Privacy Policy for Gants Hill Flowers Customers

Privacy Policy Statement

At Gants Hill Flowers, we value our customers' privacy and are committed to protecting your personal data in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other applicable privacy regulations. This Privacy Policy describes how we collect, use, share, and protect your personal information. It applies to all individuals placing flower orders with Gants Hill Flowers in Gants Hill and the surrounding districts.

What Data We Collect

When you place an order or interact with Gants Hill Flowers, we may collect and process the following categories of personal data:

Contact Information: Including your full name, delivery address, billing address, and telephone number.
Order Details: Items purchased, special instructions, recipient information, requested delivery date, and purchase history.
Payment Information: Such as card payment details or transaction references, processed securely through our payment processors.
Communication Data: Correspondence you send us, such as order confirmations, customer service enquiries, and feedback provided.
Technical Data: Information like your device's IP address, browser type, and, where allowed, location data to support website functionality and prevent fraud.

Lawful Basis for Processing Personal Data

We process your personal data only when we have a lawful basis to do so under the GDPR. The primary lawful bases applicable to our activities include:

Contractual Necessity: We process your data to fulfill your order and provide the requested service. For example, we require your address to deliver flowers and contact information to update you about your order status.
Legal Obligation: Some data is processed to comply with laws that apply to our business, such as accounting, tax, or fraud prevention regulations.
Legitimate Interests: We may process certain data to improve our service, customize your experience, conduct analytics, and prevent fraud, provided your rights and interests do not override our legitimate interests.
Consent: In situations where neither of the above applies, we seek your explicit consent before processing data. For example, for email marketing or collection of optional survey information.

How We Use Your Data

Your personal data is used for the following purposes:

To process and deliver your orders accurately and efficiently.
To communicate with you about your order, delivery updates, or customer service enquiries.
To improve the quality and safety of our floral services and website.
To meet our own internal business and administrative obligations, including record keeping.
To comply with legal requirements and protect our business interests in case of disputes or fraud.

Sharing and Data Processors

We never sell or trade your personal information. We may share your data with trusted third parties only when necessary to deliver our services and always subject to GDPR requirements. These processors include:

Payment Service Providers: To securely process payment transactions. We do not store or have access to your full payment card details.
Delivery Partners: Such as couriers who need delivery details to complete your order.
IT and System Support Providers: Companies that host our website, manage our systems, or provide technical maintenance.
Legal and Regulatory Authorities: Where required by law, regulation, or legal process.

All third-party service providers are required to respect the security of your data and to treat it in accordance with the law. They are only permitted to process your personal data in accordance with our instructions and for the specified purposes.

Data Retention

We retain your personal data only as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected, including any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements. Typically, customer order and contact data are kept for up to seven years to meet financial regulations and for record-keeping. After the retention period, your personal data is securely deleted or anonymized unless a longer retention period is required by law.

Security of Your Information

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal data against unauthorized access, loss, or misuse. These include secure storage environments, limited access controls, secure payment processing, and regular security audits.

Your Rights as a Data Subject

Under the GDPR, you have several important rights regarding your personal data. You have the right to:

Access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Rectification: Request corrections to any incomplete or inaccurate data.
Erasure: Request deletion of your personal data where there is no lawful reason for its continued processing.
Restriction: Request that we restrict processing your data in certain circumstances.
Objection: Object to processing of your personal data, particularly for direct marketing purposes.
Data Portability: Request a copy of your personal data in a structured, commonly used, and machine-readable format to transfer to another provider.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us through our website or in writing. We will respond to your request in accordance with applicable GDPR timelines and requirements. If you believe we have not handled your information in accordance with the law, you also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local supervisory authority.

Children’s Privacy

Gants Hill Flowers does not knowingly collect or process personal data relating to children. Our services are intended for adults placing orders for themselves or as gifts. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, please let us know so we can remove such data promptly.

Changes to This Privacy Policy

We periodically review and may update this Privacy Policy to reflect changes to our practices, services, or legal requirements. Where appropriate, we will notify customers of significant policy changes. We encourage you to review this policy regularly to stay informed about how we protect your data.

Scope of This Policy

This Privacy Policy applies to all Gants Hill Flowers customers placing orders from Gants Hill and nearby districts. By placing an order or interacting with our service, you acknowledge and accept the practices described in this policy.