Privacy Policy - Man With Van Hounslow

This Privacy Policy explains how Man With Van Hounslow collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data. It applies to all Man With Van Hounslow customers in the area, including individuals and businesses who request, receive, or enquire about our moving, transportation, packing, and related services. We are committed to handling personal data in a lawful, fair, and transparent manner in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

By using our services, making an enquiry, or otherwise providing information to us, you acknowledge that this Privacy Policy explains how we process your data. We only collect and use personal information where we have a lawful basis to do so and only for purposes that are necessary, relevant, and proportionate to delivering our services.

1. Information We Collect

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

Identity information: name, title, and any business or company name if applicable.
Contact information: address, email address, telephone number, and moving location details.
Service information: details of your removal, delivery, packing, storage, or transport requirements.
Billing and payment information: records needed to issue invoices, manage payments, and maintain accounting records.
Communication records: enquiries, messages, notes from calls, complaints, feedback, and service-related correspondence.
Usage and technical information: basic data generated when you interact with our digital systems, such as device type, browser information, and log data, where relevant.
Special category data: we do not actively seek to collect special category data unless it is necessary and you choose to provide it, or it is required for a specific service with your explicit consent or another lawful basis under data protection law.

We generally collect personal data directly from you when you submit an enquiry, request a quotation, book a service, communicate with us, or provide information during the delivery of our services. In some cases, we may also receive data from third parties, such as payment providers, business partners, or referral sources, where this is lawful and appropriate.

2. How We Use Personal Data

We use personal data only where necessary for legitimate business and operational purposes. These purposes may include:

providing quotations and responding to enquiries;
arranging, delivering, and managing removal or transport services;
communicating with you about bookings, schedules, access requirements, or service changes;
processing payments, managing invoices, and maintaining accounting records;
handling complaints, disputes, and service recovery matters;
maintaining internal records, quality control, and business administration;
protecting our operations, staff, customers, and property;
complying with legal, tax, insurance, and regulatory obligations.

We do not use personal data for purposes that are incompatible with the reason it was collected unless we have a valid legal basis to do so. Where required, we will inform you if we intend to use your data for a new purpose.

3. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under UK GDPR, we must have a lawful basis for every type of processing activity. We rely on the following bases, depending on the circumstances:

Contract

We process personal data where it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes managing enquiries, providing quotes, carrying out moving services, and handling related administration.

Legal obligation

We may process personal data to comply with legal obligations, such as tax, accounting, insurance, or record-keeping requirements, and to respond to lawful requests from authorities.

Legitimate interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate interests, provided that those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms. Examples include managing our business operations, improving services, preventing fraud, and maintaining security.

Consent

In limited cases, we may rely on your consent, for example where you choose to receive certain optional communications or provide information that requires explicit permission. Where consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time.

Vital interests

In rare emergency situations, we may process information where it is necessary to protect someone???s life or physical safety.

4. Sharing and Processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties where necessary to provide our services or to comply with legal requirements. These third parties act either as processors or independent controllers depending on the role they perform.

Processors are organisations that process personal data on our behalf and only under our instructions. They may include:

IT and cloud storage providers;
accounting and bookkeeping services;
payment processing providers;
customer management or scheduling tools;
document storage and backup providers;
professional advisers, where applicable and under confidentiality obligations.

We require all processors to protect personal data through appropriate technical and organisational measures, to use data only for authorised purposes, and to maintain confidentiality. We do not sell your personal data.

We may also share information with independent controllers where necessary, such as insurers, legal advisers, law enforcement authorities, or regulators, but only when appropriate and lawful.

5. Data Retention

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, including for the purposes of satisfying any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements.

Retention periods may vary depending on the type of data and the reason it is held. For example:

enquiry records may be kept for a limited period after the last interaction;
contract and service records may be retained for the duration of the service and for a reasonable period afterwards;
financial and tax records are typically kept for the period required by law;
complaint and dispute records may be retained until resolved and for a further period where needed for defence of legal claims.

When personal data is no longer required, we will delete it securely or anonymise it so that it can no longer identify you.

6. Data Security

We take the security of personal data seriously and use appropriate safeguards to protect it from unauthorised access, loss, misuse, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, staff confidentiality obligations, and limited data access on a need-to-know basis.

Although we take reasonable steps to protect your information, no system is completely secure. If a personal data breach occurs, we will assess the risk and take action in line with legal obligations, including notifying relevant authorities or affected individuals when required.

7. Your Rights

As a data subject under UK GDPR, you have several rights in relation to your personal data. These include:

Right of access: you may request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Right to rectification: you may ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
Right to erasure: in certain circumstances, you may ask us to delete your data.
Right to restriction: you may request limited processing in some cases.
Right to data portability: where applicable, you may request that we provide your data in a structured format.
Right to object: you may object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing.
Right to withdraw consent: where we rely on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the UK Information Commissioner???s Office if you believe your data has been handled unlawfully. We encourage you to raise any concerns with us first so that we can try to resolve the issue promptly and fairly.

8. International Transfers

Where personal data is transferred outside the UK, we will only do so where appropriate safeguards are in place and where the transfer is lawful. Such safeguards may include adequacy regulations, standard contractual protections, or other legally recognised transfer mechanisms.

9. Children???s Data

Our services are intended for adults and business customers. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children unless it is necessary for a service and is provided lawfully by an adult with authority to do so.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in law, operations, or data processing practices. Any updated version will apply from the date it becomes effective. We encourage you to review this policy periodically to stay informed about how we handle personal data.

11. Summary of Our Approach

In summary, Man With Van Hounslow collects only the personal data needed to provide and support its services, uses it for clear and lawful purposes, retains it only as long as necessary, and shares it only with trusted processors or other parties where lawful. We respect your privacy rights and are committed to protecting personal data for all Man With Van Hounslow customers in the area. If you have any concern about how your information is handled, we aim to deal with it in a transparent, responsible, and lawful way.