Gardeners Longlands Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy explains how Gardeners Longlands collects, uses, stores, and protects personal data relating to our customers and prospective customers within our service area. We are committed to complying with the UK General Data Protection Regulation and all applicable data protection laws. This policy applies to all Gardeners Longlands customers and individuals who engage with our services in our operating area.

Who We Are

Gardeners Longlands is a gardening and related services provider. In the context of data protection law, we act as the data controller for the personal data we collect and process about our customers and potential customers. This means we determine the purposes and means of processing your personal data.

Personal Data We Collect

We may collect and process the following categories of personal data when you interact with Gardeners Longlands, request a quote, or use our services:

Identification and contact data such as name, postal address, service address, and general location information within our service area.

Communication details such as your preferred contact method and records of communications you send to us or that we send to you, including enquiries, feedback, and service-related messages.

Service and contract information such as details of the gardening or related services you request, site notes, appointment history, quotes, invoices, payment status, and work reports.

Financial and transaction data such as information relating to payments, including payment method and transaction details. Card or bank details may be processed by our payment processors and not retained by us, except to the extent required for accounting records.

Technical and usage data where applicable, such as basic information about how you interact with any online presence we maintain, limited to what is necessary for security, administration, and service improvement. We do not intentionally collect more data than is required for these purposes.

How We Collect Your Data

We collect personal data directly from you when you contact us to make an enquiry, request a quote, book a job, or communicate with us in any way. We may also collect data created in the course of providing services to you, such as work records and invoices. In some cases we may receive limited personal data from third parties who refer you to us, where you have given them permission to share your details.

Lawful Basis for Processing

We only process your personal data where we have a lawful basis under data protection law. Depending on the context, we rely on the following lawful bases:

Contract. We process personal data where it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you, such as to provide gardening services, issue quotes, schedule visits, and manage your account.

Legal obligation. We process certain information to comply with legal obligations, including tax, accounting, and record-keeping requirements.

Legitimate interests. We process personal data where it is necessary for our legitimate interests and where these are not overridden by your rights and interests. This includes managing and improving our services, maintaining business records, handling enquiries and complaints, and promoting our services to existing or recent customers in a proportionate way.

Consent. In limited cases we may rely on your consent, for example for certain types of optional marketing. Where we rely on consent, you can withdraw it at any time by contacting us using the details provided in this policy.

How We Use Your Personal Data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

To provide and manage services, including arranging and delivering gardening services, managing bookings, communicating about appointments, and handling any changes or cancellations.

To prepare and manage quotes, invoices, receipts, and payment records, and to respond to queries about these.

To respond to your enquiries, feedback, or complaints and to provide customer support.

To maintain accurate business and financial records and comply with our legal obligations.

To improve our services, including reviewing the types of services requested and how we can better serve customers in our area.

To send reasonable service-related updates or information about similar services you have previously used, where permitted by law and in line with your preferences.

Sharing Your Personal Data and Processors

We do not sell your personal data. We may share personal data with third parties where necessary for the purposes described in this policy and in accordance with data protection law. These third parties may include:

Service providers and data processors who perform functions on our behalf, such as payment processing, accounting or bookkeeping services, secure data storage, and information technology support. These providers may only process personal data in accordance with our instructions and for the purposes set out in a written agreement.

Professional advisers such as accountants or legal advisers where required for compliance, legal claims, or obtaining professional advice.

Public authorities or regulators where we are legally required to do so or where disclosure is necessary to protect our rights, your safety, or the safety of others.

Any sharing is limited to what is necessary for the relevant purpose, and we take reasonable steps to ensure that your data is handled securely and in line with this policy.

Data Retention

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

In general:

Service and contract data is retained for the duration of our relationship with you and for a period afterwards to enable us to respond to queries, manage any disputes, and demonstrate compliance with our obligations.

Financial and transaction data is typically kept for a period required by tax and accounting laws, which may be up to several years from the end of the relevant financial year.

Enquiry information from prospective customers who do not go on to use our services is retained for a limited period so that we can respond to follow-up questions and assess service demand, after which it is deleted or anonymised.

When personal data is no longer needed, we will securely delete or anonymise it so that it can no longer be associated with an identifiable individual.

International Transfers

Where we use service providers or processors that store or process data outside the United Kingdom or the European Economic Area, we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place to protect your personal data, such as reliance on adequacy regulations or standard contractual clauses, in accordance with applicable data protection law.

Security of Your Data

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, loss, misuse, alteration, or disclosure. These measures include restricting access to personal data to those who need it for legitimate business purposes and ensuring that our processors implement suitable security practices. While we take reasonable steps to protect your data, no system can be completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

Your Data Protection 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. Subject to those limits, you may have the right to:

Access your personal data and obtain a copy of the information we hold about you, along with certain details about how we use it.

Request correction of any inaccurate or incomplete personal data we hold about you.

Request erasure of your personal data where there is no good reason for us to continue processing it, for example where it is no longer necessary for the purposes for which it was collected and we have no legal obligation to retain it.

Request restriction of processing of your personal data in certain circumstances, such as while we verify the accuracy of the data or consider an objection you have raised.

Object to processing of your personal data where we rely on legitimate interests and you believe that your rights and interests override our own, and to object at any time to the use of your data for direct marketing.

Request the transfer of certain personal data to you or to another organisation, where this is technically feasible and where the processing is based on consent or contract and carried out by automated means.

Withdraw consent where we rely on consent to process your personal data. Withdrawal of consent does not affect the lawfulness of processing before consent was withdrawn.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority if you are concerned about how we handle your personal data. If you have any concerns or wish to exercise any of your rights, you should contact us using the details set out in this policy.

Applicability to Gardeners Longlands Customers in Our Area

This Privacy Policy applies to all Gardeners Longlands customers and prospective customers within our service area. By engaging with us, requesting a quote, or using our services, you acknowledge that you have been informed of how we process personal data as set out in this document.

Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, legal obligations, or how we process personal data. Any updates will take effect when the revised policy is made available. We encourage you to review this policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect your privacy.