Privacy Policy - Gardeners Willesden

This Privacy Policy explains how Gardeners Willesden collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data. It applies to all Gardeners Willesden customers in the area, including prospective customers, current customers, former customers, website visitors, and anyone who communicates with us about gardening services. We are committed to handling personal data in a lawful, fair, and transparent way, in line with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.

We recognise that privacy matters. Whether you request a quote, arrange a visit, receive a gardening service, or make an enquiry, we only use personal data where we have a valid reason to do so. We also aim to keep data accurate, secure, and only for as long as necessary.

1. Data We Collect

We may collect the following categories of personal data:

Identity data, such as your name and, where relevant, the name of a business or property manager.
Contact data, such as address details, telephone numbers, and email addresses.
Service data, such as details about the gardening work requested, property access requirements, preferred dates, and service notes.
Payment and billing data, where applicable, such as payment status, billing records, and transaction references.
Communication data, including enquiries, feedback, complaints, and messages exchanged with us.
Technical data, where you interact with digital systems, such as IP address, browser type, and basic usage information.
Marketing preferences, if you choose to receive updates or promotional information.

We generally collect data directly from you. In some cases, we may receive information from a landlord, property manager, neighbour, business representative, or other third party who is arranging services on your behalf. We may also collect data when you submit an enquiry or request service details.

We do not seek to collect special category data unless it is strictly necessary and you have chosen to provide it. If such data is shared with us accidentally, we will only process it where there is a lawful basis and appropriate safeguards.

2. How We Use Personal Data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

To respond to enquiries and provide quotations.
To arrange, deliver, and manage gardening services.
To communicate about appointments, changes, and service updates.
To issue invoices, record payments, and maintain financial records.
To handle complaints, disputes, or service-related queries.
To improve our operations, service quality, and customer experience.
To comply with legal and regulatory obligations.
To send marketing messages where permitted and where you have not opted out.

We only process data for purposes that are relevant to the services we provide. We do not use personal data in ways that are incompatible with the reason it was collected.

3. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis for each type of processing. Gardeners Willesden relies on the following lawful bases:

Contract

We process personal data when it is necessary to provide a quote, arrange a booking, carry out gardening services, or manage a customer relationship before and after the service. This includes using your details to communicate about the work and administer the service.

Legitimate Interests

We may process personal data where it is reasonable and necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided those interests do not override your rights and freedoms. This may include record-keeping, service improvement, fraud prevention, internal administration, and limited direct marketing where permitted by law.

Legal Obligation

We may process and retain certain information to comply with legal duties, including tax, accounting, and record-keeping requirements. We may also need to disclose information if required by law or a regulatory authority.

Consent

In some circumstances, we rely on your consent, for example for certain forms of marketing or where sensitive processing requires it. Where consent is used, you can withdraw it at any time without affecting the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal.

Vital Interests and Public Task

These bases are unlikely to apply to routine gardening services, but they may be relevant in exceptional circumstances where necessary to protect someone’s life or where a public authority requires information in accordance with law.

4. Retention of Data

We keep personal data only for as long as needed for the purposes described in this policy. The exact retention period depends on the type of data, the service provided, and any legal obligation that applies.

Customer service records are normally retained for the duration of the customer relationship and for a reasonable period afterwards.
Financial and accounting records are kept for the period required by tax and accounting law.
Communication records are retained only as long as needed to manage enquiries, resolve disputes, and maintain service history.
Marketing preferences are kept until you opt out or until the information is no longer needed.

When data is no longer required, we will delete it securely or anonymise it so that it can no longer identify you. Retention is always limited to what is necessary and proportionate.

5. Processors and Data Sharing

We may share personal data with carefully selected third-party service providers, also known as processors, who help us operate our business. These providers only process data on our instructions and must protect it appropriately.

Examples of processors may include:

Payment service providers.
Accounting and bookkeeping services.
IT and cloud storage providers.
Administrative or scheduling systems.
Professional advisers, such as legal or tax advisers, where needed.

We may also share data where necessary with insurers, regulators, law enforcement, or public authorities, but only when there is a lawful basis for doing so.

Where a processor is used, we take steps to ensure an appropriate data processing agreement is in place. This helps ensure that personal data is handled securely, used only for the intended purpose, and not retained longer than needed.

We do not sell personal data.

6. Security of Personal Data

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against accidental loss, misuse, unauthorised access, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, limited staff access, and careful management of records.

However, no system is completely secure. While we work hard to protect your information, we cannot guarantee absolute security. If a personal data breach occurs that is likely to result in a risk to your rights and freedoms, we will handle it in accordance with our legal obligations.

7. Your Rights

You have rights under data protection law in relation to the personal data we hold about you. These rights may include:

The right to be informed about how your data is used.
The right of access to obtain a copy of your personal data.
The right to rectification if your data is inaccurate or incomplete.
The right to erasure in certain circumstances, sometimes called the right to be forgotten.
The right to restrict processing in certain situations.
The right to data portability for information you have provided to us, where applicable.
The right to object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing.
Rights related to automated decision-making, although we do not normally use fully automated decisions that produce legal or similarly significant effects.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, we will assess your request in line with applicable data protection law. In some cases, we may need to retain certain information despite a request, such as where legal obligations require it or where the data is needed for a valid business or contractual purpose.

8. Marketing Choices

If we send marketing communications, you can opt out at any time. Where required, we will ask for your consent before sending electronic marketing. If you choose not to receive marketing, your decision will not affect the services you receive from us. Your preferences will be respected.

9. Children’s Data

Gardeners Willesden services are intended for adult customers and property-related service arrangements. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children unless it is provided incidentally and necessary for service-related reasons, in which case it will be handled with care and only where lawful.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, legal requirements, or data handling practices. Any updated version will apply from the date it is published or otherwise communicated. We encourage customers to review it periodically to stay informed about how personal data is protected.

11. Summary of Our Commitment

Gardeners Willesden is committed to using personal data responsibly, transparently, and securely. We collect only what we need, use it for clear and lawful purposes, keep it only for as long as necessary, and ensure that any processors we use are subject to appropriate safeguards. All Gardeners Willesden customers in area can rely on this policy as the standard for how we manage privacy in connection with our gardening services.