Privacy Policy - Gardeners Addington

Gardeners Addington is committed to protecting the privacy and personal data of all customers in the Addington area. This Privacy Policy explains how personal information is collected, used, stored, shared, and protected when we provide gardening services. It applies to all Gardeners Addington customers in the area, including individuals, households, landlords, tenants, and business clients who use our services.

We are committed to handling personal data in a lawful, fair, and transparent way, in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. This policy is designed to help you understand what data we collect, why we collect it, how long we keep it, who may process it on our behalf, and what rights you have.

1. Personal Data We Collect

We only collect data that is relevant and necessary for delivering gardening services, managing customer relationships, meeting legal obligations, and improving our operations. The types of information we may collect include:

Identity details: name, title, and any information you provide when making an enquiry or booking a service.
Contact details: address, email address, phone number, and service location.
Service details: information about the gardening work requested, property access notes, scheduling preferences, and service history.
Billing information: invoice details, payment status, and transaction records.
Communication records: correspondence by email, telephone, text message, or other communication channels.
Technical data: basic website or device information if you contact us through digital channels, such as browser type, time of contact, or form submission details.
Special instructions: any preferences or access arrangements you choose to share with us to help us carry out the service safely and effectively.

We do not collect more information than is needed for the service we provide. If you choose not to provide certain details, we may not be able to complete your request or deliver the service as intended.

2. How We Use Your Data

Your personal data is used for specific and legitimate purposes connected to our gardening services. These purposes include:

responding to enquiries and providing quotations;
booking and delivering gardening services;
managing customer accounts and service records;
issuing invoices and handling payments;
communicating about appointments, changes, and service updates;
maintaining internal records and business administration;
meeting tax, accounting, insurance, and legal obligations;
improving service quality and customer experience;
handling complaints, disputes, or safeguarding issues;
protecting our business, staff, and customers from fraud or misuse.

We use your data only where it is necessary and proportionate. We do not use your personal data for unrelated purposes without an appropriate lawful basis.

3. Lawful Basis for Processing

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

Contract

We process personal data when it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. For example, we use your address, contact details, and service instructions to provide gardening work at your property.

Legal Obligation

We process certain data because we are required to do so by law, such as for accounting, tax records, insurance requirements, and regulatory compliance.

Legitimate Interests

We may process personal data where it is reasonably necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided those interests do not override your rights and freedoms. This may include maintaining service records, managing customer communications, improving our services, and protecting against misuse or fraud.

Consent

In limited circumstances, we may ask for your consent, for example if we need to use your data for a specific optional purpose. Where consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time without affecting the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal.

4. Data Retention

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purpose for which it was collected, including legal, accounting, and operational requirements. Retention periods may vary depending on the type of information and the context in which it was collected.

Customer and service records: retained for the period needed to manage the relationship and support service history.
Invoice and payment records: retained for the period required by tax and accounting law.
Communication records: retained for a reasonable time to manage queries, resolve disputes, and maintain service continuity.
Complaints or legal records: retained for longer where necessary to establish, exercise, or defend legal claims.

When personal data is no longer needed, it is securely deleted, anonymised, or otherwise disposed of in line with our retention practices. We review stored information periodically to ensure it is not kept longer than necessary.

5. Processors and Data Sharing

We may use trusted third-party service providers, known as processors, to help us deliver services and manage our business. These processors only act on our instructions and are required to protect your information.

Examples of processors or categories of processors may include:

IT and hosting providers: to store and secure business data, forms, and communications;
email and communication services: to manage customer correspondence;
accounting and invoicing systems: to support billing, tax, and financial records;
payment service providers: to process transactions securely;
operational software providers: to organise appointments and service management;
professional advisers: such as accountants, insurers, or legal advisers where necessary.

We do not sell personal data. We only share information where there is a lawful reason to do so, and only with parties that need the information to perform a specific function. In some cases, we may also disclose personal data if required by law, court order, or a regulatory authority.

6. Security of Your Data

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, accidental loss, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, staff confidentiality obligations, and data minimisation practices.

Although no system can be guaranteed completely secure, we take reasonable steps to safeguard the information entrusted to us. If a data breach occurs that is likely to risk your rights and freedoms, we will respond in line with applicable legal obligations.

7. Your Rights Under GDPR

As a data subject, you have a number of rights regarding your personal data. Subject to legal limitations, you may have the right to:

Access the personal data we hold about you;
Rectification of inaccurate or incomplete information;
Erasure of your data in certain circumstances;
Restriction of processing in certain situations;
Data portability for information you have provided to us, where applicable;
Object to processing based on legitimate interests;
Withdraw consent at any time where consent is the lawful basis;
Lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office if you believe your rights have been infringed.

We may need to verify your identity before responding to certain requests. Some rights may not apply in every case, especially where we are required to retain data for legal reasons or where processing is necessary for the performance of a contract.

8. Children’s Data

Our services are intended for adults and property owners, occupiers, or authorised representatives. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children except where it is incidental and necessary for service delivery, and only in limited circumstances. If we become aware that we have collected such data inappropriately, we will take steps to delete it where required.

9. International Transfers

Where data is processed by third-party service providers, information may sometimes be stored or accessed outside the UK. If this happens, we will ensure appropriate safeguards are in place so that your data remains protected to the required standard.

10. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, legal requirements, or data protection practices. The most current version will apply to the processing of your personal data. We encourage customers in the Addington area to review this policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect personal information.

11. Summary of Key Principles

Gardeners Addington follows a simple approach to privacy:

we collect only the information needed to provide gardening services;
we process data on clear lawful bases;
we keep information only for as long as necessary;
we use trusted processors under strict obligations;
we respect your rights and aim to handle all data responsibly.

By using our services, you acknowledge that your personal data may be processed as described in this policy, in a manner consistent with applicable data protection law. Gardeners Addington remains committed to maintaining privacy, trust, and transparency for every customer we serve in the area.