Privacy Policy - Tree Surgeons Shoreditch

This Privacy Policy explains how Tree Surgeons Shoreditch collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data. It applies to all Tree Surgeons Shoreditch customers in the area, including prospective customers, existing customers, and individuals who enquire about our services. We are committed to handling personal information lawfully, fairly, and transparently in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

1. Who This Policy Applies To

This policy applies to anyone who interacts with Tree Surgeons Shoreditch in connection with our arboricultural and tree care services. This includes people who request quotations, book work, receive services, make payments, or communicate with us about a service issue, complaint, or follow-up. It also applies to people whose information may be provided to us by a customer where necessary to carry out work safely and effectively.

2. Personal Data We Collect

We only collect personal data that is relevant and necessary for the services we provide. Depending on how you interact with us, we may collect the following categories of information:

Identity information, such as your name and title.
Contact information, such as address, email address, and telephone number.
Service details, such as the nature of your enquiry, job instructions, site access notes, and work history.
Payment and billing information, such as payment status, transaction records, and invoice details.
Property and site information, including information required to assess tree work safely and efficiently.
Communication records, including emails, messages, notes from calls, and complaint correspondence.
Technical information, if you use our digital services, such as device data or basic usage information collected for security and performance purposes.

We do not intentionally collect special category data unless it is strictly necessary and there is a lawful reason to do so. If such data is ever needed, we will handle it with additional safeguards and only where permitted by law.

3. How We Collect Data

We collect personal data directly from you when you:

make an enquiry or request a quotation,
book or receive a service,
communicate with us by email, phone, or message,
make a payment or request an invoice,
submit feedback, a complaint, or a follow-up request.

We may also receive information from third parties where necessary, such as property owners, managing agents, contractors, or authorised representatives. In some cases, site or safety information may be gathered during assessments or service visits in order to carry out the work properly.

4. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under the UK GDPR, we must have a lawful basis to process your personal data. Tree Surgeons Shoreditch relies on one or more of the following lawful bases:

Contract – to provide quotations, manage bookings, carry out tree surgery services, and fulfil our obligations to you.
Legal obligation – to meet accounting, tax, health and safety, insurance, and record-keeping requirements.
Legitimate interests – to operate and improve our services, respond to enquiries, manage customer relationships, prevent fraud, and maintain business records, provided our interests do not override your rights and freedoms.
Consent – where consent is required, for example in specific marketing or optional communication situations. You may withdraw consent at any time where we rely on it.

Where we rely on legitimate interests, we make sure that processing is necessary and proportionate. We also consider any potential impact on your privacy and take appropriate steps to protect your data.

5. How We Use Your Information

We use personal data for the following purposes:

to respond to enquiries and provide quotations,
to schedule and deliver tree care services,
to carry out safety checks and site assessments,
to manage billing, payments, and accounting,
to maintain service records and customer history,
to handle complaints, disputes, and warranty or follow-up matters,
to comply with legal and regulatory obligations,
to protect the security of our operations and prevent misuse or fraud.

We only use your data for compatible purposes and do not process it in ways that are unexpected or unjustified. Where possible, we minimise data collection and retain only what is necessary.

6. Sharing Personal Data and Processors

We may share personal data with trusted third-party service providers acting as processors on our behalf. These processors only handle data according to our instructions and are required to keep information secure. Examples may include:

IT and hosting providers, for secure data storage and system support.
Accounting and invoicing providers, for financial administration.
Payment service providers, for processing transactions.
Scheduling or customer management tools, to organise work efficiently.
Professional advisers, such as insurers, legal advisers, or auditors, where needed.

We may also disclose personal data to public authorities, regulators, law enforcement, or insurers where required by law or where disclosure is necessary to protect rights, property, safety, or legitimate business interests.

When using processors, we take reasonable steps to ensure appropriate contractual safeguards are in place, including data processing terms and security obligations. Any sharing is limited to what is necessary for the specific purpose.

7. International Transfers

Where personal data is transferred outside the United Kingdom, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place. These may include adequacy regulations, standard contractual clauses, or equivalent legal protections. We will only transfer data where doing so is lawful and where suitable measures are taken to protect your information.

8. Data Retention

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, and in line with legal, accounting, insurance, and operational requirements. Retention periods can vary depending on the type of data and the service provided.

In general:

customer enquiry records are kept for a limited period after the enquiry is resolved,
service and job records are retained to support ongoing business administration and safety records,
financial records are retained for the period required by tax and accounting law,
complaint or dispute records are retained for as long as necessary to resolve the matter and defend legal claims.

When personal data is no longer needed, we securely delete, anonymise, or destroy it. We do not keep data indefinitely unless there is a lawful reason to do so.

9. Data Security

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, staff awareness practices, and data minimisation. While no system can be guaranteed completely secure, we take data protection seriously and review our safeguards regularly.

10. Your Rights

Under data protection law, you have several rights in relation to your personal data. Subject to legal conditions and exemptions, these rights may include:

Right of access – to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Right to rectification – to ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
Right to erasure – to request deletion of your data in certain circumstances.
Right to restriction – to ask us to limit how we use your data in certain cases.
Right to object – to object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing.
Right to data portability – to request that we provide certain data in a structured, commonly used format.
Right to withdraw consent – where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office if you believe your data has been handled unlawfully. We encourage you to raise any concerns directly so we can try to resolve them promptly.

11. Children’s Data

Our services are intended for adults and business customers. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children except where it is incidentally included in service communications and only where necessary and lawful. If we become aware that we have collected data from a child without a proper legal basis, we will take appropriate steps to delete it.

12. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect legal, operational, or service changes. Any revised version will apply from the date it is published or otherwise communicated. We recommend reviewing this policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect your personal data.

13. Summary of Our Commitment

Tree Surgeons Shoreditch is committed to processing personal data in a lawful, transparent, and secure way. We collect only the information we need, use it for clear and legitimate purposes, limit retention, and work only with trusted processors where necessary. We respect your rights and will always aim to handle personal information with care, fairness, and accountability.

This Privacy Policy applies to all Tree Surgeons Shoreditch customers in the area.