Last updated: 10/08/2026

Empathy Angels Incorporated (NZBN 9429051053819) runs empathyangels.co.nz. People come to us at vulnerable moments, so we take care with the information they share. This policy explains what we collect, why, who sees it, and what rights you have. It reflects our obligations under the Privacy Act 2020.

How to contact us

Empathy Angels Incorporated
Email: connect@empathyangels.co.nz
Postal: Accounting Works, 80 Rosario Crescent, Red Beach

When you book a session

To book you a session we need your name, email address and phone number. We use these to schedule your session and to send you the confirmation and Zoom details.

We also ask a few questions about you: your gender, age range, and the region you live in.

If this is your third or later session we ask you to make a contribution, and the form asks how much you would like to give.

The booking form has a message box. Anything you write there is kept with your booking record and is seen by your Empathy Angel.

Why we ask the questions about you

Empathy Angels is free, and is funded by donations and grants.

Our funders ask us to show who the service is reaching. We report this to them as numbers only – how many sessions we held with people in each region or age group. We never give funders your name, your contact details, or anything you shared in a session.

We report these numbers in a way that does not allow anyone to be identified.

During your session

What you talk about is held in confidence by your Empathy Angel. We do not record sessions and we do not keep notes of what is discussed.

Zoom provides the video platform and handles the connection data needed to run the call. Zoom’s own privacy policy applies to that.

After your session

We send you an email inviting feedback through an online form. Giving your name is optional. Feedback is confidential and is used only to improve the service.

If you donate or contribute

Payments are handled by Stripe. This covers both donations made through our donations page and contributions made when you book a session.

We collect your name, email address, whether you are giving as an individual or a business, the amount, and any comment you add.

Your card details go straight to Stripe. They are never stored on our website and we never see them.

Newsletter

If you opt in, we use your email address to send you our quarterly newsletter. You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in any newsletter, or by emailing connect@empathyangels.co.nz.

When you fill in a form on our site

When you submit a booking, donation or contact form, our website records the internet (IP) address of the device you used, alongside your form answers. This is a standard part of how our form software works and helps us identify spam and misuse. We do not use it to identify you or to track you around the internet.

Website analytics and cookies

We use Google Analytics 4 to understand how people find and use our website – which pages get visited, how long people stay, and roughly which part of the country they are in.

Google Analytics places a cookie on your device containing a random identifier, which lets us tell a returning visitor from a new one. We do not use it to identify you, and we never connect it to anything you tell us when you book.

Google Analytics uses your IP address at the moment of collection to work out an approximate location, then discards it. Google does not log or store IP addresses in Google Analytics 4. We have not turned on Google Signals, advertising features, or any cross-site ad tracking.

This data is held on Google’s servers outside New Zealand. You can read how Google handles it at policies.google.com/technologies/partner-sites.

If you would rather not be included, install Google’s opt-out browser add-on from tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout, or block cookies in your browser. Neither will affect your ability to use the site or book a session.

We also use Google Search Console, which tells us which search terms bring people to our site. It works from Google’s own records and does not collect anything from your device.

The site also uses functional cookies needed to make it work – holding your place while you fill in a booking form, and serving pages quickly. These do not track you across other websites.

Who sees your information

Your booking details go to the Empathy Angel you have booked, so they can prepare for your session. Our Angels are independent contractors and are required to keep your information confidential.

Otherwise we share information only with the providers who help us run the service: Simply Schedule Appointments and Gravity Forms for bookings, Stripe for payments, Zoom for sessions, Google for website analytics, and our email and website hosts.

We do not sell your information and we do not share it for advertising.

We may disclose information without your consent only where the Privacy Act allows or requires it – for example if we believed there was a serious threat to someone’s life or health, or if we were legally required to.

Information held overseas

Some of the providers above store information on servers outside New Zealand. Where we send personal information overseas we take reasonable steps to make sure it is protected by comparable safeguards, as required by the Privacy Act 2020.

How long we keep it

We keep your booking record for 10 years after your last session. This includes your name, contact details, your answers to the questions about you, and anything you wrote in the message box.

We keep it for this long so we can verify our service records if a funder asks us to, and so we recognise you if you come back to us.

Records of donations and session contributions are kept for seven years, to meet tax and financial reporting requirements.

Google Analytics data is kept for 14 months.

Newsletter subscriptions are kept until you unsubscribe.

Keeping it secure

Our website runs over an encrypted connection. Access to booking information is limited to those who need it to run the service.

If a privacy breach happens that is likely to cause you serious harm, we will tell you and notify the Office of the Privacy Commissioner, as the Privacy Act 2020 requires.

Your rights

Under the Privacy Act 2020 you can ask us what information we hold about you, get a copy of it, and ask us to correct anything that is wrong. Email connect@empathyangels.co.nz and we will reply within 20 working days. There is no charge.

If you are unhappy with how we have handled your information, please tell us first. If you are still not satisfied you can complain to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner:

Phone 0800 803 909
PO Box 10094, Wellington 6140
privacy.org.nz

Their complaints service is free.

Children

Our service is for people aged 18 and over. We do not knowingly collect information from anyone under 18.

Changes

We may update this policy. The current version is always on this page, with the date it was last updated shown at the top.