Privacy Policy - Man With A Van Richmond

This Privacy Policy explains how Man With A Van Richmond collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data. It applies to all Man With A Van Richmond customers in the area, including individuals who enquire about our services, book a move, receive a quote, or otherwise interact with us in connection with removals, deliveries, and related services. We are committed to handling personal data in a lawful, fair, transparent, and secure manner in accordance with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.

1. Who We Are

Man With A Van Richmond provides moving and transport services for homes, flats, offices, and other premises in the Richmond area and surrounding locations. In the course of operating our services, we may process personal data relating to customers, potential customers, property occupants, business contacts, and other individuals connected to a booking.

This policy explains how we manage that information and sets out the rights available to data subjects under applicable data protection law.

2. Personal Data We Collect

We collect only the information that is necessary for us to respond to enquiries, provide quotes, manage bookings, carry out removals, and comply with legal obligations. The categories of data we may collect include:

Identity data such as your name, title, and any relevant business or company name.
Contact data such as address details, telephone number, and email address.
Booking and service data such as moving dates, collection and delivery locations, access details, item lists, and special handling requirements.
Payment data such as transaction references, billing records, and payment confirmations.
Communication data including messages, enquiries, complaints, and service feedback.
Technical data where relevant, such as basic device or browser information if you contact us through digital channels.
Special category data only where it is strictly necessary and disclosed by you, for example accessibility information linked to service delivery. We do not intentionally seek to collect special category data unless required for a specific service need.

We do not collect more data than is reasonably required. If you choose not to provide certain information, we may not be able to deliver some or all of the requested services.

3. How We Use Your Data

We use personal data to manage our services and operations effectively. The purposes for which we may process data include:

responding to enquiries and providing quotations;
confirming bookings and scheduling services;
planning moves, deliveries, and loading or unloading arrangements;
communicating with customers before, during, and after a job;
issuing invoices, taking payments, and maintaining accounting records;
handling complaints, claims, or service issues;
meeting legal, tax, and regulatory obligations;
protecting our business, staff, and customers from fraud or misuse;
improving the quality, efficiency, and reliability of our services.

We may also use anonymised or aggregated information for internal analysis. Such data does not identify you and is not treated as personal data.

4. Lawful Basis for Processing

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

Contract

We process personal data where it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes preparing quotes, confirming bookings, providing removal services, handling payments, and carrying out associated administrative tasks.

Legal Obligation

We may process personal data where required to meet legal obligations, including tax compliance, accounting requirements, record keeping, and responding to lawful requests from authorities.

Legitimate Interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate interests and where those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms. Examples include service improvement, business administration, fraud prevention, security, and maintaining operational records.

Consent

In limited cases, we may rely on your consent, particularly for optional processing that is not necessary to provide our services. Where consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time.

Where special category data is processed, we will only do so when permitted by law and with an appropriate additional lawful condition where required.

5. Data Sharing and Processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties who support the operation of our business. These parties act as data processors or independent controllers depending on the service provided. They may include:

Payment service providers who process card or electronic payments;
Accounting and bookkeeping providers who assist with financial administration;
IT and cloud service providers who host or maintain our systems and data storage;
Communication service providers who support email, messaging, or phone systems;
Professional advisers such as accountants, insurers, or legal advisers;
Regulatory, tax, or law enforcement bodies where disclosure is required by law.

Where we use processors, we ensure appropriate contractual safeguards are in place so that personal data is handled securely and only in line with our instructions. We do not sell personal data.

6. International Transfers

In some circumstances, data may be stored or processed outside the United Kingdom if a service provider uses systems located elsewhere. When this occurs, we take steps to ensure an adequate level of protection, such as using approved contractual safeguards or relying on an adequacy decision where available.

7. Data Retention

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

Enquiry records may be retained for a limited period to follow up on requests and manage future service needs.
Booking and service records are typically retained for the duration of the customer relationship and for a reasonable time afterwards.
Financial and invoice records are retained for the period required by tax and accounting law.
Complaint and claim records may be retained longer where needed to resolve disputes or defend legal claims.

When data is no longer needed, it is securely deleted, anonymised, or destroyed.

8. Data Security

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, accidental loss, destruction, alteration, or disclosure. These measures are designed to reflect the nature of the information we process and the risks involved. While no system can be guaranteed to be completely secure, we take data security seriously and review our practices periodically.

9. Your Rights

Under the UK GDPR, you have several rights in relation to your personal data. These rights may be subject to certain legal limits, but we will always consider requests carefully and respond within the required timeframe.

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 some cases, you can ask us to delete your data.
Right to restriction – you can request that we limit how we use your data in certain circumstances.
Right to object – you can object to processing based on legitimate interests, and in some cases direct marketing.
Right to data portability – where applicable, you can request your data in a structured, commonly used format.
Right to withdraw consent – where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

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 a request.

10. Automated Decision-Making

We do not use personal data for automated decision-making that produces legal or similarly significant effects on individuals. If this changes, we will update this policy and ensure appropriate safeguards are in place.

11. 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 a household move or other service arrangement and provided by an adult customer or authorised representative. If we become aware that we have collected data improperly, we will take reasonable steps to delete it.

12. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in law, our services, or our internal practices. Any updated version will apply from the date it is published or otherwise communicated. We encourage customers to review this policy periodically to remain informed about how personal data is handled.

13. Summary of Our Commitment

Man With A Van Richmond is committed to protecting the privacy of all customers in the Richmond area. We collect only the information we need, use it for clear and lawful purposes, keep it for no longer than necessary, and share it only with trusted processors or where the law requires it. We also respect your rights and aim to handle all personal data with care, transparency, and accountability.