Privacy Policy

Draft for solicitor review. Last updated [date].

1. Who we are

[Trades Express Ltd] (company number [Company number], [Address]) is the controller of your personal data. We're registered with the Information Commissioner's Office, registration number [ICO number]. Contact us about privacy at [privacy email].

2. What we collect

Who	What we collect
Customers	Name, email, mobile number, property address and postcode, photos and answers about your heating, survey details and measurements, quotes, payments (card details are handled by Stripe, we never see your full card number), messages, problem reports, reviews
Engineers	Name, business name, contact details, Gas Safe number, identity check, insurance certificate, work area, bank details (held by Stripe), bids, job records, photos, paperwork, reviews and ratings, strikes
Everyone	Login details, device and browser information, usage of the app, help requests, notification settings
Invited reviewers	Name and mobile or email, given to us by the engineer who invited you

We don't ask for special category data such as health information. Please don't include it in messages or photos.

3. Why we use it, and our legal basis

Purpose	Legal basis
Running your account and your jobs: surveys, matching, quotes, installation, payments, payouts	Contract
Verifying engineers (Gas Safe, ID, insurance) and keeping customers safe	Legitimate interests, and legal obligation where gas safety law applies
Sending updates about your job by text, email and push notification	Contract
Handling problems, disputes, guarantee callbacks and complaints	Contract and legitimate interests
Showing reviews and ratings publicly	Legitimate interests (helping customers choose with trust)
Preventing fraud, fake reviews and off-app deals	Legitimate interests, and legal obligation for fake reviews
Keeping financial and tax records	Legal obligation
Improving the app (anonymous usage statistics)	Legitimate interests, or consent where cookies require it
Marketing emails or texts	Consent, which you can withdraw at any time

4. Who we share it with

• Your engineer or customer. Engineers see the photos, answers and postcode area of jobs they bid on. Only the winning engineer sees the customer's name, address and contact details. Customers see the engineer's business name, profile and reviews.
• Suppliers who deliver the boiler and kit get the delivery name and address.
• Service providers who run parts of the app for us, under contracts that protect your data: Stripe (payments and payouts), Railway (hosting and database), Cloudflare (photo storage and domain), Twilio (text messages and login codes), Resend (email), Google (sign-in with Google and Google ratings, only if used) and Anthropic (AI help, only if switched on). [Update this list to match the providers actually used at launch.]
• The public. Reviews, ratings, engineer profiles and the reviewer's first name and last initial are shown publicly.
• Authorities and advisers where the law requires it, or to protect safety, for example Gas Safe Register, HMRC, the police, or our lawyers and accountants.

We never sell your personal data.

5. Transfers outside the UK

Some of our providers process data outside the UK, for example in the USA. Where they do, we rely on UK adequacy regulations or approved safeguards such as the UK International Data Transfer Addendum. [Lawyer to confirm per provider.]

6. How long we keep it

Data	How long
Job records, photos, quotes, paperwork and messages	6 years after the job, to cover guarantees, legal claims and tax
Payment and financial records	6 years after the end of the financial year
Reviews	While the engineer's profile is live, or until removed under our Reviews Policy
Account details	Until you delete your account, then deleted or anonymised within 30 days except where we must keep them above
Engineer verification documents	While you're on Trades Express, plus 6 years
Unused review invites	30 days

7. Your rights

You have the right to access your data, correct it, delete it, restrict or object to how we use it, and receive a copy to take elsewhere. You can download your data and delete your account in the app's settings, or email [privacy email]. We'll reply within one month.

If you're unhappy with how we've handled your data, contact us first. You can also complain to the Information Commissioner's Office at ico.org.uk.

8. Keeping it secure

Your data is encrypted in transit and access is limited to people who need it. Engineers can't see a customer's address until they win the job.

9. Children

Trades Express is only for people aged 18 and over.

10. Changes

We'll tell you in the app or by email about any important changes to this policy.