Privacy Policy – Soho Man And Van

Soho Man And Van is committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal data in a lawful, fair, and transparent way. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, share, and protect information about our customers, prospective customers, and anyone who interacts with us in connection with our services. It applies to all Soho Man And Van customers in the area, including individuals and businesses who request quotes, book removals, use our transport services, or otherwise engage with us.

This policy is intended to meet the requirements of the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. By using our services or providing us with your information, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this Privacy Policy.

1. Information We Collect

We collect personal data that is necessary to provide, manage, and improve our services. The types of information we may collect include:

Identity details: your name, title, and any business or company name.
Contact details: your address, email address, telephone number, and any alternative contact details you provide.
Service information: details about your move, collection, delivery location, access conditions, inventory, packing needs, preferred dates, and special instructions.
Billing and payment information: invoice details, payment records, and transaction references. We do not intentionally store full card details where secure third-party payment methods are used.
Communication records: emails, messages, call notes, complaints, feedback, and other correspondence.
Technical and usage data: basic information about how you interact with our online services, such as device type, browser type, and browsing behaviour, where applicable.
Access and security information: details needed to carry out a safe service, such as building access notes or instructions relating to parking or loading.

We generally collect personal data directly from you when you make an enquiry, request a quotation, book a service, or communicate with us. In some cases, we may also receive information from third parties, such as business partners, payment processors, or referral sources, where this is necessary for the delivery of services.

2. How We Use Your Personal Data

We only use your personal data for specific and legitimate purposes. These include:

providing quotations and confirming bookings;
delivering removal, transport, packing, storage, or related services;
communicating with you about your booking or service requirements;
processing payments, issuing invoices, and managing accounts;
maintaining service records and customer support records;
handling complaints, disputes, and claims;
meeting legal, tax, accounting, and regulatory obligations;
protecting against fraud, misuse, or security incidents;
improving our operations, service quality, and customer experience;
sending service-related updates where necessary.

We do not use your data for purposes that are incompatible with the reasons for which it was collected, unless we are required or permitted to do so by law.

3. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis for processing your personal data. Depending on the context, we rely on one or more of the following lawful bases:

Performance of a contract

We process your personal data when it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes providing quotes at your request, arranging services, carrying out a move, and managing payments.

Legal obligation

We may process your information where required to comply with legal obligations, such as tax, accounting, record-keeping, or responding to lawful requests from public authorities.

Legitimate interests

We may process your data where it is necessary for our legitimate interests and where your rights and freedoms do not override those interests. This may include managing our business, improving services, preventing fraud, maintaining security, and responding to customer enquiries. Where we rely on legitimate interests, we assess the impact on your rights before processing.

Consent

In limited circumstances, we may rely on your consent, for example where it is required by law for certain types of marketing or optional communications. If we rely on consent, you have the right to withdraw it at any time.

4. Sharing Your Information

We may share personal data with trusted third parties when necessary for the operation of our services or when required by law. These third parties may act as processors or independent controllers depending on the circumstances.

Examples of processors and service providers may include:

Payment processors that handle secure payment transactions;
IT and cloud service providers that host or support our systems;
Communication service providers used for sending emails, messages, or booking updates;
Accountancy and bookkeeping providers who assist with financial administration;
Subcontracted service providers involved in fulfilling a booking, where needed.

We require our processors to handle personal data securely, only on our instructions, and in accordance with applicable data protection laws. We do not sell your personal data.

We may also disclose information if necessary to:

comply with legal obligations or court orders;
protect our rights, property, staff, or customers;
prevent or investigate suspected unlawful activity;
support insurance claims or dispute resolution.

5. International Transfers

Where personal data is transferred outside the United Kingdom, we take appropriate steps to ensure that it remains protected. This may include using contractual safeguards, relying on adequacy decisions, or other approved transfer mechanisms under data protection law.

6. Data Retention

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, including to meet legal, accounting, or reporting requirements. Retention periods may vary depending on the type of data and the nature of the service provided.

In general:

Customer and booking records may be retained for the duration of the service relationship and for a further period where needed for administrative, tax, or legal purposes.
Financial records are typically retained in line with statutory accounting and tax obligations.
Complaint and dispute records may be kept for longer where necessary to resolve issues or defend legal claims.
Enquiry records for services not booked may be retained for a limited period to manage follow-up and business analysis.

When personal data is no longer required, we will securely delete, destroy, or anonymise it.

7. Data Security

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, accidental loss, destruction, or alteration. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, encryption where appropriate, staff confidentiality obligations, and regular review of our procedures. While no system can be guaranteed completely secure, we work to maintain a high standard of protection.

8. Your Rights

Under data protection law, you have a number of rights in relation to your personal data. These rights may be subject to certain conditions and exemptions. They include:

The right to be informed about how your data is collected and used;
The right of access to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you;
The right to rectification to correct inaccurate or incomplete information;
The right to erasure in certain circumstances, sometimes known as the “right to be forgotten”;
The right to restrict processing in certain situations;
The right to object to processing based on legitimate interests;
The right to data portability for data you provided to us where processing is based on consent or contract and carried out by automated means;
The right to withdraw consent where consent is the lawful basis for processing.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the relevant data protection authority if you believe your rights have been infringed. Before doing so, we encourage you to raise any concerns with us so we can attempt to resolve the matter.

9. Children’s Data

Our services are intended for adults and business customers. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children unless it is required in connection with a service and provided by an adult with authority to do so. If we become aware that we have collected data from a child without appropriate authorisation, we will take steps to delete it where required.

10. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal obligations, or operational needs. Any revised version will apply from the date it is made available. We encourage customers to review this policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect personal data.

11. Our Commitment to Privacy

Soho Man And Van takes privacy seriously and aims to ensure that all personal data is handled responsibly. We are committed to transparency, data minimisation, and accountability in everything we do. We only collect the information that is necessary to deliver our services safely and effectively, and we keep it only for as long as required.

This Privacy Policy applies to all Soho Man And Van customers in the area and should be read together with any service terms or booking conditions that apply to your arrangement. By continuing to use our services, you acknowledge that your data may be processed as described in this policy.