Privacy Policy - Man And Van Tolworth

This Privacy Policy explains how Man And Van Tolworth collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data. It applies to all Man And Van Tolworth customers in the area, including anyone who requests a quote, books a service, receives a delivery, or otherwise interacts with our moving and transport services. We are committed to handling personal information fairly, lawfully, and transparently in accordance with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.

1. Who this policy applies to

This policy applies to all individuals in the Tolworth area and surrounding local service area who use or enquire about our services. That includes residential customers, business customers, prospective customers, and anyone acting on behalf of a customer. If you communicate with us or arrange a service with us, this policy explains how your data is processed.

2. Personal data we collect

We only collect personal data that is necessary to provide our services and manage our business responsibly. The type of information we may collect includes:

Identity data, such as your name and title.
Contact data, such as your address, email address, and telephone number.
Service and booking data, including details of your move, requested dates, locations, property access, item lists, and service preferences.
Payment data, such as payment confirmation or billing information where required for invoicing and accounting.
Communication data, including messages, calls, enquiries, complaints, and service updates.
Usage and technical data if you interact with digital systems used to manage bookings or communications, such as IP address or device information.
Special category data, only where you voluntarily provide it and only when it is necessary to support a service request, for example access needs or health-related mobility considerations. We do not seek such data unless it is relevant and lawful to process.

We do not intentionally collect more data than is needed for the purpose stated at the time of collection. If we receive information that is not necessary, we will avoid using it unless there is a valid legal reason.

3. How we use personal data

We use personal data to operate our services effectively and to meet our legal and contractual obligations. Typical uses include:

Providing quotes and confirming bookings.
Planning and delivering removals, collections, and transport services.
Communicating with customers about schedules, access arrangements, or service changes.
Handling payments, invoicing, and recordkeeping.
Managing complaints, disputes, and insurance-related matters.
Maintaining business records and meeting tax, accounting, and regulatory requirements.
Improving our services, administration, and customer experience.
Protecting against fraud, misuse, and security incidents.

We will only use your data for the purposes described here or for a compatible purpose that is reasonably expected and legally permitted.

4. Lawful basis for processing

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

Contract

We process personal data when it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes preparing quotes, arranging a move, confirming service details, and completing the agreed work.

Legal obligation

We may process data to comply with legal requirements, such as accounting, tax, recordkeeping, fraud prevention, or responding to lawful requests from authorities.

Legitimate interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate business interests and those interests are not overridden by your rights. This may include managing customer relationships, improving services, maintaining security, and defending legal claims. When relying on this basis, we assess the impact on your privacy and ensure the processing is proportionate.

Consent

Where we ask for your consent, we will do so clearly and separately from other terms. You may withdraw consent at any time, and this will not affect processing that has already taken place lawfully.

Vital interests

In rare situations, we may process information to protect someone’s vital interests, for example in an emergency where health or safety is at risk.

5. How we share data and processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties, but only when necessary and with appropriate safeguards in place. These third parties may act as processors on our behalf, meaning they only process data according to our instructions and for the specific purposes we define.

Examples of processors or service providers may include:

Booking and scheduling software providers.
Payment and invoicing service providers.
Email, messaging, and communication platforms.
IT support, cloud storage, and data backup providers.
Professional advisers such as accountants, insurers, or legal advisers.

We may also disclose data where required by law, regulation, court order, or where necessary to establish, exercise, or defend legal claims. Any processor we use is selected carefully and must apply appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data. We do not sell personal data.

6. International transfers

If any service provider stores or accesses data outside the UK, we will take steps to ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place. These safeguards may include adequacy regulations, standard contractual clauses, or other approved transfer mechanisms. We review transfer arrangements to ensure personal data remains protected.

7. Data retention

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, including to meet legal, accounting, insurance, or reporting requirements. Retention periods can vary depending on the nature of the service and the legal obligations involved.

Booking and service records are retained for a period needed to manage the contract, resolve disputes, and maintain business records.
Financial and tax records are kept for the period required by law.
Communications and complaint records may be retained for a reasonable period after the service ends to support administration and defence of claims.
Marketing data, where applicable, is retained until you opt out or withdraw consent.

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

8. Your rights

As a data subject under the UK GDPR, you have a number of rights in relation to your personal data. Subject to legal conditions and exemptions, these rights may include:

Right of access – to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Right to rectification – to ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data.
Right to erasure – to request deletion of data in certain circumstances.
Right to restriction – to ask us to limit how we use your data in certain situations.
Right to object – to object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing.
Right to data portability – to receive certain data in a structured, commonly used format and transfer it elsewhere where technically feasible.
Right to withdraw consent – where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office if you believe your data protection rights have been breached. We encourage you to raise any concerns with us first so we can try to resolve them quickly and fairly.

9. Security of your data

We take appropriate steps to protect personal data from loss, misuse, unauthorised access, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, staff awareness, and limiting access to those who need it for legitimate business purposes. While no system is completely risk-free, we work to maintain a level of security appropriate to the nature of the data we process.

10. Children’s data

Our services are not directed at children, and we do not knowingly collect data from children except where it is incidentally necessary in the course of providing a service arranged by an adult customer. If we become aware that data has been collected incorrectly, we will take appropriate steps to remove it.

11. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in law, our services, or our data handling practices. Any updated 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 used.

12. Summary of our commitment

Man And Van Tolworth is committed to processing personal data responsibly, transparently, and only when there is a valid lawful basis. We use information to provide services efficiently, comply with legal requirements, and protect our business and customers. We keep data only for as long as necessary, share it only with trusted processors or where legally required, and respect the rights of every customer in the area.