Privacy Policy - Man With A Van Barking

This Privacy Policy explains how Man With A Van Barking collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data. It applies to all Man With A Van Barking customers in the Barking area, including individuals who request quotes, make bookings, receive moving services, or otherwise interact with us in connection with our services. We are committed to handling personal data lawfully, fairly, and transparently in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

1. Who This Policy Applies To

This policy applies to customers, prospective customers, representatives of businesses, and any other individuals whose personal data we process when providing removals, transport, lifting, loading, unloading, and related moving services in Barking and surrounding local areas. It also applies to anyone who communicates with us about a service enquiry, a quotation, scheduling, payment, or a complaint.

Man With A Van Barking acts as a data controller for the personal information described in this policy. This means we decide why and how your personal data is used.

2. Personal Data We Collect

We only collect personal data that is relevant and necessary for delivering our services, managing our business, and meeting legal obligations. The categories of data we may collect include:

Identity information: full name, title, and, where applicable, company name or account holder details.
Contact information: phone number, email address, and service address.
Booking and service information: move dates, property access details, item descriptions, delivery and collection instructions, and special handling requirements.
Billing and payment information: invoice details, payment records, and transaction references.
Communication records: emails, messages, call notes, and any feedback or complaints you provide.
Technical information: basic information such as device or browser data if collected through digital systems used for service administration.
Operational records: service history, quotations, and internal notes needed to complete your booking efficiently.

We do not intentionally collect special category data unless you choose to provide it and it is necessary for the service, such as information relating to health, accessibility, or mobility needs that affect moving arrangements. If such information is provided, we handle it with extra care and only where needed.

3. How We Use Your Data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

to provide quotations and manage bookings;
to carry out removals and transport services safely and efficiently;
to communicate with you about service arrangements, changes, or issues;
to process payments and issue invoices;
to maintain internal business records;
to respond to queries, complaints, and claims;
to meet our legal and regulatory obligations;
to protect our business, staff, and customers from fraud or misuse;
to improve our service quality and operational planning.

We only use your information for the purposes for which it was collected unless we reasonably consider that we need to use it for another compatible purpose. If that happens, we will ensure the new use is lawful and appropriate.

4. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis for each type of processing. Depending on the circumstances, Man With A Van Barking may rely on one or more of the following lawful bases:

Performance of a Contract

We process your personal data when it is necessary to provide a quote, make arrangements, perform a move, deliver goods, issue invoices, or otherwise fulfil our agreement with you.

Legitimate Interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms. This may include service administration, record keeping, improving operations, fraud prevention, and handling disputes.

Legal Obligation

We may process and retain certain information to comply with tax, accounting, insurance, transport, or other legal requirements.

Consent

Where required, we will rely on your consent, for example if we need to process optional information that you have chosen to provide and which is not necessary for the service. You may withdraw consent at any time, where consent is the lawful basis used.

Vital Interests

In rare situations, we may process personal data to protect someone’s vital interests, for example in an emergency affecting health or safety during a move.

5. Sharing Your Personal Data

We do not sell your personal data. We may share it only where necessary and proportionate for the purposes described in this policy. Recipients may include:

processors who support our operations, such as booking administration tools, accounting systems, payment service providers, or IT support;
insurance providers, where needed to handle a claim or incident;
professional advisers such as accountants, auditors, or legal advisers;
regulators, law enforcement, or public authorities where required by law;
subcontracted service partners, where they assist in completing a booking under our instruction.

When we use processors, they are only permitted to process personal data on our instructions and must implement suitable technical and organisational security measures. We take reasonable steps to ensure that any third party handling personal data maintains appropriate confidentiality and data protection standards.

6. Data Retention

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

Quotation and booking records: retained for a reasonable period to manage queries, disputes, and repeat service requests.
Invoice and payment records: retained for the period required under tax and accounting law.
Service and communication records: retained as needed for customer service, quality control, and claims handling.
Complaints or incident records: retained for as long as necessary to resolve the matter and defend legal claims.

When personal data is no longer required, we will securely delete, anonymise, or archive it in line with our retention practices.

7. Data Security

We use reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. These measures may include access restrictions, secure storage, staff awareness, and controlled use of processors. While no system can be guaranteed completely secure, we work to reduce risk and respond promptly to any suspected data incident.

8. International Transfers

If any personal data is transferred outside the UK, we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place and that the transfer complies with applicable data protection laws. Such safeguards may include adequacy regulations or approved contractual protections.

9. Your Rights

You have a number of rights under data protection law, subject to certain 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 information.
Right to erasure: to request deletion of your data in certain circumstances.
Right to restriction: to ask us to limit how we use your data in some situations.
Right to object: to object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing, where applicable.
Right to data portability: to request transfer of certain data in a structured, commonly used format.
Right to withdraw consent: where processing is based on consent.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, we may need to verify your identity before responding. We aim to respond within the timeframe required by law.

10. Complaints

If you believe your personal data has been handled unfairly or unlawfully, you have the right to raise a complaint with the relevant data protection authority. You may also contact us to allow us the opportunity to address your concerns directly. We take privacy matters seriously and will investigate any complaint carefully.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in law, our services, or how we process personal data. Any updated version will apply from the date it is published or otherwise made available. We encourage customers to review this policy periodically.

12. Summary of Our Commitment

At Man With A Van Barking, we value your privacy and handle personal data responsibly. We collect only what we need, use it for clear and lawful purposes, keep it only as long as necessary, and protect it with appropriate safeguards. This policy is designed to make sure that customers in Barking can use our services with confidence, knowing their information is treated with care and in compliance with data protection law.