Privacy Policy - Man With A Van Bexleyheath

Man With A Van Bexleyheath is committed to protecting the privacy and personal data of our customers, prospective customers, and website visitors. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, share, store, and protect personal data in line with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

This policy applies to all Man With A Van Bexleyheath customers in the area, including individuals and businesses who request quotations, book removal or transport services, communicate with us, or otherwise engage our services.

1. Personal Data We Collect

We may collect and process different types of personal data depending on how you interact with us and the services you request. The information we collect may include:

Identity details such as your name and title.
Contact details such as phone number, email address, and postal address.
Service details such as moving date, pickup and delivery addresses, property access notes, and service preferences.
Payment information such as billing details, payment status, and transaction references. We do not intentionally store full payment card details unless required by our payment provider.
Communication records such as enquiries, messages, complaints, and feedback.
Technical data such as IP address, device type, browser information, and basic usage information if you use our digital services.
Special instructions that may be necessary to provide the service safely and effectively, for example handling requirements for heavy, fragile, or valuable items.

We generally collect personal data directly from you when you request a quote, make a booking, communicate with us, or provide information needed to carry out the service. In some cases, we may also receive data from third parties where this is necessary to fulfil your booking, manage payment, or support service delivery.

2. How We Use Your Data

We use personal data only where we have a valid legal reason to do so. The purposes for which we may process your information include:

providing quotations and managing bookings;
planning and carrying out removal, delivery, and transport services;
communicating with you about your booking, schedule, or service requirements;
processing payments, refunds, and invoices;
responding to enquiries, complaints, or claims;
maintaining business records and internal administration;
improving our services, operations, and customer experience;
meeting legal, tax, accounting, and regulatory obligations;
protecting against fraud, misuse, or security incidents.

We will not use your personal data for purposes that are incompatible with those set out in this policy unless permitted or required by law.

3. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under the UK GDPR, we must have a lawful basis for processing your personal data. Depending on the circumstances, we rely on one or more of the following bases:

Contract

We process your data when it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes providing a quote at your request, confirming a booking, arranging transport, and completing the service you have requested.

Legal obligation

We may process data where necessary to comply with legal duties, such as tax, accounting, insurance, or record-keeping requirements.

Legitimate interests

We may process personal data where it is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided that your rights and freedoms do not override those interests. This may include managing our business operations, responding to customer enquiries, improving service quality, keeping secure records, and preventing fraud or misuse.

Consent

In limited situations, we may rely on your consent, for example where consent is needed for certain marketing communications or optional data uses. Where we rely on consent, you can withdraw it at any time.

Vital interests

In rare cases, we may process data to protect someone’s vital interests, for example where information is needed in an emergency.

4. Sharing Your Personal Data

We may share your personal data with trusted third parties where necessary to provide our services, operate our business, or comply with the law. These third parties may act as processors or independent controllers, depending on the context.

Examples of recipients include:

Payment service providers that help us process transactions securely.
IT and hosting providers that support our systems, data storage, and communications.
Administrative and accounting providers that help us manage invoicing, bookkeeping, and business records.
Professional advisers such as insurers, auditors, legal advisers, or consultants when required.
Subcontractors or operational partners engaged to help deliver booked services.
Public authorities where disclosure is required by law, court order, or regulatory obligation.

We require processors to handle personal data securely, use it only for authorised purposes, and apply appropriate technical and organisational safeguards. We do not sell your personal data.

5. Processors and Data Protection Safeguards

Where we use external service providers to process personal data on our behalf, they do so under written agreements or equivalent arrangements designed to protect data in accordance with applicable law. These processors may only act on our instructions and must not use your data for their own purposes unless they are separately acting as an independent controller.

We assess processors and providers based on their security, reliability, and ability to comply with data protection requirements. Appropriate safeguards may include access controls, encryption, secure storage, staff confidentiality obligations, and limited retention periods.

We take reasonable steps to ensure that any data shared with third parties is handled lawfully, fairly, and securely.

6. Data Retention

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, and to meet legal, accounting, insurance, or reporting obligations. Retention periods may vary depending on the type of data and the reason for processing.

Quotation and booking data may be retained for a period needed to manage the service and any follow-up issues.
Invoice and payment records are typically retained for tax and accounting purposes.
Communication records may be retained for a reasonable period to support service history, dispute resolution, or business administration.
Complaint, claim, and incident records may be kept longer where required to establish, exercise, or defend legal claims.

When personal data is no longer required, we will delete it or anonymise it securely. In some cases, data may be retained in backup systems for a limited period before being overwritten in the ordinary course of business.

7. International Transfers

If any of our processors or service providers store or access data outside the United Kingdom, we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place. These may include adequacy regulations, standard contractual clauses, or other lawful transfer mechanisms required by applicable data protection law.

8. Security of Your Data

We use reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, accidental loss, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. While no system can be guaranteed as completely secure, we aim to maintain appropriate safeguards based on the nature of the data and the risks involved.

Access to personal data is limited to personnel and service providers who need it for legitimate business purposes and who are subject to confidentiality obligations where appropriate.

9. Your Rights

Under data protection law, you have a number of rights in relation to your personal data. These rights may not apply in every situation, but we will consider each 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 - you can ask us to delete your data in certain circumstances.
Right to restrict processing - you can ask us to limit how we use your data in certain situations.
Right to data portability - you can request your data in a structured, commonly used format where applicable.
Right to object - you can 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.

To exercise any of these rights, you should make a request using the method normally provided by our business communications. We may need to verify your identity before responding to protect your data.

If you believe we have not handled your personal data appropriately, you also have the right to raise a concern with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK supervisory authority for data protection matters.

10. Marketing Communications

Where permitted by law, we may send you service-related or marketing communications. You can opt out of marketing at any time. If you opt out, we will stop sending direct marketing messages, although we may still need to contact you for administrative or service-related reasons.

11. 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 in connection with a booking or service and is provided by an adult with authority to do so.

12. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, legal obligations, or data protection practices. Any updates will apply from the date they take effect. We encourage customers to review this policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect personal data.

13. Summary of Our Approach

Man With A Van Bexleyheath processes personal data fairly, transparently, and only where necessary. We collect only the information needed to provide our services, operate efficiently, and comply with the law. We keep data secure, share it only with trusted processors or where required by law, and retain it only for as long as necessary. We respect your rights and aim to respond to requests promptly and responsibly.