Privacy Policy - Tree Surgeons Greenwich

Tree Surgeons Greenwich is committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal data in a lawful, fair, and transparent manner. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, share, and protect personal information relating to our customers, prospective customers, and website or enquiry users in the Greenwich area. This policy applies to all Tree Surgeons Greenwich customers in the area, including anyone who requests a quote, books a service, makes an enquiry, or receives tree surgery, arboricultural, or related maintenance services from us.

1. Who We Are

For the purposes of UK data protection law, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018, Tree Surgeons Greenwich acts as the data controller for the personal data described in this policy. This means we determine why and how your personal data is processed when you interact with us for our services.

2. Personal Data We Collect

We collect only the personal data necessary to provide our services, manage our business, and meet legal and contractual obligations. Depending on your relationship with us, this may include:

Identity details: your name and title
Contact details: address, email address, telephone number, and preferred communication method
Property and service details: site address, access information, descriptions of work requested, photos you provide, and notes about trees or outdoor areas
Transaction information: quotes, invoices, payment records, booking history, and service history
Communication records: emails, messages, call notes, complaint records, and correspondence with us
Technical data: basic website and device information such as IP address, browser type, and usage information where applicable
Legal and safety information: risk assessments, site-specific safety notes, and records needed to carry out work safely and lawfully

We generally do not seek to collect special category data. If such information is provided to us incidentally, for example in relation to a health or access issue, we will only process it where necessary and with appropriate safeguards.

3. How We Use Your Personal Data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

To respond to enquiries and provide quotations
To assess the work required and arrange site visits
To deliver tree surgery and related services safely and effectively
To manage bookings, invoicing, and payment processing
To communicate with you about your service, changes, or issues
To maintain records of completed work and customer interactions
To handle complaints, disputes, and insurance matters
To comply with legal, regulatory, tax, and health and safety obligations
To improve our services, processes, and customer experience

We will only use your personal data for the purposes for which it was collected unless we reasonably consider that we need to use it for another compatible purpose and the law allows us to do so.

4. Lawful Basis for Processing

We process personal data only where we have a lawful basis to do so under UK GDPR. The main lawful bases we rely on are:

Contract

We process your data where it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes providing quotations, arranging and delivering services, invoicing, and taking payment.

Legal Obligation

We process data where necessary to comply with legal obligations, such as tax, accounting, health and safety, insurance, and regulatory requirements.

Legitimate Interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided your interests and rights do not override those interests. This may include managing our customer relationships, maintaining service records, preventing fraud, improving operations, and responding to disputes. We always consider whether our interests justify the processing and whether it is proportionate.

Consent

Where consent is required, for example for certain optional communications or specific processing activities, we will ask for it clearly and you may withdraw consent at any time.

5. Sharing Your Personal Data

We may share personal data with trusted third parties where necessary for the purposes set out in this policy. These parties act as processors or, in some cases, independent controllers. Typical recipients may include:

IT and hosting providers that support our systems and data storage
Accounting and bookkeeping providers who assist with financial records and tax compliance
Payment processors that handle card or online payment transactions
Insurance providers and claims handlers where required
Subcontractors or specialist contractors assisting with certain services, where necessary for job delivery
Professional advisers such as solicitors or consultants when needed
Public authorities where disclosure is required by law or to protect our legal rights

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

6. Retention of Personal Data

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, including to satisfy legal, accounting, reporting, and insurance requirements. Retention periods vary depending on the type of information and the reason for processing.

Enquiry records: kept for a reasonable period to manage follow-up and service history
Customer and contract records: kept for the duration of the relationship and for a further period where needed for legal claims or record-keeping
Invoice and tax records: retained in line with statutory accounting and tax obligations
Health, safety, and compliance records: retained as required by law or good practice
Communication records: retained for operational and dispute-resolution purposes

When personal data is no longer required, we will securely delete, anonymise, or archive it in a way that prevents unauthorised use.

7. Data Security

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data from loss, misuse, unauthorised access, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, restricted permissions, and staff awareness of data protection responsibilities. While no system can be guaranteed to be completely secure, we take reasonable steps to keep your information safe.

8. International Transfers

Where a processor or service provider stores or accesses data outside the UK, we will ensure appropriate safeguards are in place so that your personal data remains protected in line with applicable law. These safeguards may include adequacy regulations or standard contractual protections where required.

9. Your Rights

Under data protection law, you may have the following rights in relation to your personal data:

Right of access: to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
Right to rectification: to correct inaccurate or incomplete data
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 situations
Right to object: to object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing
Right to data portability: to receive certain data in a structured, commonly used format
Right to withdraw consent: where processing relies on consent, you may withdraw it at any time

These rights are subject to certain legal limitations and exemptions. If you exercise a right, we may need to verify your identity before responding.

10. Marketing Preferences

If we send marketing communications, we will only do so where permitted by law. You may opt out of marketing at any time. We will continue to send essential service or transactional messages where necessary, such as appointment updates, billing notices, or important policy information.

11. Complaints

If you have concerns about how we handle your personal data, please raise them with us so we can address the issue. You also have the right to complain to the 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 matters promptly and fairly.

12. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in the law, our services, or our data handling practices. The most current version will apply to your use of our services. We encourage you to review this policy periodically so you remain informed about how we protect your personal data.

13. Summary of Our Commitment

At Tree Surgeons Greenwich, we respect your privacy and aim to process personal data in a way that is lawful, necessary, secure, and transparent. We collect only the information needed to provide our services, keep it only as long as required, share it responsibly with trusted processors, and support your rights under UK data protection law. This policy applies to all Tree Surgeons Greenwich customers in the area and is intended to give clear, practical information about how we handle personal data.