Notification
It is of essential importance to the Nederlandse Spoorwegen (Dutch Railways) – the NS Groep N.V. – that the personal details of its customers and relations are processed and protected with the greatest possible care. In addition, we also believe we should be transparent about the way in which your information is processed by us. This is why you will find an explanation about our privacy policy below. The key element is that we always comply with all of the requirements made by the Dutch Data Protection Act. The NS Groep N.V., which is located at 100 Laan van Puntenburg in Utrecht, is responsible for data processing. NS Groep N.V. is also responsible for the way in which the various subsidiaries of NS deal with your information. To be quite clear: whenever this text refers to NS or Nederlandse Spoorwegen, you may also read NS Groep N.V. or one of its subsidiaries. In accordance with the Dutch Data Protection Act, we are registered with the supervisory authority Dutch Data Protection Authority, which is located in The Hague.
Personal data refers to all data of which it is known to whom it belongs. This does not only include name and address details but also, for example, sales and subscription data. We use your personal details for the implementation of the various agreements that we enter into with you as our customer. If you have a subscription, we register this data in order to send you your subscription, to ensure that the transport agreement made with you is carried out, to settle payments and to be able to send you a copy when necessary. When a reservation is made for a journey, we register a few personal details to ensure that you receive the travel documents on time. Furthermore, we register your name and address, for example, when you call us to report lost or found objects. Also, when you visit our websites, www.ns.nl, your details are registered when you provide them to us, for example when you request a brochure.
With bookings made from a server outside the EU, personal data is processed outside the EU. This is because information traffic partly runs on servers that are located in a non-EU country. This means that in that non-EU country the EU data protection regulations do not apply and the protection of personal data may vary of that which is legally required by the EU.
We also process data that is created when the OV Chipkaart is purchased via the NS and is used on our trains. There are two types of cards: the anonymous OV Chipkaart and the personal OV Chipkaart.
The personal OV Chipkaart is the card that is used by a specific passenger whose personal data is contained on the card and registered in the chip on the card. The personal data of these passengers are known to the card issuer and to the NS, if the personal OV Chipkaart was purchased via the NS. The personal data and the data about the journeys made with the personal OV Chipkaart, such as check-in and check-out data, are registered and processed by us to ensure the travel agreement is implemented and completed in the correct way – for example, for payments. This data is registered in the electronic administration, so that it is available to us when we receive questions or complaints about payments. Or, for example, if you want to submit a claim in terms of the ‘Money Back in the Case of a Delay’ arrangement (please see the heading ‘Money Back in the Case of a Delay and the OV Chipkaart). Where paper travel passes are not available, a proper and careful (electronic) administration is even more important.
This data also provides us with more insight into travel behaviour and we can use the data to ensure that the information we provide is better suited to your needs. For example, we know that a frequent traveller needs different information than an incidental traveller. And if you often go to Amsterdam Central Station, you will be more interested in information related to the renovation taking place there than if you never go there. In order to do this, we will not use detailed data such as the combination of route, date and time, because this may infringe upon your privacy. We do however use derived data, that reveals something about your travel behaviour, such as your ‘travel frequency’ or stations you often use, to enable us to provide you with the appropriate information. If you prefer not to receive information about services and products, you may indicate this. (You can find more information below under the heading: 'Your personal data and your rights'.)
In addition to the personal OV Chipkaart, there also is an anonymous card. This card is not personal and may be used by more than one person. As with the personal OV Chipkaart, this travel data is also registered for this card. However, as long as it is not known who uses the card, this does not constitute personal data.
If you use an anonymous OV Chipkaart, you will only become known to us if you identify yourself by providing us with data such as name and address details. For example, when you request personal customer services, such as the ‘Money Back in the Case of a Delay’ arrangement (please see the heading ‘Money Back in the Case of a Delay and the OV Chipkaart). In this case too, you can indicate that you do not want your data to be used for the sending of information (also see under the heading: ‘Your personal data and your rights').
Finally, the data of users of both the personal and the anonymous OV Chipkaart are used for market research, management information, product and service development and to determine general strategy – without the possibility that any link could be made to any individual persons.
For more information about ‘The OV Chipkaart and your personal data’ you can download the brochure of the joint OV companies here. On www.OV-chipkaart.nl you can find more information about the privacy policy of the card issuer TransLink Systems.
It may happen that you would like to submit a claim based upon the ‘Money Back in the Case of a Delay’ arrangement. Then you are requested to also provide us with the original travel pass or a copy of your subscription together with your claim. In the case of the digital travel pass on the OV Chipkaart, this is no longer possible, because a paper travel pass no longer exists. In order to process your claim, we will therefore consult our electronic administration. Amongst others, this data is necessary to be able to determine whether a request for ‘Money Back in the Case of a Delay’ is justified or not. Because we do not know in advance who suffered damage as a result of a delay, the data is stored in the electronic administration for this purpose for a maximum period of 6 months. This is the period within which a request may be submitted and can be processed.
In order to be able to properly process a request for ‘Money Back in the Case of a Delay’, we request that you use the appropriate form to provide details about where and when you experienced a delay. In addition, we also request your personal details – for example, address details and a bank or giro account number to enable us to process a claim that has been submitted. The data on the form is combined with data from the electronic administration of NS in order to determine whether the request is justified or not, and to be able to process the request administratively. The data about requests that have been approved are stored for a period of 3 years for the purpose of combating fraud. The conditions, such as the period during which a request has to be submitted in order to qualify for the ‘Money Back in the Case of a Delay’ arrangement are stipulated in the ‘Money Back in the Case of a Delay’ product conditions.
We would naturally also like to provide you with information about our own special offers or about the services we provide. Such an offer may come from one of our subsidiaries. For example, this may include a discount on the NS Travel Planner or information about the renovation of a station. When we expect that a special offer may be relevant to you, we would like to inform you about it. This also applies to information about our services. If, for example, a route near you will be temporarily unavailable as a result of maintenance activities, we could to be able to inform you about this.
On a regular basis we get requests from partners with whom we collaborate. These partners approach us with the question whether they may make an attractive special offer to you as a customer of NS. These may include discounts on travel, theatre tickets or, for example, books. Obviously, we do not want you as customer to miss out on any of these special offers. However, under no circumstances will we make your data available to third parties. Also, your data will not be sold. A special offer by a collaborating partner will therefore always be brought to your attention via NS and never by the partner itself. This means that your details are safe with us and that you are simultaneously kept informed about interesting special offers.
For some special offers you have to fill out a response card. For example, this may be the case when making a reservation for theatre seats for which you have been offered a discount. On this response card you may enter in your name and address. You then personally send the completed card directly to the supplier involved, which will enable that supplier to make the reservations for these seats and to send the tickets to you. In that case, you have personally send your data to the organisation involved. In this case, we cannot take any responsibility for the way in which this supplier deals with your personal details. We therefore advise you to always take note of the privacy policy of these parties, or to get in touch with them for a further explanation about their policy related to the use of personal data.
We may be obliged by law to provide personal details. Should this happen, we will, obviously, comply with this legal obligation in accordance with the requirements made by the Dutch Data Protection Act.
Under the Data Protection Act you have the right to access the data that is registered about you. If you want to exercise this right you may submit a written request to the NS Customer Service, accompanied by a copy of your proof of identity:
NS Customer Service
P.O. Box 2372
3500 GJ Utrecht
The Netherlands
If you are of the opinion that your personal data is not correct, you may submit a request to have it corrected.
If you use ‘My NS’ you can also access the most important personal data. In due course, an increasing amount of your data will be available for you to access directly via ‘My NS’, for example, if your OV Chipkaart was purchased via NS, you will be able to acces all check-in and check-out data recorded on your OV Chipkaart.
However, if you object to your data being used to provide you with information, as described under the heading ‘Special offers and services of NS’, you may inform NS Customer Service, 0900 - 202 11 63 (€ 0.10 per minute) or indicate it directly yourself via ‘My NS’. We will then no longer send you information about special offers or about our products and services.
NS has registered with the 'Code management and processing of personal data OV Chipkaart by public transport companies'. This code, plus explanation, can be read here.
We also use email to provide information to our customers and relations. Via 'My NS', you can indicate your personal preferences for the subjects about which you would like to receive information. Later, you may change the preferences for the subjects about which you would like to receive information. Via My NS, you may also cancel the sending of emails. And, if later you decide that you would again like to receive information, you can always this known via My NS.
The requirements that have been made in accordance with the Dutch Data Protection Act obviously also apply to data that you may provide us with via the Internet. Below, you will find an explanation that is specifically aimed at Internet use.
On our website, general visitor data is recorded, such as the pages most frequently viewed. The purpose of this general visitor data is to help ensure that the website is designed in an optimal way for you. The data could also be used to enable us to place more specific information and special offers for our customers on the website. In this way, we are able to improve the services we offer you. We would like to emphasize that no personal data is recorded but only general data. No personal data about you will ever be recorded via the Internet, unless you have explicitly placed an order - for example, by making a reservation for a journey, by registering for ‘My NS’ or by requesting information.
In offering our services via the Internet, we use temporary cookies. A cookie is a small, simple file containing information that is saved on the hard drive of your computer. However, these cookies do not contain any personal data and are only used to make it easier for you to use the NS website. If you indicate this yourself, an additional special cookie may be used. Because of this cookie, our website is able to recognise you when you visit our website again, and the site can better meet your specific needs. It therefore only concerns an aid to make the use of the site even more pleasant for you. If you have switched off the use of cookies in your browser, you will still be able to visit most areas of our website.
In order to provide optimal security for your data and protect them from unauthorised access or use, the latest security technology is always applied within NS. NS will always apply this technology within the guidelines of our privacy policy and will never conflict with the requirements made by the Dutch Data Protection Act.
On our website, you will find a number of links to other websites that do not belong to NS. We cannot take any responsibility with regard to the way in which these parties deal with personal data. We therefore advise you to always take note of the privacy policy of these parties or to get in touch with them for more information about their policy related to the use of personal details.
A sense of insecurity is a social problem that NS is also faced with. In principle, travel by train is safe, but sometimes the travellers experience this differently because of the behaviour of aggressive fare dodgers, vandals and impudent youths. One of the measures we have taken to counter this is the use of camera surveillance. In practice, this has proved to be an important aid in preventing, locating and prosecuting crimes and in addressing other offences. The camera surveillance is done overtly and is indicated through images on stickers. Only persons on or authorised by the NS Board have access to the images. If no irregularity has occurred, the images will be erased within a maximum of seven consecutive days after registration.
At a large number of stations, NS uses cameras for surveillance. Furthermore, they are also used in a number of trains in the Randstad and in the Benelux train between Amsterdam and Brussels. The use of cameras is always indicated by texts and images on the train and at the stations. The registration of images is not only related to perpetrators of crime, but also to possible victims and witnesses. NS has also reported this form of processing of personal data to the Dutch Data Protection Authorities.
If, as a result of this information, you still have specific questions or remarks about our privacy policy, you may direct them to: NS Customer Service, 0900 - 202 11 63 (€ 0.10 per minute).
NS retains the right – where it deems it necessary – to modify the privacy policy. However, this policy will never be at odds with the requirements made by the Dutch Data Protection Act. On www.ns.nl you will always find the most recent version of the privacy policy of NS.
Nederlandse Spoorwegen Utrecht, January 2009.
Please note: No rights can be derived from the above information.
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