Privacy Policy

1. Who We Are

Five Ridge Financial Ltd. ("Five Ridge", "we", "us", or "our") is a provincially licensed insurance agency operating in Alberta. We hold licenses for life insurance, accident and sickness insurance, and segregated funds through the Alberta Insurance Council. We operate as an Associate Managing General Agency (MGA), meaning we contract with licensed insurance carriers and may work with sub-contracted advisors who are independently licensed.

This policy applies to all personal information collected through our website at fiveridgefinancial.com, our Ridgeview advisor platform, our online planning tools and calculators, the Financial Snapshot intake form, and any direct communications with our team.

2. Governing Legislation

We comply with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) at the federal level and the Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA) at the provincial level in Alberta. Where PIPA applies as substantially similar legislation, it takes precedence for personal information collected, used, or disclosed within Alberta. We also comply with applicable provisions of the Insurance Act (Alberta) and the regulations of the Alberta Insurance Council regarding client record-keeping.

3. Information We Collect

The type and scope of personal information we collect depends on the nature of our interaction with you. For website visitors, we collect technical data including IP address, browser type, device information, pages visited, and referral source (including UTM campaign parameters). For Financial Snapshot submissions, we collect contact information (name, email, phone), household composition, income range, existing insurance coverage, investment account types, and financial planning priorities. For insurance applications, we collect detailed personal, financial, and health information as required by the issuing carrier's underwriting process. For Ridgeview platform users (licensed professionals), we collect professional licensing information, contact details, and platform activity logs.

4. How We Use Your Information

We use personal information for the following purposes: to respond to inquiries and schedule consultations; to conduct financial needs analyses and prepare planning recommendations; to process insurance applications and submit them to carriers on your behalf; to service existing policies, including renewals, changes, and claims support; to comply with regulatory obligations including Know Your Client (KYC) documentation requirements; to send operational communications about your accounts or policies; and to improve our website, tools, and services based on aggregate usage patterns. We do not use personal information for purposes beyond those for which it was collected without obtaining additional consent.

5. Disclosure of Information

In the normal course of business, we may disclose your personal information to the following parties: insurance carriers and their underwriting departments when processing applications; managing general agencies (MGAs) through which we hold contracts; reinsurers, where applicable to the underwriting process; regulatory bodies including the Alberta Insurance Council, when required by law or regulation; third-party service providers who assist with technology infrastructure, subject to written confidentiality agreements; and legal or law enforcement authorities when required by court order or applicable legislation. We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to any third party for marketing purposes.

6. Consent

We obtain your informed consent before collecting, using, or disclosing personal information. Consent may be express (written or verbal) or implied, depending on the sensitivity of the information and the reasonable expectations of the individual. For health and financial information used in insurance applications, we obtain express written consent. For website analytics and cookie data, we obtain consent through our cookie consent mechanism. You may withdraw consent at any time by contacting us in writing. Withdrawal of consent may limit or prevent us from providing certain services, and we will explain those consequences at the time of your request.

7. Cookies and Website Analytics

Our website uses cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes: essential cookies that are required for site functionality (session management, cookie consent preferences); analytics cookies that help us understand how visitors use our site (page views, traffic sources, device types); and marketing cookies that track campaign effectiveness through UTM parameters. You can manage your cookie preferences through the consent banner displayed on your first visit. Essential cookies cannot be disabled as they are necessary for the site to function. Analytics and marketing cookies are optional and can be rejected without affecting core site functionality.

8. SMS and Text Message Communications

If you provide your phone number and opt in to receive text messages from Five Ridge Financial, we may send you SMS messages for the following purposes: appointment reminders and scheduling confirmations, follow-up communications related to your consultation or Financial Snapshot submission, and service-related notifications about your account or policy status. You will only receive SMS messages if you have expressly opted in. Opting in to SMS is not a condition of purchasing any product or service from Five Ridge Financial.

Message frequency: Message frequency varies depending on your interactions with us. You may receive up to 5 messages per month, though most clients receive fewer.

Opting out: You may opt out of SMS communications at any time by replying STOP to any message you receive from us. After opting out, you will receive a single confirmation message and no further SMS messages will be sent unless you opt in again. You may also opt out by contacting us at contact@fiveridgefinancial.com or (403) 991-2046.

Help: For assistance with SMS communications, reply HELP to any message or contact us at contact@fiveridgefinancial.com or (403) 991-2046.

9. Mobile Information Sharing Statement

We do not sell, rent, lease, or share your mobile phone number with third parties for marketing or promotional purposes. Your phone number is used solely for the purposes described in this Privacy Policy, including the SMS communications outlined in Section 8. SMS consent and your phone number are not shared with third parties or affiliates for their own marketing purposes. We may share your phone number with our SMS service provider solely for the purpose of delivering the messages described above, subject to written confidentiality and data protection agreements.

10. Online Tools and Calculators

Our website offers financial planning calculators and educational tools. Information entered into standalone calculators (such as the Life Insurance Calculator, Compound Interest Calculator, or Retirement Income Calculator) is processed entirely in your browser and is not transmitted to or stored on our servers. The Financial Snapshot intake form is different: information submitted through that form is stored on our servers and used to prepare for a consultation. By submitting the Financial Snapshot, you consent to the collection and use of that information for the purpose of financial planning assessment.

11. Data Security

We implement physical, technical, and administrative safeguards appropriate to the sensitivity of the information we hold. These include encrypted data transmission (TLS/SSL) for all website communications, access controls that restrict personal information to authorized personnel on a need-to-know basis, secure cloud infrastructure with regular security updates, and documented procedures for handling data breaches. No method of electronic transmission or storage is completely secure. While we take reasonable steps to protect your information, we cannot guarantee absolute security.

12. Cross-Border Data Processing

Your personal information may be processed and stored using cloud infrastructure located in the United States. This includes our database hosting and application infrastructure providers. Five Ridge Financial Ltd. remains accountable under PIPEDA for the protection of your personal information regardless of where it is processed. Our service providers are bound by contractual obligations to protect your information to a standard comparable to Canadian privacy law. By using our services and providing your personal information, you acknowledge that your data may be transferred to and processed in jurisdictions outside of Canada. If you have questions about our data handling practices, please contact us at contact@fiveridgefinancial.com.

13. Retention

We retain personal information for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected, or as required by applicable law and regulation. Insurance policy records and related documentation are retained for a minimum of seven years following the termination of a policy, consistent with Alberta Insurance Council requirements and limitation periods under Alberta law. Financial Snapshot submissions from individuals who do not become clients are retained for up to two years and then securely destroyed. Website analytics data is retained in aggregate form and does not contain personally identifiable information after initial processing.

14. Your Rights

Under PIPEDA and PIPA, you have the right to request access to the personal information we hold about you, to request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information, to withdraw consent for the collection, use, or disclosure of your information (subject to legal and contractual limitations), and to file a complaint if you believe your privacy rights have been violated. Access requests will be responded to within 30 days, as required by PIPA. In limited circumstances, we may be unable to provide access to certain information (for example, if disclosure would reveal confidential commercial information or information about another individual). We will explain any such limitations at the time of your request.

15. Complaints

If you have a privacy concern, we encourage you to contact us first so we can attempt to resolve it directly. If you are not satisfied with our response, you may file a complaint with the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Alberta (OIPC) at oipc.ab.ca, or with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC) at priv.gc.ca.

16. Changes to This Policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, or legal requirements. The effective date at the top of this page indicates when the policy was last revised. We encourage you to review this policy periodically. Material changes will be communicated through a notice on our website.

17. Contact

For privacy-related inquiries, access requests, complaints, or questions about SMS communications, please contact our Privacy Officer:

Five Ridge Financial Ltd.
Attention: Privacy Officer
Email: privacy@fiveridgefinancial.com
Phone: (403) 991-2046