Privacy Policy - Man With A Van Southkensington

This Privacy Policy explains how Man With A Van Southkensington collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data when providing moving and transport services. It applies to all Man With A Van Southkensington customers in the area, including individuals, households, landlords, tenants, and business clients who use our services locally. We are committed to handling personal information in a lawful, fair, transparent, and secure manner in line with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

1. Who We Are

Man With A Van Southkensington is a local moving service provider that arranges and carries out transport, removals, collection, delivery, loading, unloading, and related support services. In the context of data protection, we act as the data controller for the personal information we collect and use to manage customer enquiries, bookings, operations, invoicing, and service-related communications.

2. Personal Data We Collect

We collect only the personal data that is necessary for providing our services and managing our relationship with customers. Depending on the nature of the job, we may collect the following categories of information:

Identity details such as your name and, where relevant, the name of an authorised representative.
Contact information such as phone number and email address.
Service details such as pickup and drop-off locations, moving dates, item descriptions, access notes, and special handling requirements.
Billing and payment information needed to process quotes, invoices, receipts, and payment verification.
Communication records including enquiry messages, service updates, complaints, and feedback.
Operational information such as parking or access instructions, inventory lists, and photographs supplied for estimating or service completion.
Technical data where applicable, such as basic device or usage information generated when you contact us electronically.

We do not intentionally collect special category data unless it is strictly necessary and you choose to provide it. Special category data may include information about health, disability, or other sensitive circumstances relevant to moving arrangements, for example where additional assistance is required. If such data is shared, we will only use it where there is a valid legal reason and appropriate safeguards are in place.

3. How We Use Your Data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

To respond to enquiries and provide quotations.
To arrange and deliver moving and transport services.
To manage bookings, schedules, route planning, and logistics.
To communicate with you about service updates, timing, and any issues affecting the job.
To issue invoices, process payments, and maintain accounting records.
To handle complaints, claims, and customer support requests.
To meet legal, regulatory, tax, and insurance obligations.
To improve our services, operational efficiency, and customer experience.
To protect against fraud, misuse, or unauthorised access.

We only use your personal data where we have a valid reason to do so, and we do not use it for unrelated purposes without a lawful basis.

4. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis for each processing activity. We may rely on one or more of the following bases:

Contract

We process personal data when it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes preparing quotations, confirming bookings, completing collections and deliveries, and providing customer support linked to the agreed service.

Legal Obligation

We may process personal data where required to comply with legal duties, such as accounting rules, tax obligations, recordkeeping, or lawful responses to official requests.

Legitimate Interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate business interests and where those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms. This may include managing operations, preventing fraud, maintaining service quality, and keeping business records. We always consider whether the processing is proportionate and necessary.

Consent

In limited circumstances, we may rely on your consent, especially where the law requires it or where we process information that is not necessary for the main service. If we rely on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

Vital Interests

In rare situations, we may process personal data to protect someone’s vital interests, for example where urgent assistance is needed during a move.

5. Data Sharing and Processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties when necessary to deliver our services or meet legal requirements. These third parties act as processors or independent controllers depending on the circumstances.

Examples of processors and service partners may include:

Payment processors that handle card or electronic payments securely.
Accounting and bookkeeping providers that help manage invoices and financial records.
IT and cloud storage providers that support data hosting, communications, and secure system access.
Scheduling or administration tools used to organise bookings and operational workflows.
Subcontracted service providers where additional moving support is required.
Professional advisers such as insurers, legal advisers, or auditors where appropriate.

All processors are required to handle personal data securely, to act only on our instructions where applicable, and to implement appropriate technical and organisational safeguards. We do not sell personal data.

6. Data Retention

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

Booking and service records are kept for a period necessary to manage the service, resolve disputes, and maintain business continuity.
Financial records are retained for the period required by tax and accounting law.
Correspondence and complaint records are kept as long as needed to handle issues and defend legal claims.
Technical or access-related information is kept only for a limited time unless needed for security, auditing, or a legal reason.

When data is no longer required, it will be securely deleted, anonymised, or otherwise disposed of in a safe manner.

7. Data Security

We take the security of personal data seriously and use reasonable measures to protect it from unauthorised access, loss, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access restrictions, password protection, secure storage, staff awareness, and limited sharing of data on a need-to-know basis. While no system can be guaranteed completely secure, we work to reduce risks and respond appropriately to any suspected data incident.

8. Your Rights

Depending on the circumstances, you may have the following rights under data protection law:

Right of access to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Right to rectification to correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
Right to erasure in certain cases, also known as the right to be forgotten.
Right to restriction to limit how we use your data in specific situations.
Right to object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing, where applicable.
Right to data portability to receive certain information in a structured, commonly used format.
Right to withdraw consent where processing is based on consent.

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

9. Children’s Data

Our services are generally intended for adults. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children unless it is necessary in a service context and provided by an adult with authority to do so, such as a parent or guardian. If we become aware that data has been collected inappropriately, we will take steps to delete it where required.

10. International Transfers

If personal data is transferred outside the United Kingdom, we will only do so where appropriate safeguards are in place and where the transfer is permitted by data protection law. These safeguards may include adequacy regulations or approved contractual protections.

11. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in law, business practices, or service arrangements. 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 their data is handled.

12. Summary of Our Commitment

Man With A Van Southkensington is committed to using personal data responsibly, transparently, and securely. We collect only the information needed to deliver our moving services, rely on lawful grounds for processing, share data only with trusted processors or where legally required, and retain records only as long as necessary. This policy applies to all Man With A Van Southkensington customers in area and is designed to support your rights and protect your privacy at every stage of the service.