Privacy Policy - Man With A Van Croftonpark

This Privacy Policy explains how Man With A Van Croftonpark collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data. It applies to all Man With A Van Croftonpark customers in the area, including anyone who requests a quote, books a service, communicates with us, or receives moving and transport services from us. We are committed to handling personal information in a lawful, fair, and transparent way in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

1. Who This Policy Applies To

This policy applies to customers, prospective customers, business contacts, household members whose items are moved, and anyone else whose personal information is processed in connection with our services. Because removals and transport services may involve property access, scheduling, and delivery arrangements, we may process information relating to more than one person within the same booking. We only collect what is necessary to provide and manage our services.

2. Information We Collect

We may collect and process the following categories of personal data:

Identity details: name, title, and any relevant business or household contact name.
Contact details: telephone number, email address, billing address, and service address.
Booking and service information: moving dates, collection and delivery locations, inventory details, access instructions, and special handling requirements.
Payment and transaction data: payment status, invoice records, and limited financial information required to process a transaction.
Communication records: emails, messages, call notes, and enquiry details.
Operational information: service preferences, scheduling notes, and records needed to complete the job safely and efficiently.
Technical information: limited device or usage data if you interact with our digital systems, such as IP address or browser details where applicable.

We do not intentionally collect special category data unless it is necessary and lawfully permitted, for example where a customer voluntarily shares information that is essential to a service arrangement. We ask that you do not provide unnecessary sensitive information.

3. How We Use Personal Data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

to respond to enquiries and provide quotes;
to arrange, manage, and deliver moving or transport services;
to communicate about bookings, timing, access, and service changes;
to issue invoices, process payments, and keep financial records;
to manage customer relationships and handle complaints or disputes;
to maintain internal records and service quality;
to comply with legal, tax, accounting, and insurance obligations;
to protect our business, staff, and customers from fraud, misuse, or security issues.

We only use your personal information where we have a valid legal reason to do so and only for clear, defined purposes. We do not sell personal data.

4. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under UK GDPR, we must have a lawful basis for each processing activity. The main lawful bases we rely on are:

4.1 Contract

We process personal data where it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes handling booking details, service addresses, item lists, and payment-related data needed to deliver the service.

4.2 Legitimate Interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate interests and where those interests are not overridden by your rights. Examples include responding to enquiries, managing customer records, preventing fraud, improving services, and maintaining business administration. When relying on legitimate interests, we consider the impact on your privacy and apply safeguards where needed.

4.3 Legal Obligation

We process certain data to meet legal obligations, including accounting, tax, record-keeping, insurance, and compliance requirements.

4.4 Consent

In limited cases, we may rely on your consent, for example where you choose to receive certain optional communications. If we rely on consent, you can withdraw it at any time, and withdrawal will not affect the lawfulness of processing already carried out.

4.5 Vital Interests and Public Interest

These bases are unlikely to apply in normal circumstances, but may be used in rare situations where necessary to protect someone’s safety or where required by law.

5. How We Share Data and Processors

We may share personal data only when necessary and only with parties who are authorised to process it on our behalf or who have an independent legal basis to receive it. These may include:

Payment service providers that handle card or transfer processing;
Accountants and bookkeepers for financial administration and tax compliance;
IT and software providers that support booking, email, storage, and record management systems;
Insurance providers for claims handling or risk management;
Subcontracted drivers or service partners where required to complete a booked job;
Legal or regulatory bodies where disclosure is required by law.

Where these third parties act as processors, they are required to process data only on our instructions, keep it secure, and use it only for the agreed purpose. We seek appropriate contractual safeguards with processors, including confidentiality and data protection commitments. If data is transferred outside the UK, we ensure appropriate legal safeguards are in place.

6. Data Retention

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, and for any additional time required by law or legitimate business needs. Retention periods vary depending on the type of information and the purpose of processing.

Enquiry records are usually kept for a limited period to manage follow-up and customer service.
Booking and service records are retained for operational, contractual, and dispute-handling purposes.
Financial and tax records are kept for the period required by law.
Insurance and claims records may be retained longer where necessary to deal with claims or legal obligations.

When data is no longer required, it is securely deleted, anonymised, or archived in line with our retention practices. We do not keep data indefinitely.

7. Data Security

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, accidental loss, misuse, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, limited staff access, and procedures designed to reduce data protection risks. While no system can be completely secure, we work to maintain a level of protection appropriate to the nature of the information we handle.

8. Your Rights

You have a number of rights under data protection law. These rights may be subject to legal exceptions and limits, but we will always consider your request carefully.

Right of access: you can request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Right to rectification: you can ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data.
Right to erasure: in certain circumstances, you can ask us to delete your data.
Right to restriction: you can ask us to limit how we use your data in certain situations.
Right to object: you can object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing.
Right to data portability: you can request certain data in a structured, commonly used format where applicable.
Right to withdraw consent: if processing is based on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

If you make a request, we may need to verify your identity before responding. We aim to respond within the time limits set by law. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the UK Information Commissioner’s Office if you believe your data protection rights have been infringed.

9. Children’s Data

Our services are not directed at children, and we do not knowingly collect personal data from children unless it is incidentally included as part of a booking or service arrangement and only where necessary. If we become aware that we have collected personal data unlawfully, we will take reasonable steps to delete it.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, legal obligations, or data handling practices. Any updated version will apply from the date it is published or otherwise made available. We encourage customers to review the policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect personal data.

11. Summary of Our Commitment

We respect your privacy and aim to process personal data only when necessary, fairly, and securely. For all Man With A Van Croftonpark customers in the area, our approach is to collect only the information needed to provide services, use it for clear and legitimate purposes, keep it only as long as required, and protect the rights of every individual whose data we process. Transparency, security, and accountability are central to how we handle your information.