Privacy Policy - Gardeners Hampton

Effective date: This Privacy Policy applies to all Gardeners Hampton customers in the area. It explains how personal data is collected, used, stored, shared, and protected when you use our gardening services.

1. Introduction

Gardeners Hampton is committed to handling personal data fairly, lawfully, and transparently in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. We respect the privacy of our customers, prospective customers, suppliers, and anyone else whose information we process in connection with our services.

This policy explains what information we collect, why we collect it, the lawful basis we rely on, how long we keep it, when we share it with third parties, and what rights individuals have in relation to their personal data. We only process personal information that is relevant and necessary for the purposes described below.

2. Personal Data We Collect

We may collect and process the following categories of personal data:

Identity information: name, title, and any details needed to identify you.
Contact information: address, email address, telephone number, and service location.
Service information: details about the gardening services requested, property notes, preferred schedules, and job history.
Payment information: billing details and transaction records, where applicable.
Communication records: messages, call notes, complaints, reviews, and correspondence.
Technical information: basic website or device data such as IP address, browser type, or cookie-related information, if collected through digital tools.
Security and access information: where relevant, details needed to manage appointments, site access, or service delivery safely.

We generally do not seek special category data. If such data is provided to us inadvertently, we will handle it with extra care and only where a lawful basis exists.

3. How We Collect Personal Data

We may collect information directly from you when you:

request a quotation or consultation;
book or receive gardening services;
contact us by phone, email, form, or message;
make a payment or discuss an invoice;
leave feedback or submit a complaint;
use any online features or tools associated with our services.

We may also receive information from third parties, such as payment providers, business partners, subcontractors, or publicly available sources where it is lawful and appropriate to do so.

4. Why We Use Your Data

Gardeners Hampton uses personal data for the following purposes:

to provide and manage gardening services;
to prepare quotations, estimates, and service arrangements;
to communicate with customers about appointments, access, or service changes;
to process payments and maintain accounting records;
to respond to enquiries, complaints, or service issues;
to improve our services, customer experience, and internal operations;
to meet legal, tax, insurance, and regulatory obligations;
to protect our business, customers, and staff from fraud, misuse, or security risks.

We will only use your data for the purposes for which it was collected, unless we reasonably consider that we need to use it for a compatible purpose or where the law permits otherwise.

5. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis for using personal data. Gardeners Hampton relies on the following lawful bases:

Contract

We process personal data where it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes arranging services, managing bookings, delivering work, and handling payments.

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. Examples include service improvement, record-keeping, customer support, business administration, and fraud prevention.

Legal Obligation

We may process and retain information to comply with legal obligations, including tax law, accounting requirements, health and safety duties, and other applicable regulations.

Consent

In limited circumstances, we may rely on your consent, for example for certain optional communications or non-essential data uses. Where consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time without affecting the lawfulness of processing before withdrawal.

6. Data Sharing and Processors

We do not sell personal data. However, we may share it with trusted third parties where necessary for our business operations or legal compliance. These third parties act as processors or independent controllers depending on the service they provide.

Examples of processors may include:

IT and hosting providers: for secure storage, system maintenance, and data backup;
Payment service providers: for processing card or electronic payments;
Accounting and bookkeeping providers: for financial record management;
Communication service providers: for sending service-related messages;
Administrative or scheduling tools: for managing bookings and workflows;
Professional advisers: such as accountants, insurers, or legal advisers where needed.

We require processors to handle personal data securely, use it only on our instructions, and comply with data protection obligations. If data is transferred outside the United Kingdom, appropriate safeguards will be used to protect your information.

7. Data Retention

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purpose it was collected, including to satisfy legal, accounting, and reporting requirements. Retention periods may vary depending on the type of record and the reason for processing.

Customer and service records: retained for the period needed to manage the service relationship and any follow-up matters.
Financial records: retained for the period required by tax and accounting law.
Correspondence and complaints: retained for a reasonable period to resolve issues and maintain accurate business records.
Technical or security logs: retained only as long as needed for system security and operational purposes.

When personal data is no longer required, we will delete, anonymise, or securely destroy it.

8. Data Security

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, loss, misuse, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, staff confidentiality obligations, and regular review of our internal procedures. While no system can be guaranteed completely secure, we take reasonable steps to reduce risks and to respond promptly to any suspected incident.

9. Your Rights

Under data protection law, you have a number of rights relating to your personal data. These rights may apply depending on the circumstances and any legal exemptions:

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 information;
Right to erasure: you can ask us to delete your data in certain situations;
Right to restrict processing: you can ask us to limit how we use your data in some circumstances;
Right to data portability: you can request transfer of certain data where processing is based on consent or contract and carried out by automated means;
Right to object: you can object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing;
Right to withdraw consent: where consent is relied upon, you may withdraw it at any time;
Right to complain: you can raise concerns with the relevant supervisory authority if you believe your rights have not been respected.

To help protect your privacy, we may need to verify your identity before responding to a rights request.

10. Cookies and Similar Technologies

If we use websites or digital tools, we may use cookies or similar technologies to support functionality, analyse performance, or improve user experience. Where required, we will provide appropriate notice and obtain consent for non-essential cookies. You can manage cookie preferences through your browser settings or available site controls.

11. Children’s Data

Our services are intended for adult customers and property-related arrangements. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children except where it is incidentally provided by a parent, guardian, or authorised adult in connection with a service request. If we become aware that we have collected child data without a valid reason, we will take appropriate steps to delete it.

12. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in legal requirements, operational practices, or service arrangements. Any revised version will take effect when published or otherwise communicated. We encourage customers to review this policy periodically so they remain informed about how their data is used.

13. Summary of Our Commitment

Gardeners Hampton is committed to processing personal data responsibly, transparently, and securely. We only collect information necessary to deliver our gardening services, maintain records, comply with the law, and support our customers in the area. We aim to respect privacy at every stage, from collection to retention and deletion.

We value trust, handle data carefully, and keep your personal information under control.

This Privacy Policy applies to all Gardeners Hampton customers in the area.