privacy policy

Committed to your protection

At Independent Bank, we are committed to safeguarding your privacy.

While the information we collect is critical to providing you with superior products and services, be assured that we are dedicated to maintaining the confidentiality of your personal information. Unlike other organizations, we do not sell the information you have entrusted to us. To help you understand how we protect your personal information, this notice describes our current privacy policy and practices. We will advise you of our privacy policy and practices at least once annually, as required by law.

This privacy notice applies to individuals and not to business entities or business transactions. We reserve the right to make changes to this statement. The statement is for general guidance and does not constitute a contract, nor does it modify or amend any agreements we have with you.

This privacy policy applies to Independent Bank and its affiliates: Independent Mortgage Company, Independent Title Services Inc., Independent Financial and Insurance Services, Inc., Mepco Finance Corporation and Mepco Acceptance Corporation.

Information we collect about you

We collect nonpublic personal information about you from the following sources:
  • Information we receive from you on applications or other forms.
  • Information about your transactions with us, our affiliates or others.
  • Information we receive from a consumer-reporting agency.

No disclosures outside of exceptions

We do not disclose any nonpublic personal information about our customers or former customers to anyone, except as permitted by law. Exceptions permitted by law include reporting to:

  • Companies that perform services for us in connection with your account (i.e. data processing and collection agencies).
  • Non-financial companies such as credit reporting agencies and marketing companies that provide marketing services for us (i.e. direct mailing, bulk mailing, market research).
  • Government entities as a requirement of law or in response to subpoenas, court orders, legal process or government agency examination or investigation or in conjunction with fraud, security or risk control.
  • Yourself or others with your consent or at your direction, which may be oral, in writing, by phone, electronic or by other means we recognize.

Confidentiality and security

We restrict access to nonpublic personal information about you to those employees who need to know that information to provide products or services to you.

We maintain physical, electronic and procedural safeguards that comply with federal standards to guard your nonpublic personal information. We are committed to our relationship and want you to understand the steps we have taken to protect your personal information. If you have questions, contact any Independent Bank office or send us an email.

Accuracy of customer information

We recognize that the accuracy of your personal information is critical and we follow procedures to reasonably ensure the accuracy of your information. If you find that information we have on file or have reported to another party does not appear to be accurate, write to us at: Independent Bank Corporation, Privacy Manager, 230 W. Main, Ionia, MI 48846. Please include your account or policy number, bank office location, and the information will be corrected.

Web site privacy

Safeguarding personal information when interacting with us via the Internet is also important. When browsing our Web site, personal information, such as your e-mail address is not collected. Some areas of our Web site require information, such as your e-mail address or your account number, to enable you to perform certain tasks (i.e. to review your accounts or correspond with us). In these cases, we collect the information necessary to interact with you. If you visit us on the Internet, we may place a “cookie” on your browser that records the number of visits made to various Web pages; however, personal information is not collected.