Privacy Policy - St Johnswood Man And Van

This Privacy Policy explains how St Johnswood Man And Van collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data when providing removal, delivery, transport, and related services. It applies to all St Johnswood Man And Van customers in the area, including individuals, households, landlords, tenants, and businesses that use our services. We are committed to handling personal data in a lawful, fair, and transparent manner in line with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

By using our services, making an enquiry, requesting a quotation, or entering into an agreement with us, you acknowledge that your personal data will be processed as described in this policy. We aim to keep our handling of data limited to what is necessary for service delivery, legal compliance, business administration, and the protection of our legitimate interests.

1. Information We Collect

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

Identity details: name, title, and any information needed to verify who you are.
Contact details: address, email address, telephone number, and other communication details you provide.
Booking and service information: move date, pickup and delivery locations, item lists, access details, service preferences, and special instructions.
Payment and transaction data: billing information, payment status, and records of services purchased. We do not keep more payment data than is necessary for accounting and financial processing.
Correspondence: messages, calls, quotations, complaints, feedback, and notes relating to your enquiry or booking.
Technical or usage data: if you interact with our digital systems, we may collect limited technical information such as device data, log information, or usage records for security and operational purposes.

We normally collect data directly from you when you contact us or use our services. In some cases, we may receive information from third parties, such as landlords, letting agents, business clients, insurers, payment providers, or other persons authorised to act on your behalf.

2. How We Use Your Data

We process personal data for the following purposes:

to respond to enquiries and provide quotations;
to manage bookings and deliver removal or transport services;
to arrange logistics, timing, access, and operational requirements;
to communicate with you about your service;
to process payments, invoices, refunds, and accounting records;
to handle complaints, claims, and disputes;
to maintain business records and meet legal, tax, and regulatory obligations;
to protect our business, staff, customers, and property;
to improve service quality and maintain internal standards.

We will only use personal data for the purposes stated above or for compatible purposes that are reasonably expected in connection with the service relationship.

3. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis for each processing activity. St Johnswood Man And Van relies on the following legal bases where appropriate:

Contract

We process personal data where it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes preparing quotations, confirming bookings, organising transport, completing the move, and administering related payments or service obligations.

Legal obligation

We may process and retain certain information to meet legal duties, including tax, accounting, insurance, and regulatory requirements.

Legitimate interests

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

Consent

In limited situations, we may rely on your consent, for example where you have expressly agreed to a particular form of communication or optional processing activity. Where consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time, subject to legal or operational limits.

Special category data is not normally required for our services. If you choose to provide information that may reveal sensitive personal circumstances, we will only process it where there is a lawful basis and where it is necessary for the service requested or for legal compliance.

4. Sharing and Processors

We do not sell personal data. However, we may share it where necessary and lawful with trusted service providers and other third parties who support our operations. These parties act as processors or independent controllers depending on the circumstances.

Examples of processors or third parties may include:

payment processors and banking services;
accountants, bookkeepers, and tax service providers;
IT hosting, software, and communications providers;
administrative support providers;
insurance providers and claims handlers;
professional advisers, including legal advisers;
public authorities, regulators, or law enforcement where required by law.

Where a processor handles personal data on our behalf, it must do so under appropriate instructions and with security measures designed to protect the data. We seek to ensure that any processor used by St Johnswood Man And Van is bound by confidentiality and data protection obligations consistent with UK GDPR requirements.

5. Data Retention

We retain personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, including service completion, accounting, dispute resolution, and legal compliance. Retention periods vary depending on the type of data and the reason for holding it.

As a general approach:

booking and service records are kept for a period necessary for business administration and potential dispute handling;
invoicing, payment, and tax-related records are kept for the period required by law and accounting standards;
correspondence may be retained for a reasonable period to manage customer service, claims, or complaints;
where data is no longer needed, it will be securely deleted, anonymised, or otherwise destroyed.

In some cases, we may retain information for longer if required to establish, exercise, or defend legal claims, or where a legal obligation requires extended retention.

6. Data Security

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to safeguard personal data against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, staff confidentiality requirements, and reasonable operational safeguards. While no system can be guaranteed to be completely secure, we work to maintain a level of protection appropriate to the nature of the information we process.

7. International Transfers

Where personal data is transferred outside the UK, we will ensure that suitable safeguards are in place, such as adequacy regulations, standard contractual clauses, or equivalent protection mechanisms, as required by law.

8. Your Rights

Under data protection law, you have a number of rights in relation to your personal data. These may 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 request deletion of your personal data;
Right to restriction: you may ask us to limit how we use your data in specific situations;
Right to data portability: where applicable, you may request data in a structured, commonly used format;
Right to object: you may object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing;
Right to withdraw consent: where processing relies on consent, you may withdraw it at any time;
Rights related to automated decision-making: you have rights where decisions are made solely by automated means and have legal or similarly significant effects, though we do not normally use such methods.

To exercise your rights, you should provide enough information to help identify you and the data in question. We may need to verify your identity before responding. We will respond within the time limits required by law unless an extension is permitted.

9. Cookies and Similar Technologies

If any digital tools or online systems are used, they may rely on limited cookies or similar technologies to support functionality, security, and basic analytics. Where consent is required for non-essential cookies or tracking, it will be requested in accordance with applicable law. Any such use will be limited to what is necessary and proportionate.

10. Children’s Data

Our services are directed to adults and business customers. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children unless it is incidentally provided as part of a household move or related service and only where necessary for that service. If we become aware that we have collected data unlawfully from a child, we will take appropriate steps to delete or protect it.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in the law, our services, or our data processing practices. The most current version will apply to all St Johnswood Man And Van customers in area from the time it is made available.

Summary of our approach: we collect only the data needed to provide services, rely on lawful bases such as contract, legal obligation, consent, and legitimate interests, use trusted processors under protection obligations, retain data only as long as necessary, and respect your privacy rights under UK data protection law.