Privacy Policy - Havering Removals

Havering Removals is committed to protecting your personal data and respecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, and protect information about our customers, prospective customers, and other individuals whose personal data we process. It applies to all Havering Removals customers in the area, including anyone who enquires about, books, or receives our moving and removals services.

This policy is written in line with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018. It sets out the types of personal data we collect, the lawful bases we rely on to process it, how long we keep it, who may process it on our behalf, and the rights you have in relation to your data.

1. Who we are

Havering Removals is the data controller for the personal data described in this policy. This means we determine why and how your personal data is used when we provide removals and related services.

We may process personal data for individuals such as customers, property owners, tenants, business clients, authorised representatives, and people involved in arranging or receiving a move. In some cases, we may also receive information about third parties, such as family members or building contacts, where this is necessary to complete a service.

2. Personal data we collect

We only collect personal data that is relevant and necessary for the services we provide. Depending on your interaction with us, this may include:

• Identity information: name, title, and any relevant identification details needed to verify arrangements or access services.
• Contact information: address, email address, telephone number, and moving addresses.
• Service information: details of your move, property access requirements, inventory notes, special handling instructions, and preferred dates.
• Billing and payment information: invoice details, payment status, and transaction records.
• Communication records: emails, call notes, messages, complaints, feedback, and any correspondence related to your booking or service.
• Operational information: risk assessments, parking requirements, access arrangements, and notes required to complete the move safely and efficiently.
• Technical information: limited data such as IP address or device information if collected through digital systems used for administration or security purposes.

We do not intentionally collect special category data unless it is necessary and you choose to provide it, or unless it is required for a specific service or legal obligation. If such information is provided, it will be handled with additional care and only where permitted by law.

3. How we use your personal data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

• to provide quotations and respond to enquiries;
• to plan, manage, and complete removals services;
• to communicate with you about bookings, timings, and service changes;
• to issue invoices and process payments;
• to keep accurate records of services delivered;
• to handle complaints, claims, and disputes;
• to meet legal, tax, accounting, and insurance obligations;
• to improve our operations, service quality, and customer experience;
• to protect our business, staff, customers, and property from fraud or misuse.

We process data only where there is a valid reason to do so and where it is necessary for the services we provide. We will not use your personal data in ways that are incompatible with the purposes explained in this policy.

4. Lawful basis for processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis to process personal data. Havering Removals 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 handling enquiries, providing quotes, managing bookings, carrying out removals, and completing related customer service tasks.

Legal obligation

We may process personal data where we are required to do so by law, including for accounting, tax, record-keeping, insurance, and compliance purposes.

Legitimate interests

We may process personal 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, fraud prevention, internal record-keeping, and improving our services.

Consent

In limited situations, we may rely on your consent, for example where we send certain marketing communications that are not based on another lawful basis. Where consent is used, you have the right to withdraw it at any time.

5. Sharing your data and processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties where necessary for the operation of our business and delivery of our services. These third parties may act as processors and only process data on our instructions.

Examples of processors and service providers may include:

• accounting and bookkeeping providers;
• payment processing services;
• IT and cloud storage providers;
• customer administration or communication platforms;
• professional advisers such as insurers, solicitors, or auditors where necessary;
• subcontracted removals support staff or logistics partners, when required to complete a move.

We may also disclose personal data to public authorities, regulators, law enforcement, insurers, or other third parties where required by law, necessary to protect rights, or needed to resolve claims or disputes.

We do not sell your personal data. Any sharing is limited to what is reasonably necessary for the stated purpose and subject to appropriate safeguards.

6. International transfers

Where personal data is transferred outside the UK, we will ensure suitable safeguards are in place so that your data remains protected in accordance with applicable law. Such safeguards may include adequacy regulations, standard contractual clauses, or other lawful transfer mechanisms.

7. Data retention

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, including satisfying legal, accounting, and reporting obligations.

In general, retention periods may depend on the type of information and why it is held:

• Quotation and enquiry records: kept for a limited period to manage follow-up and administration.
• Customer and booking records: retained for the duration of the service relationship and for a reasonable period afterward.
• Financial records: kept for the period required by tax and accounting law.
• Claims and dispute records: retained until the matter is fully resolved and for any further period required to defend legal claims.

When personal data is no longer needed, we will delete it securely or anonymise it so that it can no longer identify you.

8. Security of your data

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data from loss, misuse, unauthorised access, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, staff confidentiality duties, and restricted processing based on need-to-know principles.

While we take data security seriously, no system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. We therefore continue to review and improve our safeguards in line with the nature of the information we hold and the risks involved.

9. Your rights

Under data protection law, you have a number of rights in relation to your personal data. These include:

• Right of access: you may request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Right to rectification: you may ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
• Right to erasure: in certain circumstances, you may ask us to delete your personal data.
• Right to restriction: you may ask us to limit how we use your data in certain situations.
• Right to object: you may object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing.
• Right to data portability: where applicable, you may ask for data to be provided in a structured, commonly used format.
• Right to withdraw consent: if 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 are unhappy with how your data has been handled. We encourage you to raise concerns with us first so we can address them promptly.

10. How we handle children’s data

Our services are aimed at adults and businesses. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children unless it is incidental to a service and there is a lawful reason to process it. If we become aware that we have collected data from a child without proper basis, we will take appropriate steps to delete it.

11. Changes to this Privacy 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 version will apply from the date it is published. We encourage you to review this policy periodically so that you remain informed about how we use personal data.

12. Summary of our commitment

Havering Removals will process personal data fairly, lawfully, and transparently. We will only collect what we need, use it for clear and legitimate purposes, keep it no longer than necessary, and respect the rights of every individual whose data we handle. We are committed to maintaining trust, protecting privacy, and applying these standards to all Havering Removals customers in the area.