Who we are
PHB Doggy Stylist is the trading name of Pippa Barrett, a sole trader providing mobile dog-grooming services in South Essex. The sole trader is the data controller responsible for deciding how and why your personal information is used.
You can contact us about this privacy policy, your information or a data-protection complaint by emailing [email protected].
Information we collect
Depending on how you use our website and services, we may collect the following information:
Contact and booking information
Your name, service address, email address, appointment dates, services requested, booking history and messages or notes relating to your appointment.
Information about your Dog
Your dog’s name, breed, age, weight, medical conditions, behavioural conditions and other grooming or welfare information you choose to provide. Information about a dog is not normally personal information by itself, but it forms part of your customer record when linked to you.
Payment and transaction information
Amounts charged, payment method, payment status, invoices and refunds. Card payments are processed by SumUp. We do not receive or store your full card number or card security code.
Photographs and recordings
Photographs or videos of your dog where you have given permission, internal CCTV video and audio captured inside the grooming van, and video-only dash-cam images captured around the vehicle.
Marketing information
Your marketing choices, the date and method of your consent, and information about whether marketing emails are delivered, opened or selected where this functionality is enabled.
Website and device information
Your IP address, device and browser information, pages visited, approximate location, referral source, cookie identifiers and website security or diagnostic logs.
Correspondence
Information you provide when you contact us, make an enquiry, submit a complaint or exercise a data-protection right.
How we collect information
We normally collect information directly from you when you use our website, make an Amelia booking, complete a customer or dog form, contact us, pay for a service, join our mailing list, provide photography permission or visit the grooming van.
We also receive technical and transaction information from service providers such as WordPress and GroomSlot, SumUp, Microsoft 365, Cloudflare, Google Analytics, Google Maps and Umami. Where another person books on your behalf, we may receive your information from that person.
Why we use your information and our lawful bases
To provide grooming services
We use contact, booking, dog and payment information to arrange and perform appointments, communicate with you and manage payments. Our lawful basis is performance of a contract or taking steps at your request before entering into a contract.
To protect animal welfare and provide a safe service
We use information about your dog’s health, weight and behaviour to plan the groom, reduce risks and record relevant care information. Our lawful bases are performance of our contract and our legitimate interests in providing a safe, suitable service.
To manage the business and customer service
We use records to respond to questions and complaints, prevent fraud, maintain service quality and establish, exercise or defend legal claims. Our lawful bases are performance of a contract and our legitimate interests in operating and protecting the business.
To meet legal and financial duties
We keep invoices, transaction and accounting information where required for tax, insurance, legal or regulatory purposes. Our lawful basis is compliance with a legal obligation and, where relevant, our legitimate interests.
To send marketing
We send promotional emails only where you have actively agreed to receive them. Our lawful basis is consent. You can withdraw consent at any time by using the unsubscribe option in an email or contacting us.
To use photographs or videos
We take and use photographs or videos of your dog only for the purposes explained when we ask for permission, such as customer records, our website or social media. Our lawful basis is consent. Refusing or withdrawing photography permission will not affect your grooming service.
To operate and improve the website
We use essential technical information for website operation, security and fraud prevention under our legitimate interests. We use non-essential analytics and mapping technologies only in accordance with your cookie choices, based on consent where required.
Internal CCTV and dash cam
Internal CCTV is motion-activated and records video and audio inside the grooming van when movement triggers the system while the van is operating for business. Its specific purpose is lone-worker safety where the groomer works alone, meets customers and handles cash. It may help deter, identify or provide evidence of violence, threats, theft, accidents or other serious incidents, and also helps protect customers, animals and property. Because audio is more intrusive than video, it is used only for this stated safety and evidential purpose and is not used for general monitoring.
The dash cam records video only. It may capture the road and area around the vehicle for road safety, vehicle security and evidence relating to collisions, damage or other incidents. Camera recording is switched off when the van is not being used for business. Our lawful basis for both systems is our legitimate interests in protecting a lone worker, maintaining a safe and secure service and protecting the business and its property.
Clear notices will state that video recording is in operation and that the internal CCTV also captures audio. Access to recordings is restricted and recordings are not published online. We may disclose a relevant clip to an insurer, legal adviser, the police or another authority where reasonably necessary.
Both systems use rolling or loop recording, so the oldest recording is automatically replaced as storage fills. Because the internal CCTV includes audio, routine internal CCTV recordings are not retained for longer than 7 days. Routine dash-cam footage is also not retained for longer than 7 days. A relevant clip may be preserved where it is needed to investigate an incident, respond to a complaint, support an insurance matter or comply with a legal request. Preserved recordings may then be retained until the matter is concluded and any applicable legal period has expired.
Who we share information with
We do not sell your personal information. Where necessary, we may share it with:
These websites may collect data about you, use cookies, embed additional third-party tracking, and monitor your interaction with that embedded content, including tracking your interaction with the embedded content if you have an account and are logged in to that website.
Who we share your data with
WordPress and GroomSlot
For website booking and appointment management.
Mautic
For customer communications, contact management and consent-based marketing.
Invoice Ninja
For invoicing and payment records.
SumUp
For card-payment processing.
Microsoft 365
For business email and document services.
Cloudflare
For website delivery, security and tunnel services.
Google Analytics, Google Maps and Umami
For consent-based analytics, location features and website performance, as applicable.
Professional advisers and insurers
Such as accountants, legal advisers and insurance providers where reasonably necessary.
Authorities and emergency services
Where required by law or necessary to protect people, animals or property.
Our suppliers may act as processors on our instructions or as independent controllers for parts of their services. They may keep information under their own legal and regulatory duties.
International transfers
Some suppliers, including Microsoft, Cloudflare, Google, GroomSlot and SumUp, may process information outside the United Kingdom. Where personal information is transferred internationally, we require an appropriate legal safeguard. This may include a UK adequacy regulation, the UK International Data Transfer Agreement, the UK Addendum to approved contractual clauses, or another safeguard permitted by UK data-protection law. You may contact us for more information about the safeguards relevant to your information.
How long we keep information
We keep information only for as long as it is reasonably needed for the purpose for which it was collected, including legal, tax, insurance and dispute-resolution requirements. Our standard retention periods are:
| Record | Standard retention period |
| Enquiries that do not become bookings | 12 months after the last contact |
| Active customer and dog profile | While you remain a customer and for 2 years after the last appointment; essential booking, consent or incident records may be retained longer as described below |
| Booking, service, consent and complaint records | 6 years after the relevant appointment or resolution of the matter |
| Invoices, payments and tax records | 6 years after the end of the relevant tax year, or longer where HMRC or another legal requirement applies |
| Marketing records | Until you unsubscribe, withdraw consent or we determine the consent is no longer current; a minimal suppression record may be kept to ensure we honour your choice |
| Photographs and videos used with permission | For the agreed purpose, reviewed at least every 2 years, and removed where reasonably possible after permission is withdrawn |
| Routine internal CCTV video/audio and dash-cam video | Rolling recording: the oldest recording is replaced as storage fills, with a maximum routine retention of 7 days. Preserved incident recordings may be kept until the incident, claim or legal matter is concluded |
| Analytics information | Up to 14 months where identifiable or linked to an online identifier, unless a shorter period is configured |
| Website security and diagnostic logs | Normally up to 90 days, unless required to investigate a security incident |
We review these periods and securely delete or anonymise information that is no longer needed. Information in backups is removed through the normal backup cycle.
Cookies, analytics and maps
Our website uses essential technologies needed for booking, security, payment and remembering privacy choices. It may also use Google Analytics, Google Maps and Umami to understand website use and provide map or location functions.
Non-essential cookies or similar technologies are not activated until you make an affirmative choice where consent is required. You can accept or reject them and change your selection through the website’s cookie controls. Rejecting non-essential technologies will not prevent you from accessing the core website or booking service, although a map or optional feature may not load.
Further details, including the specific cookies currently in use and their durations, should be provided in our Cookie Policy or cookie-preferences panel.
Marketing
Joining our marketing list is optional and is separate from making a booking. We record your consent and include an unsubscribe method in marketing emails. You can withdraw consent at any time. We may retain the minimum information needed on a suppression list so that we do not contact you again by mistake.
Security
We use appropriate technical and organisational measures designed to protect personal information against unauthorised access, alteration, disclosure, loss or destruction. These include access controls, secure accounts, protected website connections, restricted access to camera recordings, backups and limiting information to what is needed. No internet or storage system is completely secure, but we review our measures in proportion to the risks involved.
Your data-protection rights
Depending on the circumstances, you may have the following rights:
Access
To ask for a copy of the personal information we hold about you.
Correction
To ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
Erasure
To ask us to delete information in certain circumstances.
Restriction
To ask us to restrict how information is used in certain circumstances.
Objection
To object to processing based on legitimate interests and to object at any time to direct marketing.
Portability
To receive certain information you provided in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format.
Withdrawal of consent
To withdraw consent at any time where we rely on it, without affecting earlier lawful use.
These rights are not absolute and exemptions may apply. We may need enough information to verify your identity. There is normally no fee, and we will usually respond within one month. To exercise a right, email [email protected].
Complaints
If you are concerned about how we use your information, please email [email protected] with the subject line ‘Data protection complaint’. We will help you submit your complaint, acknowledge it within 30 days, investigate it appropriately and respond without undue delay.
You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK supervisory authority. Visit ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint or call 0303 123 1113. We would appreciate the opportunity to address your concern first, but you do not have to contact us before approaching the ICO.
Changes to this policy
We may update this policy when our services, suppliers or legal obligations change. The latest version will be published on our website with its updated date. Where a change materially affects how we use information, we will take reasonable steps to bring it to your attention.