Removals Edinburgh Privacy Policy
This Privacy Policy explains how Removals Edinburgh collects, uses, stores and protects personal data about its customers and prospective customers. It applies to all Removals Edinburgh customers and enquiry-makers within our service area, including those who contact us online, by post or in person.
We are committed to complying with applicable data protection laws, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018. Please read this Privacy Policy carefully to understand how and why we use your personal data and the rights you have in relation to it.
Data Controller
For the purposes of data protection law, Removals Edinburgh is the data controller of the personal data we collect and process about you. This means we decide how and why your personal data is used, and we are responsible for ensuring that it is handled lawfully.
Personal Data We Collect
We collect and process personal data where it is necessary for us to provide our removal and related services or where you have given your consent. The types of personal data we may collect include:
Identity and contact data: This may include your name, address, previous and new address, email address, and contact details for you or your authorised representatives.
Service and booking data: This may include details about your move or related services, property access information, inventory or item descriptions you provide, preferred dates and times, and any special instructions or notes you choose to share.
Communication data: This includes information contained in enquiries, messages, and correspondence you send to us, and records of our communications with you for customer service and administrative purposes.
Payment and transaction data: This includes details of payments you make to us and information about the services you have purchased. We do not store full payment card details; where card details are used, these are processed securely by our chosen payment service providers.
Technical and usage data: When you visit our website, we may collect limited technical information such as IP address, device and browser type, and site usage data through essential and analytics tools, where permitted by law.
How We Collect Your Data
We may collect personal data directly from you when you contact us to request a quotation, make a booking, use our services, complete forms, or communicate with us in any way.
We may also receive personal data about you from third parties where this is necessary for the performance of our services, for example when a landlord, letting agent, business, or another person arranges removal services on your behalf and provides us with your details.
Purposes and Lawful Bases for Processing
We will only use your personal data when we have a lawful basis for doing so. The main purposes and lawful bases on which we process your personal data are as follows:
To provide quotations and respond to enquiries: We process identity, contact and service-related data to respond to your requests and provide quotations. Our lawful basis is taking steps at your request prior to entering into a contract and, where appropriate, our legitimate interests in operating and growing our business.
To perform our contract with you: We process your personal data to arrange, manage and deliver removal and related services, including booking, planning logistics, and communicating with you. Our lawful basis is the performance of a contract with you.
To manage payments and accounting: We use payment and transaction data to process payments, handle invoicing, and maintain accurate financial records. Our lawful basis is performance of a contract and compliance with legal obligations relating to tax and accounting.
To communicate with you about your services: We process your contact details and service information to send service updates, confirmations, and necessary notices. Our lawful basis is performance of a contract and our legitimate interests in ensuring effective customer service and administration.
To improve and manage our business: We may use technical and usage data to improve our website, services and customer experience. Our lawful basis is our legitimate interests in developing our services and protecting our business.
To comply with legal and regulatory requirements: We may process your data where needed to comply with laws, court orders, or requests from regulatory bodies. Our lawful basis is compliance with legal obligations.
With your consent: In some limited cases, we may ask for your consent to use your data for specific purposes, such as optional marketing. Where we rely on consent, you can withdraw it at any time.
Data Processors and Third Parties
We may share your personal data with carefully selected third parties who act as data processors on our behalf. These third parties are only permitted to process your data in accordance with our instructions and are required to keep it secure. Such processors may include:
IT, hosting and website service providers who help us operate our systems and website.
Payment service providers who securely process your payments.
Administrative and accounting service providers who support our internal operations.
In limited circumstances, we may also share your data with other independent controllers where this is necessary, such as insurance providers, legal advisers, or where we are required to do so by law or to protect our rights and the rights of others.
We do not sell your personal data to third parties.
International Transfers
Where our service providers are located outside the United Kingdom or the European Economic Area, we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place to protect your personal data, such as standard contractual clauses or equivalent measures required by law.
Data Retention
We will keep your personal data only for as long as is necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, including for the purposes of satisfying legal, accounting, or reporting requirements.
In practice, this usually means:
Enquiry and quotation data: Retained for a reasonable period after our last contact with you, to respond to follow-up queries and manage potential bookings.
Customer and contract data: Retained for the duration of our relationship and for a period thereafter, typically up to six years, to enable us to respond to enquiries about past services and to comply with legal and tax obligations.
Where we no longer need your personal data, we will delete or anonymise it in a secure manner.
Data Security
We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect the personal data we hold from loss, misuse, unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. These measures are reviewed periodically and enhanced where necessary, taking into account the nature of the data and the risks associated with processing it.
Your Data Protection Rights
Under data protection laws, you have a number of rights in relation to your personal data. These rights apply to all Removals Edinburgh customers and individuals within our service area, subject to certain legal conditions and exemptions. Your rights include:
Right of access: You can request confirmation of whether we hold personal data about you and ask for a copy of that data, along with certain information about how it is used.
Right to rectification: You can ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete personal data that we hold about you.
Right to erasure: In certain circumstances, you can request that we delete your personal data, for example where it is no longer needed for the purposes for which it was collected or where you withdraw consent and there is no other lawful basis for processing.
Right to restrict processing: You can ask us to restrict how we use your data in specific situations, such as while we are considering a request to rectify or erase your data.
Right to data portability: Where we process your data on the basis of consent or a contract and by automated means, you may have the right to receive your data in a structured, commonly used format and to transmit it to another controller.
Right to object: You can object to our processing of your personal data where we rely on legitimate interests as our lawful basis, including any direct marketing activities.
Right to withdraw consent: Where we rely on your consent, you have the right to withdraw that consent at any time. Withdrawal of consent does not affect the lawfulness of processing carried out before consent was withdrawn.
If you wish to exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the contact details provided on our website or through your usual contact with Removals Edinburgh. We may need to verify your identity before responding to your request.
Complaints
If you have concerns about how we handle your personal data, we encourage you to contact us first so that we can try to resolve the issue. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the relevant supervisory authority for data protection in the United Kingdom if you believe your rights have been infringed.
Changes to This Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal requirements, or for other operational reasons. Any updates will be published on our website with an updated effective date. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically to stay informed about how we use and protect your personal data.
This Privacy Policy applies to all personal data processed by Removals Edinburgh in relation to customers and prospective customers within our service area, unless a more specific privacy notice is provided.
