Privacy Policy - Brent Removals
This Privacy Policy explains how Brent Removals collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data when providing removal and related services. It applies to all Brent Removals customers in the area, including individuals and businesses who enquire about, book, or receive any service from us. We are committed to handling personal data in line with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.
1. Who We Are
Brent Removals is a removals service provider that processes personal data for the purpose of managing quotes, bookings, deliveries, removals, storage arrangements, customer communications, and related operational activities. In this policy, “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to Brent Removals.
We act as a data controller for the personal data we collect and determine the purposes and means of processing that data.
2. Personal Data We Collect
We only collect personal data that is necessary for our services, business operations, legal obligations, and legitimate interests. The types of information we may collect include:
- Identity details: name, title, and where relevant business name or account holder details.
- Contact details: address, email address, telephone number, and moving or delivery location information.
- Service information: details of your removal request, property access information, inventory lists, item descriptions, special handling requirements, and booking preferences.
- Payment information: billing details, payment status, and transaction records. We do not need to store full card details where payment is handled securely by third-party providers.
- Communication records: messages, call notes, complaint records, feedback, and correspondence relating to your service.
- Operational data: scheduling information, route planning data, team allocation, and service performance records.
- Technical data: basic device and usage information if you interact with us through digital tools, such as IP address and browser type, where applicable.
We do not intentionally collect special category data unless it is provided to us by you and is necessary for a specific service need, for example access considerations or health-related information relevant to moving support. Where such data is processed, we do so only where a lawful basis and additional protection are in place.
3. How We Use Personal Data
We use personal data to operate our services efficiently and lawfully. This includes:
- providing quotations and assessing service requirements;
- confirming bookings and arranging removals or related services;
- planning routes, staffing, vehicles, and storage if needed;
- communicating service updates and responding to enquiries;
- managing payments, invoices, and account administration;
- handling complaints, claims, or disputes;
- meeting legal and regulatory obligations;
- maintaining records for business administration and service quality;
- protecting our business, staff, and customers from fraud, misuse, or unlawful activity.
We will only use your data for the purposes for which it was collected, unless we reasonably determine that we need to use it for another compatible purpose and the law permits this.
4. Lawful Basis for Processing
Under data protection law, we must have a valid lawful basis for processing personal data. We rely on the following bases:
Contract
We process personal data when it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes preparing quotes, managing bookings, carrying out removals, and invoicing for services.
Legitimate Interests
We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided your rights and freedoms do not override those interests. This may include business administration, service improvement, fraud prevention, internal record-keeping, and customer support.
Legal Obligation
We process data where necessary to comply with legal duties, including tax, accounting, insurance, employment, or regulatory requirements.
Consent
In limited circumstances, we rely on your consent, for example where it is required for optional processing. If we rely on consent, you may withdraw it at any time, without affecting the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal.
5. Data Sharing and Processors
We may share personal data with trusted third parties where necessary to deliver our services or meet legal requirements. These parties may act as processors or independent controllers depending on the context.
Examples of processors and service providers may include:
- IT and cloud service providers who support our systems, storage, and communications;
- payment service providers who process transactions securely;
- accounting and bookkeeping providers who support financial administration;
- customer management or booking platforms used to organise services and records;
- insurance providers where claims or cover-related matters arise;
- professional advisers such as legal or financial advisers;
- regulators, law enforcement, or public authorities where required by law.
We require processors to handle personal data securely, only on our instructions, and in compliance with data protection law. We do not sell personal data.
6. International Transfers
If any of our processors or systems store or access data outside the UK, we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place. These may include adequacy regulations, standard contractual clauses, or equivalent legal mechanisms designed to protect your personal data.
7. Data Retention
We keep personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, and to satisfy legal, accounting, or operational requirements. Retention periods depend on the type of data and the reason for processing.
In general:
- quote and booking records are retained for a reasonable period to manage service history and follow-up enquiries;
- financial and tax records are retained for the period required by law;
- customer service communications are retained as needed to resolve disputes and maintain records;
- claims or complaint records may be retained longer where necessary to defend legal claims or comply with insurance obligations.
When data is no longer required, we will delete it securely or anonymise it so that it can no longer identify you.
8. Data Security
We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data from accidental loss, misuse, unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, staff confidentiality obligations, and regular review of data handling practices.
While we work to protect your data, no system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. We therefore encourage customers to share only the information necessary for service delivery.
9. Your Rights
Under data protection law, you may have the following rights in relation to your personal data:
- Right of access: to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
- Right to rectification: to request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data.
- 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 certain 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 to you or another provider in a structured format.
- Right to withdraw consent: where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.
You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the relevant data protection authority if you believe your data protection rights have been infringed. We encourage you to contact us first so we can try to resolve any concerns promptly and fairly.
10. Children’s Data
Our services are intended for adults and business customers. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children unless it is incidentally provided in the course of a service and is necessary for safe and effective service delivery. If we become aware that we have collected data inappropriately, we will take appropriate steps to delete or protect it.
11. Automated Decision-Making
We do not use personal data for decisions that have legal or similarly significant effects based solely on automated processing. Where we use tools to assist with scheduling, pricing, or administration, those tools do not replace human oversight where important decisions are involved.
12. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, legal obligations, or data handling practices. Any revised policy will apply from the date it is made available. We encourage customers to review this policy periodically to understand how we protect personal data.
By using Brent Removals services, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this Privacy Policy.