Cookie policy

Cookies are files containing small amounts of information which are downloaded to the device you use when you visit a website. These can then be read by that website on subsequent visits or by other websites that recognise that cookie. Cookies do lots of different and useful jobs, such as remembering your preferences and generally improving your online experience.

There are different types of cookies. We have highlighted some of these differences below:

Session or Persistent Cookies

All cookies are either session or persistent cookies

• Session cookies last only for the duration of your visit and are deleted when you close your browser. They facilitate tasks such as allowing a website to identify that a user of a particular device is navigating from page to page, supporting website security or basic functionality.

Our session cookies used for security are designed to be very difficult to read, change, access or use, except by us. They contain no personal information that can be used to identify an individual.

• Persistent cookies last after you have closed your browser and allow a website to remember your actions and preferences.

Aldermore uses persistent cookies in a few ways, for example, to allow us to analyse customer visits to our site. These cookies help us to understand how users arrive at, and use, our site so we can improve our service. Sometimes persistent cookies are used by websites to provide targeted advertising based on the browsing history of the device.

First and Third Party Cookies

• First party cookies are those set by or on behalf of the Aldermore website visited. These enable the website to run at an optimum level and enhance the user experience. They are also used to keep your preferences.

• Third party cookies are those which are set up by external companies or vendors. These cookies are likely to be performance and targeting cookies, including analytics cookies to enable us to monitor and optimise our website.

In order to access our websites, we ask you to interact with our cookie banner to ensure that you provide consent to cookies we use by either accepting all cookies or managing your preferences. You cannot interact with the website until you have accepted or personalised your cookie preferences. This change was made to comply with new ICO guidelines that require active user consent to cookies, avoiding the use of default settings as was previously the case. You can personalise which categories of cookies you wish to consent to through the ‘Privacy preference centre’ available by clicking ‘Cookie settings’:

• Strictly necessary cookies: These cookies are essential to enable you to move around the website and use its features, and for ensuring the security of your online journey. Without these cookies, services such as applying for products and managing your accounts can’t be provided.

• Functional cookies: These cookies may be used to provide services you request, such as the ability to speak to our customer services team through live chat. The information these cookies collect is anonymised (i.e. it does not contain your name, address, account details, etc.).

• Site performance & analytics cookies: These cookies collect information about how visitors use a website, for example, which pages visitors go to most often, and if they get error messages from web pages. These cookies don't collect information that identifies a visitor, although they may collect the IP address of the device used to access the site. All information these cookies collect is anonymous and is only used to improve how our websites work and the user experience.

• Targeted marketing & profiling cookies: We use these cookies to help us promote our services to people we believe are most interested in them, based on the way they interact with our website. They remember that you have visited a website and this information is shared with other organisations that host or place promotions, such as media publishers.

These organisations do this in order to help us make sure our advertising is shown to people who are more likely to find it interesting and useful. This type of advertising is called online behavioural advertising and places an icon in the top right hand corner of an advert.

• Social media cookies: We use these cookies to share our feeds with you on our webpage and allow you to share content with your friends and networks, and use them to track visits to our website. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these tools.

If you would like to know more about the cookies Aldermore uses, please click on ‘Cookie settings’ on the website that you were visiting before viewing this policy (located in the left hand side of the webpage footer). From there, you can access that website’s unique ‘Privacy preference centre’ to see full details of the cookies used within that site.

By using our websites, you agree that we can place these types of cookies on your device, however, you can block them by following the methods outlined below.

Email

We sometimes track how you interact with our emails. This is to help us understand if emails have been opened and if links within the mail have been clicked.

Website Cookies: You can block or enable cookies by categories within our ‘Privacy preference centre’, either by clicking ‘Cookie settings’ on the banner at the top of the page or by clicking the ‘Cookie settings’ button on the website that you were visiting before viewing this policy (located in the left hand side of each webpage’s footer). We regularly scan our websites to maintain an up-to-date list of cookies used to keep it as accurate as possible.

You can also block or restrict cookies set by any website – including Aldermore websites – through your browser settings.

Email: if you would prefer to restrict tracking within emails, you can either set this up within your browser or email settings.

By switching cookies off (with the exception of Strictly necessary cookies which are always enabled) you will lose some functionality including; live person webchats, social media feeds & the ability to share on social media, the ability to read and write reviews.

If you opt in to any cookie categories and subsequently change your mind, you may see that the cookies remain on your device until they expire. We will no longer access these cookies if you have opted out of categories and these will be removed over time. If you clear your cookies entirely, you will find that you will need to provide your consent the next time you visit our website.

Please be aware that some of our services, for example our portals, will not function if your browser does not accept cookies. However, you can allow cookies from specific websites by making them ‘trusted websites’ in your internet browser.

For information on how to do this on a wider variety of browsers go to http://www.allaboutcookies.org.