PRIVACY POLICY

Short Stays Australia and New Zealand exists to help build connections, inspiration, and promise. In short, we strive to create a vibe and motivate society to travel these 2 beautiful countries we live in. We will develop a community built on trust and fundamental part of earning that trust means being clear about how we use your information and protect your human right to privacy. This Privacy Policy describes how Short Stays Australia and New Zealand, and its affiliates (“we,” “us,” “our” or “Short Stays Australia and New Zealand”), process personal information that we collect through the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform. Depending on where you live and what you are doing on the Short Stays Australia platform and New Zealand, the supplemental privacy pages listed below may apply to you. 

DEFINITION

1. Undefined Terms in this Privacy Policy have the same definition as in our Terms and Conditions (“Terms”).

PERSONAL INFORMATION WE COLLECT

2.1 Information needed to use the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform.

We collect personal information about you when you use the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform. Without it, we may not be able to provide you with all Services requested. This information includes contact information, Account & profile information such as your first name, last name, phone number, postal address, email address, date of birth, and profile photo. Additionally, we request Identity Verification in the form of a government issued identification document (as permitted by applicable Laws). Payment Information including bank account details or payment account information will also be required for Guest refunds where applicable and Host/Co-Host Payouts. 

2.2 Information you choose to give us.

You can choose to provide us with additional personal information. This information may include additional profile information such as gender, preferred language(s), location, and personal description. Some of this information as indicated in your account settings is part of your public profile page and will be publicly visible. Other Information may be gathered when you fill in a form, add information to your account, respond to surveys, post to community forums, participate in promotions, communicate with our Team and other members, or share your experience with us. This may include health information if you choose to share it with us. 

2.3 Information automatically collected by using the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform and our Payment Services.

When you use the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform and Payment Services, we automatically collect personal information. This information may include geo-location information such as precise or approximate location determined from your IP address or mobile device’s GPS depending on your device settings. We may also collect this information when you’re not using our website or app (if applicable) if you enable this through your settings or device permissions. Usage information such as the pages or Content you view, searches for Listings, Bookings you have made, and other actions on the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform. Log data and device information such as details about how you’ve used the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform (including if you clicked on links to Third Party applications), IP address, access dates and times, hardware and software information, device information, device event information, unique identifiers, crash data, cookie data, and the pages you’ve viewed or engaged with before or after using the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform. We may collect this information even if you haven’t created a Short Stays Australia and New Zealand account or logged in. Additionally, cookies and similar technologies/payment transaction information such as payment instrument used, date and time, payment amount, payment instrument expiration date and billing postcode, Stripe email address, IBAN information, your address and other related transaction details may be collected. 

2.4 Personal information we collect from Third Parties.

We collect personal information from other sources, such as: Third-Party Services. If you link, connect, or login to the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform with a Third-Party Service (e.g. Google, Instagram, Facebook), you direct the Service to send us information such as your registration, friends list, and profile information as controlled by that Service or as authorized by you via your privacy settings with that Service.

Background Information for members in Australia and New Zealand. To the extent permitted by applicable Laws, we may obtain reports from public records of criminal convictions or sex offender registrations. For members outside of Australia or New Zealand, to the extent permitted by applicable Laws and with your consent where required, we may obtain the local version of police, background, or registered sex offender checks. We may use your information, including your full name and date of birth, to obtain such reports.

Enterprise product invitations and Account Management. Organizations that use our Enterprise products may submit personal information to facilitate account management and invitations to use enterprise products.

2.5 Referrals and co-travellers.

If you are invited to the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform such as a co-traveller on a trip, the person who invited you can submit personal information about you such as your name, date of birth, email address or other contact information for all purposes outlined in these Terms.

2.6 Other Sources.

To the extent permitted by applicable Law, we may receive additional information about you, such as references, demographic data, or information to help detect fraud and safety issues from Third Party Service providers and/or partners and combine it with information we have about you. For example, we may receive background check results or fraud warnings from Service providers such as the Good to Book for use in our fraud prevention and risk assessment efforts. We may receive information about you and your activities on and off the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform, or about your experiences and interactions from our partners. We may receive health information, including but not limited to health information related to contagious diseases. 

HOW WE USE INFORMATION WE COLLECT

3.1 Provide, improve, and develop the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform.

We use personal information to: Enable you to access the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform and make and receive payments; Enable you to communicate with other members; Perform analytics, debug and conduct research; Provide Customer Service; Send you messages, updates, security alerts, and Account notifications; If you provide us with your contacts,’ information such as your friends or co-travellers, we may process this information: (i) to facilitate your referral invitations, (ii) to share your trip details and facilitate trip planning, (iii) for fraud detection and prevention, and (iv) to facilitate your requests or for any other purpose you authorize; Personalize and customize your experience based on your interactions with the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform, your search and Booking history, your profile information and preferences, and other Content you submit; and, Enable your use of our enterprise products.

3.2 Create and maintain a trusted and safer environment.

We use personal information to: Detect and prevent fraud, spam, abuse, security and safety incidents, and other harmful activity; Study and combat discrimination consistent; Conduct security investigations and risk assessments; Verify or authenticate information provided by you; Conduct checks against databases and other information sources, including background or police checks; Comply with our legal obligations, protect the health and well-being of our Guests, Hosts, Hosts’ employees and members of the public; Resolve disputes with our members; Enforce our Agreements with Third Parties; Comply with Law, respond to legal requests, prevent harm and protect our rights (see section 4.5); Enforce our Terms and other policies; and, In connection with the activities above, we may conduct profiling based on your interactions with the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform, your profile information and other Content you submit to Short Stays Australia and New Zealand, and information obtained from Third Parties. In limited cases, automated processes could restrict or suspend access to the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform if such processes detect activity that we think poses a safety or other risk to Short Stays Australia and New Zealand, our community, or Third Parties. If you would like to challenge the decisioning based on the automated process, please contact us at support@shortstays.au.  

3.3 Good to Book Disclaimer.

Short Stays Australia and New Zealand is a member of Good to Book, a risk management database for Short Term Accommodation Providers (“STAPs”). Short Stays Australia and New Zealand will review Guest details within 48 hours of creating a Booking or prior to an Accommodation Booking commencing, whichever comes first. Any Guests listed on the Accommodation Booking over the age of 18 will also be reviewed on the Good to Book database. If Short Stays Australia and New Zealand find an entry on the Good to Book database, indicating that there was a problem caused by the Guest, or one of the Guests invitees at a previous Accommodation they have stayed at, Short Stays Australia and New Zealand has the right to and will inform the Host or Co-Host of these findings.

Short Stays Australia and New Zealand cannot check the accuracy of the Good to Book database nor can we disclose to the Guest any information on the Good to Book database or the STAP who uploaded the information, as this information is confidential. The information on the database is used for evaluative purposes so Accommodation providers can decide whether to enter into an Agreement for Accommodation with a Guest or not. Any concerns Guests or Hosts have with the Good to Book database will need to be discussed with Good to Book directly via admin@goodtobook.com.  Short Stays Australia and New Zealand accepts no liability for the use of the Good to Book database, including any reliance made on the information contained on the Good to Book database, even if the information uploaded is incorrect. 

Short Stays Australia and New Zealand may also upload information to the Good to Book database if a Guest causes damage or harm to a Host/Co-Host, their staff, other Guests, the property during the stay or fail to pay for damage, missing items, or additional cleaning Guests have been found to be responsible for. Providing Short Stays Australia and New Zealand are not negligent, Short Stays Australia and New Zealand will not be liable to Guests or Hosts or any other person for any consequence arising from the upload of information to the Good to Book database.

3.4 Provide, personalize, measure, and improve our advertising and marketing.

We may use personal information to: Send you promotional messages, marketing, advertising, and other information based on your preferences and social media advertising through social media platforms; Personalize, measure, and improve our advertising; Administer referral programs, rewards, surveys, sweepstakes, contests, or other promotional activities or events sponsored or managed by Short Stays Australia and New Zealand or its Third Party partners; Analyse characteristics and preferences to send you promotional messages, marketing, advertising and other information that we think might be of interest to you; and, Invite you to events and relevant opportunities. 

3.5 Provide Payment Services.

Personal information is used to enable or authorize Third Parties to use Payment Services: Detect and prevent money laundering, fraud, abuse, security incidents; Conduct security investigations and risk assessments; Comply with legal obligations (such as anti-money laundering regulations); Enforce the Payment Terms and other Payment Policies; With your consent, send you promotional messages, marketing, advertising, and other information that may be of interest to you based on your preferences; and, Provide and improve the Payment Services. 

SHARING AND DISCLOSURE

4.1 Sharing with your consent or at your direction.

Where you provide consent, we share your information as described at the time of consent, such as when authorizing a Third-Party application or website to access your Short Stays Australia and New Zealand Account or participating in promotional activities by Short Stays Australia and New Zealand partners or Third Parties.

4.2 Sharing between members.

To help facilitate Bookings or other interactions between members, we may need to share certain information. This information may include but is not limited to your username, profile photo, full name and Accommodation address. When you as a host invite another member to Host with you, you authorize that person to access and update your information and member Content, including but not limited to information like your Accommodation address, calendar, Listing information and Listing photos. When you as a Guest invite additional Guests to a Booking, your username, profile photo, full name, travel dates, Listing details, the accommodation address, and other related information may be shared with each additional Guest.

4.3 Information you publish in profiles, Listings, and other public information.

We make certain information publicly visible to others, such as: Your public profile page, which includes your profile photo, profile name, description, language spoken and the area you are located; Listing pages that include information such as the accommodation or Experience’s approximate or precise location description, calendar availability, aggregated demand information (like page views over a period of time), and additional information you choose to share; Reviews, ratings and other public feedback; and, Content in a community or discussion forum, blog or social media post. We may display parts of your public profile and other Content you make available to the public like Listing details on Third-Party sites, platforms, and apps. Information you share publicly on the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform may be indexed through Third-Party search engines. In some cases, you may be able to opt-out of certain features in your Account settings. 

4.4 Host service providers.

Hosts may use Third-Party Services to help manage or deliver their Services, such as cleaning services or lock providers. Hosts may use features on the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform to share information about the Guest (like check-in and check-out dates/times,  and guest names) with such Third-Party Service providers. 

4.5 Complying with Law, responding to legal requests, preventing harm, and protecting our rights.

We may disclose your information to courts, Law enforcement, governmental or public authorities, tax authorities, or authorized Third Parties, if and to the extent we are required or permitted to do so by Law or where disclosure is reasonably necessary: (i) to comply with our legal obligations, (ii) to comply with a valid legal request or to respond to claims asserted against Short Stays Australia and New Zealand, (iii) to respond to a valid legal request relating to a criminal investigation to address alleged or suspected illegal activity, or to respond to or address any other activity that may expose us, you, or any other of our users to legal or regulatory liability, (iv) to enforce and administer our Agreements with members, or (v) to protect the rights, property or personal safety of Short Stays Australia and New Zealand, its employees, its members, or members of the public. For example, if permitted due to the forgoing circumstances, Host tax information may be shared with tax authorities or other governmental agencies. Where appropriate, we may notify members about legal requests unless: (i) providing notice is prohibited by the legal process itself, by court order we receive, or by applicable Law, or (ii) we believe that providing notice would be futile, ineffective, create a risk of injury or bodily harm to an individual or group, or create or increase a risk of fraud upon or harm to Short Stays Australia and New Zealand, our members, or expose Short Stays Australia and New Zealand to a claim of obstruction of justice. For jurisdictions where Short Stays Australia and New Zealand facilitates the collection and remittance of Taxes where legally permissible according to applicable Law, we may disclose Hosts and Guests information about transactions, Bookings, accommodations and occupancy Taxes to the applicable tax authority, such as Host and Guest names, Listing addresses, transaction dates and amounts, tax identification number(s), the amount of taxes received (or due) by Hosts from Guests, and contact information. In regions/States where Short Stays Australia and New Zealand facilitates or requires a registration, notification, permit, or license application of a Host with a local governmental authority through Short Stays Australia and New Zealand in accordance with local Law, we may share information of participating Hosts with the relevant authority, both during the application process and, periodically thereafter, such as the Hosts full name and contact details, Accommodation address, tax identification number, Listing details, and number of nights booked. 

4.6 Programs with managers and owners.

We may share personal information of Hosts and Guests such as Booking information, and information related to compliance with applicable Laws such as short-term rental Laws with landlords, management companies, and/or property owners (the “Building Management”). For example, Guest Booking and personal information, including Guest contact information, may be shared with the Building Management of the building, complex, or community where a Host lives and/or the Listing is located, to facilitate hosting Services, compliance with applicable Laws, security, billing, and other Services. 

4.7 Host information provided to Short Stays Australia and New Zealand for work customers.

If a booking is designated as being for business or work purpose and (1) is made by a Guest affiliated with an Enterprise, (2) the Enterprise is enrolled in Short Stays Australia and New Zealand for Work, we may disclose information related to the Booking to the Enterprise (e.g., name of the Host, Accommodation address, Booking dates, Listing details, etc.) to the extent necessary for the adequate performance of Short Stays Australia and New Zealand Contract with the Enterprise and to provide the Services. At the request of the Enterprise or the Guest, we may also share this information with Third Parties engaged by the Enterprise to provide support Services. 

4.8 Service providers.

We share personal information with affiliated and unaffiliated Service providers to help us run our business, including Service providers that help us: (i) verify your identity or authenticate your identification documents, (ii) check information against public databases, (iii) conduct background or police checks, fraud prevention, and risk assessment, (iv) perform product development, maintenance and debugging, (v) allow the provision of the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand Services through Third-Party platforms and software tools (e.g. through the integration with our APIs), (vi) provide Customer Service, advertising, or Payments Services, (vii) process, handle or assess insurance claims or similar claims, or (viii) facilitate non-profit and charitable activities consistent with Short Stays Australia and New Zealand mission. These providers are contractually bound to protect your personal information and have access to your personal information to perform these tasks. 

4.9 Business transfers.

If Short Stays Australia and New Zealand undertakes or is involved in any merger, acquisition, reorganization, sale of assets, bankruptcy, or insolvency event, then we may sell, transfer, or share some or all our assets, including your information in connection with such transaction or in contemplation of such transaction (e.g., due diligence). In this event, we will notify you before your personal information is transferred and becomes subject to a different Privacy Policy. 

4.10 Corporate affiliates.

To support us in providing, integrating, promoting, and improving the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform, Payment Services, and our affiliates’ Services, we may share personal information within our corporate family of companies that are related by common ownership or control. 

OTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION

5.1 Analysing your communications.

We may review, scan, or analyse your communications on the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform for reasons outlined in the “How we use information we collect” section of this Policy, including fraud prevention, risk assessment, regulatory compliance, investigation, product development, research, analytics, enforcing our Terms of Service, and customer support purposes. For example, as part of our fraud prevention efforts, we scan and analyse messages to mask contact information and references to other sites. In some cases, we may also scan, review, or analyse messages to debug, improve, and expand product offerings. We use automated methods were reasonably possible. Occasionally we may need to manually review communications, such as for fraud investigations and customer support, or to assess and improve the functionality of these automated tools. We will not review, scan, or analyse your messaging communications to send Third-Party marketing messages to you and we will not sell reviews or analyses of these communications. 

5.2 Linking Third-Party Accounts.

You can link your Short Stays Australia and New Zealand Account with certain Third-Party Services like social networks. Your contacts on these Third-Party Services are referred to as “Friends.” When you direct the data sharing by creating this link: Some of the information provided to us from linking Accounts may be published on your public profile; Your activities on the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform may be displayed to your Friends on the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform and/or that Third-Party Service; Other Short Stays Australia and New Zealand users may be able to see any Friends that you may have in common with them, or that you are a Friend of their Friend if applicable; Other Short Stays Australia and New Zealand users may be able to see any schools, hometowns or other groups you have in common with them as listed on your linked social networking service; Information you provide to us from the linking of your Accounts may be stored, processed and transmitted for fraud prevention and risk assessment purposes; and, Publication and display of information that you provide to the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform through this linkage is subject to your settings and authorizations on the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand platform and the Third-Party Service. 

5.3 Third-Party partners & integrations.

Parts of Short Stays Australia and New Zealand may link to Third-Party Services, not owned or controlled by Short Stays Australia and New Zealand, such as Google Maps/Earth, Stripe, PriceLabs and Good to Book. Use of these Services is subject to the privacy policies of those providers. Short Stays Australia and New Zealand does not own or control these Third Parties and when you interact with them you are providing your information to them. 

You can exercise any of the rights described in this section consistent with applicable Law. Please note that we may ask you to verify your identity and request before taking further action on your request. 

YOUR RIGHTS

6.1 Managing your information.

You can access and update some of your personal information through your Account settings. If you connected your Short Stays Australia and New Zealand Account to a Third-Party Service, like PriceLabs or Stripe, you can change your settings and unlink from that Service in your Account settings. You are responsible for keeping your personal information up to date. 

6.2 Data access and portability.

In some jurisdictions, applicable Law may entitle you to request certain copies of your personal information or information about how we handle your personal information, request copies of personal information that you have provided to us in a structured, commonly used, and machine-readable format, and/or request that we transmit this information to another Service provider (where technically feasible). 

6.3 Data erasure.

You can request that your personal information be deleted. Please note that if you request deletion of your personal information: We may retain your personal information as necessary for our legitimate business interests, such as prevention of money laundering, fraud detection and prevention, and enhancing safety. For example, if we suspend a Short Stays Australia and New Zealand Account for fraud or safety reasons, we may retain information from that Short Stays Australia and New Zealand Account to prevent that member from opening a new Short Stays Australia and New Zealand Account in the future; We may retain and use your personal information to the extent necessary to comply with our legal obligations. For example, Short Stays Australia and New Zealand Payments may keep information for tax, legal reporting, and auditing obligations; Information you have shared with others (e.g., Reviews, forum postings) may continue to be publicly visible on the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand Platform, even after your Short Stays Australia and New Zealand Account is cancelled. However, attribution of such information to you will be removed. Some copies of your information (e.g., inbox chat threads, Booking records) will remain in our database, but may be disassociated from personal identifiers; and, Because we take measures to protect data from accidental or malicious loss and destruction, residual copies of your personal information may not be removed from our backup systems for a limited period of time. 

While no organization can guarantee perfect security, we are continuously implementing and updating administrative, technical, and physical security measures to help protect your information against unauthorized access, loss, destruction, or alteration. 

We reserve the right to modify this Privacy Policy at any time in accordance with applicable Law. If we do so, we will post the revised Privacy Policy and update the “Last Updated” date at the bottom. In case of material changes, we will also provide you with notice of the modification by email at least 30 days before the effective date. If you disagree with the revised Privacy Policy, you can cancel your Account. If you do not cancel your Account before the date the revised Privacy Policy becomes effective, your continued access to or use of the Short Stays Australia and New Zealand Platform will be subject to the revised Privacy Policy.

CONTACT US

7.1 For questions or complaints about this Privacy Policy or Short Stays Australia and New Zealand handling of personal information please email us at support@shortstays.au.  

Last Updated: 10 August 2024