Privacy Policy - Man With Van Aperfield

This Privacy Policy explains how Man With Van Aperfield collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data in connection with our moving and transport services. It applies to all Man With Van Aperfield customers in the area, including anyone who enquirers about, books, receives, or pays for our services, as well as individuals whose data is provided to us by a customer in relation to a move.

1. Who We Are

Man With Van Aperfield provides local and regional van, moving, loading, and related transport services. In delivering these services, we act as a data controller for the personal data we determine the purposes and means of processing. This means we are responsible for ensuring that any personal data we handle is processed lawfully, fairly, and transparently in line with applicable data protection laws, including the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.

2. Personal Data We Collect

We only collect data that is relevant and necessary for our business operations and service delivery. The types of personal data we may collect include:

Identity information such as name and, where required, proof of identity details.
Contact details such as address, email address, and telephone number.
Service information such as moving dates, pickup and delivery locations, property access details, inventory lists, and instructions relating to your move.
Payment information such as billing name, transaction details, and payment confirmations.
Communication records including emails, messages, quotes, complaints, and service-related correspondence.
Operational information such as booking notes, scheduling details, and team allocation records.
Technical information where applicable, such as device or browser information gathered through standard website or system logs.

We do not intentionally collect sensitive personal data unless it is strictly necessary and you choose to provide it, for example, where access needs or special delivery instructions make it relevant. If such data is provided, we will handle it with additional care and only process it where a lawful basis applies.

3. How We Use Personal Data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

To provide quotes and respond to enquiries.
To manage bookings and plan moving services.
To carry out removals, deliveries, loading, and transport activities.
To communicate updates, instructions, and service-related changes.
To process invoices, payments, refunds, and account records.
To maintain internal records and improve our services.
To deal with disputes, complaints, insurance matters, and legal claims.
To comply with legal, regulatory, tax, and accounting obligations.

We use your information only where necessary and in a manner that is consistent with the purposes for which it was collected. We do not sell personal data and do not use it for unrelated marketing unless you have expressly permitted such use where applicable.

4. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis to process personal data. Depending on the context, we may rely on one or more of the following lawful bases:

Performance of a Contract

We process personal data when it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes preparing quotes, taking bookings, completing removals, issuing invoices, and managing service delivery.

Legal Obligation

We may process data where it is required for compliance with legal obligations, such as tax rules, accounting requirements, record-keeping duties, or responses to lawful requests from authorities.

Legitimate Interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided that your rights and freedoms do not override those interests. Examples include improving our operations, managing customer service, preventing fraud, securing our systems, and maintaining business records. We balance our interests against your privacy rights before relying on this basis.

Consent

In limited cases, we may rely on your consent, for example where it is appropriate to use optional data for a specific purpose. When consent is used, you can withdraw it at any time. Withdrawal of consent will not affect the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal.

5. Sharing and Processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties where necessary to operate our services safely and efficiently. These third parties act as processors or, in some cases, independent controllers. Processors only process personal data on our instructions and are required to protect it appropriately.

Examples of processors and service providers may include:

Payment processing providers.
Booking, scheduling, or administrative software providers.
IT and cloud storage providers.
Accountants, auditors, and tax service providers.
Insurance providers and claims handling partners.
Professional advisers such as legal advisers, where necessary.

We may also disclose personal data where required by law, court order, or regulatory request, or where necessary to protect our rights, property, staff, customers, or the public. When data is transferred outside the UK or EEA, we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place to protect your personal data.

6. Data Retention

We keep personal data only for as long as it is reasonably necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, including to meet legal, accounting, insurance, and operational requirements. Retention periods vary depending on the type of data and the reason it is held.

In general:

Booking and service records are retained for the period needed to manage the service and resolve any follow-up issues.
Financial and tax records are retained for the period required by law.
Communication records are kept for as long as necessary to manage enquiries, complaints, and disputes.
Marketing-related data, where applicable, is kept until you withdraw consent or object.

When data is no longer required, we will delete it securely or anonymise it so that it can no longer identify you. Retention is always limited to what is necessary, and we periodically review the data we hold.

7. Data Security

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against accidental loss, unauthorised access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, staff confidentiality obligations, and careful vetting of processors. While no system can be guaranteed completely secure, we work to maintain a level of protection appropriate to the risks involved.

8. Your Rights

Under data protection law, you have a number of rights in relation to your personal data. Subject to certain conditions and exemptions, these include:

The right to be informed about how your data is used.
The right of access to obtain a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
The right to rectification to correct inaccurate or incomplete data.
The right to erasure in certain circumstances, also known as the right to be forgotten.
The right to restrict processing where you want processing limited in specific situations.
The right to data portability for data you have provided to us where processing is based on consent or contract and carried out by automated means.
The right to object to processing based on legitimate interests or to direct marketing.
Rights related to automated decision-making, where applicable.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, we will respond in accordance with applicable law. We may need to verify your identity before responding to protect your information.

9. Children’s Data

Our services are not directed to children, and we do not knowingly collect personal data from children except where it is incidental to providing services requested by a parent, guardian, or authorised adult. If we become aware that we have collected data from a child without an appropriate basis, we will take steps to delete it where required.

10. 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 handling practices. Any revised version will apply from the date it is made available. We encourage customers to review this policy periodically so they remain informed about how personal data is handled.

11. Summary of Our Commitment

We are committed to handling personal data lawfully, fairly, and transparently. We collect only what we need, use it for clear purposes, keep it only as long as necessary, and share it only with trusted processors or where the law requires it. Our customers in Aperfield can expect their information to be treated with care, respect, and confidentiality.

This Privacy Policy applies to all Man With Van Aperfield customers in the area.