Acton Removals Data Protection and Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy explains how Acton Removals collects, uses, stores and protects personal data relating to our customers and prospective customers within our service area. It also describes your rights under applicable data protection laws, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018. This policy applies to all Acton Removals customers in our operating area and to anyone who contacts us to enquire about our services.

Who we are and scope of this policy

Acton Removals provides domestic and commercial removal and related services. In doing so, we act as the data controller for the personal data we collect about you. This means we decide how and why your data is processed and are responsible for ensuring that such processing is carried out lawfully.

This Privacy Policy applies whenever you interact with Acton Removals as a customer or potential customer, including when you request a quotation, make a booking, communicate with us, or use any services we provide in our local area.

Personal data we collect

We collect and process different types of personal data depending on your relationship with us and the services you request. The categories of data we may collect include:

Identification and contact details: name, title, postal address, collection and delivery addresses, previous and new addresses, and other contact details such as your preferred method of communication.

Service and booking information: details about the removal or related services you request, access information for the properties involved, special instructions relevant to the move, inventory or item descriptions, and scheduling details.

Billing and payment information: information necessary to issue invoices, record payments, and manage accounts, such as billing address and basic payment records. We do not retain complete card details when external secure payment processors are used.

Communication records: information you provide when you contact us by any means, including enquiries, feedback, and complaints, as well as notes of conversations relevant to providing our services.

Website and usage information: where relevant, technical and usage data collected when you visit or interact with our website, such as pages visited and basic interaction information, to help us understand and improve our services. We do not seek to identify you from this data unless necessary for security or legal reasons.

How we collect your data

We collect personal data directly from you when you contact us to request a quotation, make a booking, or use our services. This may be by telephone, online forms, written correspondence, or in person.

We may also obtain information from third parties when necessary to provide services, such as estate agents, landlords, or commercial partners who act on your behalf. In such cases, we expect these third parties to have obtained your consent or to have another lawful basis to share your details with us.

Lawful bases for processing your data

We only process personal data where we have a valid lawful basis under applicable data protection law. Depending on the activity, we may rely on the following lawful bases:

Contract: to take steps at your request prior to entering into a contract and to perform our contract with you, for example to provide a quotation, confirm a booking, carry out your removal service, and handle payments.

Legal obligation: to comply with legal and regulatory requirements, including record-keeping, tax obligations, accounting rules, and responding to lawful requests from public authorities.

Legitimate interests: to pursue our legitimate business interests in a way that does not unduly affect your rights and freedoms, such as managing and improving our services, responding to enquiries, preventing fraud, ensuring the security of our operations, and keeping basic records of past work for reference.

Consent: where required, for example for certain forms of direct marketing or optional communications not necessary to provide our services. When we rely on consent, you may withdraw it at any time, and we will stop the relevant processing going forward.

How we use your personal data

We may use your personal data for the following purposes:

To provide quotations and manage enquiries, including assessing your requirements, preparing and sending estimates, and responding to your questions.

To set up, manage, and fulfil bookings, including planning and carrying out removals, coordinating access, and providing related services such as packing or storage where requested.

To manage billing, payments, and accounts, including issuing invoices, processing payments via secure payment processors, and maintaining financial records.

To communicate with you about your booking, including confirmations, updates, changes, and any issues arising before, during, or after your move.

To improve our services and operations, including reviewing feedback, monitoring service quality, training staff, and analysing non-identifying usage information.

To comply with legal and regulatory obligations, including tax, audit, and accounting requirements and cooperating with lawful requests from authorities.

To protect our legitimate interests, including preventing and detecting fraud, managing disputes, and enforcing our contractual rights.

Data sharing and use of processors

We do not sell your personal data. We may share your data with trusted third parties where necessary for the purposes described in this policy, including:

Service providers who act as data processors on our behalf, such as secure payment processors, information technology providers, storage and logistics partners, and administrative support providers. These processors are only permitted to process your data in accordance with our instructions and are required to protect it appropriately.

Professional advisers, such as accountants or legal advisers, to the extent necessary for them to provide services to us and comply with their own legal and professional obligations.

Public authorities, regulators, law enforcement, or courts where we are legally required to do so or where it is necessary to protect our rights, property, or safety or that of others.

Any other third party where you expressly request or consent to such sharing.

Data retention and storage

We retain personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, including satisfying any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements.

In general, we keep records related to quotations and moves for a period that enables us to manage enquiries, handle any complaints or disputes, comply with tax and financial record-keeping laws, and demonstrate that we have met our obligations. After this period, data is securely deleted or anonymised so that it can no longer identify you.

The specific retention period may vary depending on the type of data and applicable legal requirements. Factors we consider include our contractual obligations, statutory limitation periods, regulatory guidance, and industry practice.

International transfers

Our core services are provided within the local area we serve. If we use service providers or systems located outside the United Kingdom or the European Economic Area, we take steps to ensure that your personal data is adequately protected, such as using contracts approved by data protection authorities or relying on other recognised safeguards where applicable.

How we protect your data

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, alteration, unauthorised disclosure, or access. These measures include access controls, staff training, secure handling of physical documents where used, and reasonable safeguards when transferring data to third parties acting on our behalf. While we cannot guarantee absolute security, we work to ensure that the level of protection is appropriate to the nature of the data and the risks involved.

Your data protection rights

You have a number of rights in relation to the personal data we hold about you, subject to certain limitations and exemptions under law. These rights include:

Right of access: to obtain confirmation of whether we process your personal data and to receive a copy of that data, together with certain information about how it is used.

Right to rectification: to have inaccurate or incomplete personal data corrected or completed.

Right to erasure: in some circumstances, to request that we delete your personal data, for example where it is no longer needed for the purposes for which it was collected, or where you have withdrawn consent and there is no other legal basis for processing.

Right to restriction: to ask us to restrict the processing of your personal data in certain situations, for example while we are verifying its accuracy or considering an objection you have raised.

Right to object: to object to certain types of processing based on our legitimate interests, including some forms of direct marketing. We will honour such objections unless we have compelling legitimate grounds to continue the processing.

Right to data portability: where processing is based on consent or contract and carried out by automated means, to request a copy of your personal data in a commonly used, machine-readable format or to have it transmitted to another controller where technically feasible.

Right to withdraw consent: where we rely on your consent, you may withdraw it at any time. This will not affect the lawfulness of any processing carried out before withdrawal.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the relevant data protection supervisory authority if you believe that your data protection rights have been infringed.

Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal requirements, or service offerings. Any updates will take effect from the date of publication. We encourage you to review this policy periodically to stay informed about how we handle your personal data.