Privacy Policy - South Kensington Movers

South Kensington Movers is committed to protecting the privacy and personal data of all customers in the South Kensington area. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, share, and protect personal information when we provide moving, packing, storage, delivery, and related services. It applies to all South Kensington Movers customers in the area, including private individuals, families, landlords, tenants, and business clients who use our services.

1. Who We Are

South Kensington Movers acts as the data controller for personal data we collect and process in connection with our services. This means we decide why and how your personal data is used. We handle personal data in accordance with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018. We only process personal data where we have a lawful basis to do so, and we take privacy, security, and confidentiality seriously throughout every stage of our service delivery.

2. Personal Data We Collect

We collect only the information necessary to provide and manage our services effectively. The types of personal data we may collect include:

Identity details such as your name, title, and, where needed, proof of identity.
Contact details such as your postal address, billing address, email address, and phone number.
Service details such as move date, property access information, inventory lists, and service preferences.
Payment information such as payment status and transaction records. We do not store full card details where payment is handled by a secure payment processor.
Communications such as emails, call notes, messages, complaints, and feedback.
Operational information such as vehicle allocation, staff scheduling, and delivery records.
Special category data only where it is necessary and you have chosen to provide it, for example accessibility needs that may affect your move. We do not seek sensitive information unless it is directly relevant to delivering the service safely and appropriately.

We generally collect personal data directly from you. In some cases, we may also receive data from third parties such as estate agents, letting agents, solicitors, building managers, storage providers, or business partners when this is necessary to arrange or deliver the service.

3. How We Use Your Data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

To provide quotations and respond to enquiries.
To plan, schedule, and deliver moving and storage services.
To communicate with you about bookings, changes, delays, and service updates.
To process payments, invoices, and account administration.
To manage customer support, complaints, and service quality.
To comply with legal, tax, accounting, and regulatory obligations.
To maintain safety, security, fraud prevention, and operational records.
To improve our services, internal processes, and customer experience.

We only use your data in ways that are compatible with the original purpose for which it was collected, unless we have a lawful basis to use it for another compatible purpose.

4. Lawful Basis for Processing

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

Contract

We process personal data when it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes preparing quotes, confirming bookings, moving your belongings, and managing payments and service arrangements.

Legal Obligation

We process data where we are required to do so by law, including tax, accounting, insurance, and record-keeping obligations, as well as any lawful requests from authorities.

Legitimate Interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided your rights and freedoms do not override those interests. This may include managing operations, preventing fraud, improving services, and handling customer communications. We always consider whether the processing is reasonable and limited to what is necessary.

Consent

In limited cases, we may rely on your consent, particularly where processing involves optional marketing communications or certain types of sensitive information. Where consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time, and we will stop the related processing unless another lawful basis applies.

5. Sharing Your Personal Data

We may share your personal data only when necessary and only with trusted third parties acting as processors or independent controllers, depending on the context. These may include:

Payment processors for secure handling of card or online payment transactions.
IT and hosting providers that store or support our booking, email, and record systems.
Administrative service providers that help with scheduling, document management, or customer communications.
Storage partners if storage services are part of your move.
Professional advisers such as accountants, insurers, or legal advisers where needed.
Public authorities if disclosure is required by law or to protect our legal rights.

We do not sell your personal data. When we use processors, they are required to process data only on our instructions, to keep it secure, and to comply with applicable data protection law. We take reasonable steps to ensure any processor offers sufficient guarantees of security and confidentiality.

6. International Transfers

If any personal data is transferred outside the United Kingdom, we will only do so where appropriate safeguards are in place. These safeguards may include adequacy regulations, standard contractual clauses, or other lawful transfer mechanisms designed to protect your information to a level consistent with UK data protection requirements.

7. Data Retention

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, including to meet legal, accounting, insurance, and reporting obligations. The retention period depends on the type of data and the context in which it was collected.

Customer and booking records are typically retained for the duration of the business relationship and for a reasonable period afterward.
Financial and tax records are retained for the period required by law.
Complaints and claims records may be retained longer where needed to resolve disputes or defend legal claims.
Marketing records are retained until you opt out or until the data is no longer needed.

When data is no longer needed, we will delete it securely or anonymise it so that it can no longer identify you.

8. Data Security

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data against unauthorised access, accidental loss, destruction, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure systems, staff confidentiality obligations, and data minimisation practices. While no system can be guaranteed to be completely secure, we work to reduce risks and respond promptly to any suspected incident.

9. Your Rights

As a data subject, you have rights under data protection law. These rights may include:

Right of access to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Right to rectification to have inaccurate or incomplete data corrected.
Right to erasure in certain circumstances, also known as the right to be forgotten.
Right to restriction to limit how we use your data in certain situations.
Right to object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing.
Right to data portability for data you provided to us, where processing is based on consent or contract and carried out by automated means.
Right to withdraw consent where processing is based on consent.

You also have the right to complain to the UK Information Commissioner’s Office if you believe your data protection rights have been infringed. We encourage you to contact us first so we can try to resolve any concern fairly and promptly.

10. Children’s Data

Our services are not directed at children, and we do not knowingly collect personal data from children unless it is necessary for a household move and provided by a parent, guardian, or authorised adult. Where children’s information is involved, we process it only to the extent needed to provide the service safely and lawfully.

11. Changes to This Policy

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

12. Summary

South Kensington Movers processes personal data fairly, lawfully, and transparently to deliver moving and related services across the South Kensington area. We collect only what is necessary, use it for clear purposes, protect it with suitable safeguards, retain it only as long as needed, and respect your rights under data protection law. Our approach is designed to be practical, secure, and compliant while supporting efficient service for every customer.