Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

PropertyVault UK (“we”, “us”, “our”) is committed to protecting your privacy and personal data. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, and share your personal information when you use our website at propertyvault.uk (the “Site”) and our services.

We are the data controller for the purposes of the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. If you have questions about this policy or your personal data, contact us at privacy@propertyvault.uk.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Information You Provide

• Account registration: name, email address, and password when you create an account
• Newsletter subscription: email address and optional first name
• Contact forms: name, email, and message content when you contact us
• Event registration: name, email, and any additional information you provide
• Payment information: processed securely through Stripe — we do not store your full card details on our servers
• Forum and community: any content you voluntarily post in our community areas
• Calculator data: if you save calculator results to your account

2.2 Information Collected Automatically

• Device and browser information: IP address (anonymised), browser type, operating system, screen resolution
• Usage data: pages visited, time spent, referring URLs, click patterns
• Cookies and similar technologies: see our Cookie Policy below
• Location data: approximate location derived from IP address (country/region level only)

3. How We Use Your Information

We process your personal data on the following lawful bases under UK GDPR:

• Contract performance (Article 6(1)(b)): to provide your account, membership, and purchased services
• Legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f)): to improve our Site, analyse usage patterns, prevent fraud, and send relevant content recommendations
• Consent (Article 6(1)(a)): to send marketing emails (you can withdraw consent at any time)
• Legal obligation (Article 6(1)(c)): to comply with applicable laws, regulations, and legal processes

Specifically, we use your data to:

• Provide, maintain, and improve our services
• Process payments and manage subscriptions
• Send our newsletter and marketing communications (with your consent)
• Respond to your enquiries and provide customer support
• Analyse Site usage to improve user experience
• Detect and prevent fraud or abuse
• Comply with legal obligations

4. Data Sharing

We do not sell your personal data. We may share your information with:

• Service providers: hosting (Vercel), payment processing (Stripe), email delivery, analytics — all bound by data processing agreements
• Affiliate partners: if you click an affiliate link, the partner may receive a referral identifier — not your personal data
• Legal authorities: if required by law, court order, or to protect our legal rights
• Business transfers: in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets

International transfers: Some of our service providers may process data outside the UK. Where this occurs, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place, such as Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) approved by the ICO, or the service provider is located in a country with an adequacy decision.

5. Data Retention

• Account data: retained for the duration of your account and for 2 years after deletion, unless longer retention is required by law
• Newsletter subscribers: retained until you unsubscribe
• Contact form submissions: retained for 12 months
• Analytics data: aggregated and anonymised, retained indefinitely
• Payment records: retained for 7 years as required by HMRC
• Forum posts: retained until you delete them or request deletion

6. Your Rights Under UK GDPR

You have the following rights regarding your personal data:

• Right of access: request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
• Right to rectification: request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data
• Right to erasure: request deletion of your personal data (subject to legal retention requirements)
• Right to restrict processing: request that we limit how we use your data
• Right to data portability: receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format
• Right to object: object to processing based on legitimate interests or for direct marketing
• Right to withdraw consent: where processing is based on consent, you can withdraw it at any time
• Rights related to automated decision-making: we do not make solely automated decisions that significantly affect you

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at privacy@propertyvault.uk. We will respond within one month. If you are not satisfied with our response, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk.

7. Cookies

We use cookies and similar technologies to improve your experience, analyse usage, and deliver relevant content. See our full Cookie Policy at /cookies for details on what cookies we use, their purposes, and how to manage your preferences.

8. Children's Privacy

Our Site is not intended for individuals under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children. If you believe we have collected data from a child, please contact us immediately at privacy@propertyvault.uk.

9. Security

We implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data, including encryption in transit (TLS/SSL), secure password hashing, access controls, and regular security reviews. However, no method of transmission over the internet is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of material changes by posting a notice on our Site or by email. The “Last updated” date at the top of this page indicates the latest revision.

11. Contact

For privacy-related enquiries or to exercise your rights:

Data Controller: PropertyVault UK
Email: privacy@propertyvault.uk
ICO Registration: [Registration number to be added]