Privacy Policy - Man And Van Dartford

This Privacy Policy explains how Man And Van Dartford collects, uses, stores, and protects personal data when providing moving, delivery, collection, and related transport services. It applies to all Man And Van Dartford customers in the area, including individuals, households, landlords, tenants, and business clients who use our services within Dartford and the surrounding local area.

We are committed to handling personal data lawfully, fairly, and transparently in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. This policy is intended 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. Data We Collect

We collect only the personal data necessary to provide and manage our services effectively. The information we may collect includes:

Identity information such as your name and, where relevant, the name of your business or organisation.
Contact details such as your telephone number, email address, and service address.
Service information such as details of the items to be moved, collection and delivery addresses, access requirements, preferred dates, and any special instructions.
Billing and payment information such as payment status, invoices, and records needed for accounting purposes.
Communication records such as messages, call notes, quotes, complaints, and feedback.
Technical data that may be collected automatically when you contact us electronically, such as basic device or browser information, if applicable.

We do not intentionally collect special category personal data unless you choose to provide it and it is necessary for the service, for example where access or handling requirements relate to health or mobility needs. If such information is provided, we will treat it with additional care and limit its use to what is necessary.

2. How We Use Your Data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

To provide quotations, confirm bookings, and carry out moving or transport services.
To plan routes, allocate staff, and manage logistics safely and efficiently.
To communicate with you before, during, and after a service.
To issue invoices, process payments, and maintain financial records.
To deal with complaints, claims, or disputes.
To maintain internal records and improve our services.
To comply with legal, tax, insurance, and regulatory obligations.

We only use your personal data for the purposes for which it was collected, unless we reasonably need to use it for a compatible purpose or are otherwise permitted by law.

3. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis to process your personal data. Depending on the context, we rely on the following bases:

Performance of a Contract

We process your data when it is necessary to provide the services you have requested, prepare a quotation at your request, manage your booking, deliver goods, or complete related work.

Legal Obligation

We may process and retain certain information to comply with tax, accounting, insurance, employment, health and safety, and other legal requirements.

Legitimate Interests

We may use personal data where it is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided your rights and freedoms do not override those interests. This may include managing customer relationships, improving service quality, preventing fraud, and keeping internal records. We carefully balance these interests before relying on this basis.

Consent

Where required, we may rely on your consent, for example for optional communications or for handling certain sensitive information you voluntarily provide. You may withdraw consent at any time, but this will not affect processing already carried out lawfully.

4. Retention of Personal Data

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, and in line with legal and operational requirements. Retention periods may vary depending on the type of information and the reason it is held.

Booking and service records are generally kept for a reasonable period to support administration, customer queries, and dispute resolution.
Financial and invoice records are retained for the period required by tax and accounting law.
Communication and complaint records are retained for as long as needed to manage the relationship and address any ongoing issues.
Insurance or claims-related records may be kept longer where necessary to defend or pursue legal claims.

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

5. Processors and Data Sharing

We may share personal data with trusted third parties who process information on our behalf. These parties act as data processors and are only permitted to use the data under our instructions and for specific purposes. Such processors may include:

Accounting and bookkeeping providers who assist with financial administration.
Payment service providers that handle secure payment processing.
IT and cloud service providers that support storage, email, or business systems.
Legal, insurance, or claims handlers where required for compliance or dispute management.
Subcontractors or operational partners where needed to fulfil a booking or service request.

We require processors to take appropriate security measures and only process personal data in a manner consistent with data protection law. We may also disclose personal data to public authorities, regulators, law enforcement, or courts where legally required or necessary to protect our rights, customers, or the public.

We do not sell your personal data. We do not share it for unrelated marketing purposes without a lawful basis.

6. Data Security

We take the security of personal data seriously and use reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect it from unauthorised access, loss, misuse, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, restricted permissions, and staff awareness procedures.

Although no system can be guaranteed completely secure, we work to reduce risks and respond appropriately if a personal data incident occurs.

7. Your Rights

Under data protection law, you have several rights regarding your personal data. These rights may apply depending on the circumstances:

Right of access – you can ask for a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Right to rectification – you can request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data.
Right to erasure – you can ask us to delete your data where there is a valid legal basis to do so.
Right to restriction – you can ask us to limit how we use your data in certain situations.
Right to object – you can object to processing based on legitimate interests.
Right to data portability – you can request certain data in a structured, commonly used format where applicable.
Right to withdraw consent – if we rely on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, we may need to verify your identity before responding. We aim to respond within the time limits set by law.

8. Cookies and Similar Technologies

If we use any online systems that collect basic technical information, this may include cookies or similar technologies used for essential functionality, performance, or security. Where consent is required for any non-essential cookies, you will be given appropriate choices in line with the law.

9. International Transfers

Where personal data is transferred outside the UK, we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place to protect it to a standard consistent with UK data protection requirements.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, legal obligations, or data processing practices. The most recent version will apply to your use of our services.

This policy is intended to be clear and transparent for customers of Man And Van Dartford. If you use our services in the area, your personal data will be handled in accordance with this Privacy Policy and the applicable data protection laws.