommendation with respect to such products, services, securities or other financial instruments.
38. When making a decision about financial services, you should seek the advice of a professional financial adviser or similar.
Accessing the Website
39. You should access the Website through the homepage (www.myvoice.ybs.co.uk).
40. Throughout the Website there are words highlighted in bold and underlined in the text. If you click on these words you will be taken to another page of the Website or part of that page. Depending on your screen resolution, the text and materials on a page of the Website may not fit entirely into one screen. Where this occurs, you should use the vertical and/or horizontal scroll bars in order to access the entire content of the page. If you do not do this you may not see important material and information. We shall not have any liability if a user suffers loss or damage as a result of failing to use and access the Website properly or failing to see relevant legal or regulatory information displayed on the Website.
41. Access to the Website is permitted to you on a temporary basis, and we reserve the right to withdraw or amend the services provided on the Website without notice. We will not be liable if for any reason the Website is not available at any time or for any period.
42. If you choose, or are provided with, a user identification code, password or any other piece of information as part of our security procedures, you must treat such information as confidential and you must not disclose it to any third party. We have the right, acting reasonably, to disable any such user identification code or password, whether chosen by you or allocated by us, at any time, if in our opinion you have failed to comply with any of the material provisions of these Terms and Conditions.
43. You are responsible for ensuring that all persons who access the Website through your internet connection are aware of these Terms and Conditions, and that they comply with them.
Updating Website Content and Security
44. The information contained or displayed on the Website is believed by us to be reliable when displayed.
45. We do our best to ensure that the information provided on the Website is up to date and accurate. However, since some of the information is provided by third parties, we cannot guarantee that this third party information is up to date and accurate. Nor can we guarantee that any information on the Website is suitable for your particular purposes, as the Website is, inevitably, general, rather than specific.
46. We exclude liability to the full extent allowed by law. This does not affect your statutory rights as a consumer. If you intend to rely on any information presented on the Website, you are responsible for checking that it meets your specific requirements.
47. If you choose to retain a hard or soft copy of all or any of these pages (including parts of pages) please ensure that the copy which is being relied upon is the most up-to-date version of that information available, by accessing the Website and refreshing/updating any cached copy of the Website or relevant part of it.
48. The use of the internet and transmitting information to or from the Website may not be secure from access by third parties and therefore may not remain confidential or private.
49. Information published on the Website may refer to products, information or services that are not available in your country or locality. We are not obliged to provide such products, information and services and reserve the right not to do so. We are not in any way obliged to act upon any instructions received from users of the Website.
50. We take precautions to protect your information; when our registration/application form asks users to enter confidential or personal information, such information is encrypted and is protected with SSL encryption software. While we use SSL encryption to protect confidential and personal information online, we will use all endeavours to protect user-information off-line.
51. Our e-mail enquiry forms are not sent via an encrypted channel and for this reason we ask that you do not include personal or confidential information when using them.
52. Any personal details or other information entered in or submitted through by e-mail will not be secure and is entered or transmitted at the user's risk and we shall not be liable for any such information being intercepted or accessed by any third party without our knowledge or any of our employees or agents.
Links to other sites
53. We are not responsible for the content, security or performance of linked websites and we do not endorse any products or services advertised on them. Once you leave the Website, you will no longer be covered by our Privacy Policy.
Links to our Site
54. You cannot provide hyperlinks to the Website in any other website or communication without our permission. If you would like our permission please email webmaster@ybs.co.uk, however, we are under no obligation to grant this permission.
Copyright
55. Copyright or other intellectual property rights protect the content and layout of the Website. This not only includes text but also software, data, forms, sound, music, graphics, animations, logos and video clips.
56. You may print off copies of calculations or product information for you own personal use. You may not copy, use or print off any material for any commercial, illegal or immoral purpose. If you print off information, data, text or forms, you must not alter, amend or copy them, make any derivative works from them nor remove or obscure any logos, names or other proprietary or intellectual property marks showing ownership by us or any third party.
Intellectual Property
57. We are the owner or the licensee of all intellectual property rights in My Voice, and the material published on it. Those works are protected by copyright laws and treaties around the world. All such rights are reserved.
58. You agree that:
i. any information, ideas, comments or suggestions you provide in My Voice to us or other members is confidential to us and that you cannot discuss such information, ideas, comments or suggestions outside of My Voice;
ii. we may post or publicise such information, ideas, comments or suggestions without your consent and without notice to you; and
iii. if we use your information, ideas, comments or suggestions or if we expand, evolve or modify them, such usage and activities are confidential to us and no compensation or payment shall be due to you.
Liability
59. We do not accept any liability for any losses that do not arise directly from our breach of these Terms and Condition. Similarly, you will not be liable to us for any losses that do not arise directly from your breach of these Terms and Conditions.
60. We do our best to ensure that the Website is free from viruses, bugs or other software or programs that may damage the operation of your computer. However, we cannot guarantee this and we do not accept liability if this happens.
Information about Yorkshire Building Society
61. Yorkshire Building Society is a member of the Building Societies Association and is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority. We are entered in the Financial Services Register under registration number 106085. Principal Office: Yorkshire Building Society, Yorkshire House, Yorkshire Drive, Bradford, BD5 8LJ. Chelsea Building Society, the Chelsea, Norwich & Peterborough Building Society and N&P are trading names of Yorkshire Building Society.
Jurisdiction
62. The Website is intended for residents in the United Kingdom over the age of 18 and the Terms and Conditions for use are drafted accordingly.
63. The parties agree that these Terms and Conditions and any non-contractual obligations arising out of or in connection with the Terms and Conditions will be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of England and Wales.
64. The English courts will have jurisdiction to settle any disputes which may arise in connection with the Terms and Conditions or any non-contractual obligations arising out of or in connection with the Terms and Conditions.
General
65. If any of the Terms and Conditions are found to be legally invalid, the invalid term will be deleted. The remaining Terms and Conditions shall continue to bind the parties if they are capable of continuing in existence without the invalid term.
66. All disclaimers and exclusions will continue in force after termination of your My Voice relationship with us.
67. We reserve the right to transfer our rights, duties and responsibilities set out in these Terms and Conditions to another party. Any party that we make such a transfer to will be subject to the same duties and obligations under these Terms and Conditions as we are.
68. No person may enforce any of the terms of the Terms and Conditions under the Contract (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 by a person who is not a party to them except that:
1. the respective subsidiaries (as such term is defined in the Companies Act 2006) of Yorkshire Building Society shall have the benefit thereof and shall be entitled to enforce them; and
2. Researchbods shall have the benefit of and may enforce these Terms and Conditions as if it were a party to them.
Unforeseen Events
69. Neither you nor we nor Researchbods will be responsible for any breach of these Terms and Conditions due to any cause beyond our reasonable control. Neither we, nor you nor Researchbods shall be liable or deemed to be in default for any delay, interruption or failure in the performance of our obligations under these Terms and Conditions caused directly or indirectly by fire, flood, earthquake, explosion or other casualty, strike or labour dispute, disruption of telecommunication systems, war or other violence, accident, any law, order, injunction, proclamation, regulation, ordinance, demand or requirement of any government agency, act of God or any other cause or condition of a like nature beyond the reasonable control of the affected party.