Privacy Policy - Tree Surgeons Swisscottage

This Privacy Policy explains how Tree Surgeons Swisscottage collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data in connection with our tree surgery and related services. It applies to all Tree Surgeons Swisscottage customers in the area, including prospective customers, current customers, former customers, and individuals who enquire about our services. We are committed to handling personal data in a lawful, fair, and transparent manner in line with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

We respect your privacy and aim to ensure that any personal information we process is limited to what is necessary for providing our services, meeting legal obligations, and improving the customer experience. This policy should be read carefully so you understand what information we collect, why we collect it, how long we keep it, and what rights you have.

1. Personal Data We Collect

We may collect and process the following categories of personal data:

Identity details: name, title, and where applicable, business name.
Contact details: address, email address, telephone number, and any communication preferences.
Property and service details: information about the site, trees, access arrangements, work requested, quotations, service notes, and photographs relating to the job.
Payment and transaction data: billing details, payment status, invoices, and records of payments made or received.
Correspondence: emails, messages, call notes, and other communications relating to enquiries, complaints, appointments, or service delivery.
Technical information: limited information such as IP address, device type, and browser data if you interact with our digital systems.

We only collect special category data, such as health information, where it is strictly necessary and lawful to do so. For example, we may record relevant access or safety information if it is needed to carry out work safely and responsibly. In those cases, we apply additional safeguards.

2. How We Use Your Data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

to respond to enquiries and provide quotations;
to plan, deliver, and manage tree surgery services;
to arrange site visits, appointments, and follow-up work;
to issue invoices, process payments, and maintain accounting records;
to manage customer relationships and service communications;
to comply with legal, regulatory, tax, and insurance obligations;
to handle disputes, complaints, and claims;
to improve our operations, safety procedures, and customer service.

We will not use your data for purposes that are incompatible with the reasons it was collected unless we have a lawful basis to do so.

3. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis to process your personal data. Depending on the situation, 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. This includes providing quotations at your request, arranging services, carrying out tree surgery work, and managing payments.

Legal Obligation

We may process data where necessary to comply with legal duties, such as tax, accounting, health and safety, insurance, and record-keeping requirements.

Legitimate Interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms. This may include maintaining records, managing customer enquiries, preventing fraud, and improving service quality.

Consent

Where consent is required, we will ask for it clearly and separately. For example, this may apply in limited cases involving optional communications or the processing of certain sensitive information. You may withdraw consent at any time, without affecting the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal.

4. Retention of Personal Data

We only keep personal data for as long as necessary for the purpose for which it was collected and to meet any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements. Retention periods may vary depending on the type of data and the reason for holding it.

Customer and service records: typically kept for the duration of the customer relationship and for a reasonable period afterwards.
Financial and tax records: retained for the period required by law, usually up to six years.
Claims, disputes, or complaint records: retained for as long as needed to resolve the issue and protect our legal position.
Enquiry data: kept only as long as necessary to respond and assess whether services are required.

When data is no longer needed, we will securely delete, anonymise, or archive it in line with our retention practices. We do not keep data indefinitely.

5. Processors and Data Sharing

We may use trusted third-party service providers, also known as processors, to help us operate our business. These processors only act on our instructions and are required to protect your data appropriately.

Examples of processors may include:

IT and cloud storage providers;
accounting and invoicing systems;
payment processing services;
customer communication tools;
professional advisers such as accountants or legal advisers;
insurance providers and claims handlers where relevant.

We may also share personal data where required by law, court order, regulatory request, or to protect our rights, property, staff, customers, or the public. Where data is shared with third parties, we ensure suitable contractual and security measures are in place.

We do not sell your personal data.

6. Data Security

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, staff confidentiality expectations, and the use of reputable service providers.

Although we take data security seriously, no method of transmission or storage is completely secure. If a data breach occurs, we will respond in accordance with our legal obligations and notify affected individuals where required.

7. Your Rights

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

Right of access: you can ask for a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Right to rectification: you can ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data.
Right to erasure: you can ask us to delete your data where there is no valid reason for keeping it.
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 or direct marketing.
Right to data portability: you can ask for certain data to be transferred to you or another controller in a structured format.
Right to withdraw consent: where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, we will respond within the time limits required by law. We may need to verify your identity before acting on your request. We will never discriminate against you for exercising your rights.

8. Children’s Data

Our services are directed to adults and businesses. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children unless it is necessary for a specific service request and lawful to do so. If we become aware that we have collected data from a child without appropriate authority, we will take steps to delete it promptly.

9. International Transfers

Where personal data is transferred outside the UK, we will ensure appropriate safeguards are in place to protect it. These safeguards may include approved contractual clauses or transfer mechanisms recognised by law.

10. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in legal requirements, business practices, or the way we process data. Any revised version will apply from the date it is published or otherwise communicated. We encourage customers to review this policy periodically so they remain informed about how their information is handled.

11. Summary of Key Points

Data collection: we collect only the information needed to provide our services and operate responsibly.
Lawful basis: we rely on contract, legal obligation, legitimate interests, and consent where appropriate.
Retention: data is kept only as long as necessary and then securely removed or anonymised.
Processors: we use trusted service providers under appropriate safeguards.
User rights: you can access, correct, delete, restrict, object to, or transfer your data in certain circumstances.

By using our services or engaging with Tree Surgeons Swisscottage, you acknowledge that your personal data may be processed as described in this Privacy Policy. We are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your information with care, transparency, and respect.