Under data protection law, we can only use your personal data if we have a proper reason, eg:
- where you have given consent;
- to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations;
- for the performance of a contract with you or to take steps at your request before entering into a contract; or.
- for our legitimate interests or those of a third party.
A legitimate interest is when we have a business or commercial reason to use your personal data, so long as this is not overridden by your own rights and interests. We will carry out an assessment when relying on legitimate interests, to balance our interests against your own.
The table below explains what we use your personal data for and why.
| What we use your personal data for | Our reasons |
|---|---|
| Providing products and services to you | To perform our contract with you or to take steps at your request before entering into a contract |
| Preventing and detecting fraud against you or us | For our legitimate interest, ie to minimise fraud that could be damaging for you and/or us |
| To enforce legal rights or defend or undertake legal proceedings | Depending on the circumstances: —to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations; —in other cases, for our legitimate interests, ie to protect our business, interests and rights |
| Gathering and providing information required by or relating to audits, enquiries or investigations by regulatory bodies | To comply with our legal and regulatory obligations |
| Ensuring business policies are adhered to, eg policies covering security and internet use | For our legitimate interests, ie to make sure we are following our own internal procedures so we can deliver the best service to you |
| Operational reasons, such as improving efficiency, training and quality control | For our legitimate interests , ie to be as efficient as we can so we can deliver the best service to you |
| Ensuring the confidentiality of commercially sensitive information | Depending on the circumstances: —for our legitimate interests, ie to protect trade secrets and other commercially valuable information; —to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations |
| Statistical analysis to help us manage our business, eg in relation to our financial performance, customer base, product range or other efficiency measures | For our legitimate interests, ie to be as efficient as we can so we can deliver the best service to you |
| Preventing unauthorised access and modifications to systems | Depending on the circumstances: —for our legitimate interests, ie to prevent and detect criminal activity that could be damaging for you and/or us; —to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations |
| Protecting the security of systems and data used to provide our products and services | To comply with our legal and regulatory obligations We may also use your personal data to ensure the security of systems and data to a standard that goes beyond our legal obligations, and in those cases our reasons are for our legitimate interests, ie to protect systems and data and to prevent and detect criminal activity that could be damaging for you and/or us |
| Updating and enhancing customer records | Depending on the circumstances: —to perform our contract with you or to take steps at your request before entering into a contract; —to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations; —for our legitimate interests, eg making sure that we can keep in touch with our customers about existing orders and new products |
| Statutory returns | To comply with our legal and regulatory obligations |
| Marketing our products and services to: —existing and former customers; —third parties who have previously expressed an interest in our products and services; |
For our legitimate interests, ie to promote our products and services to potential, existing and former customers or where we have obtained your express consent. |
| External audits and quality checks, eg for ISO and B Corp and the audit of our accounts | Depending on the circumstances: —for our legitimate interests, ie to maintain our accreditations so we can demonstrate we operate at the highest standards; —to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations |
| To share your personal data with members of our group and third parties that will or may take control or ownership of some or all of our business (and professional advisors acting on our or their behalf) in connection with a significant corporate transaction or restructuring, including a merger, acquisition, asset sale, initial public offering or in the event of our insolvency. In such cases information will be anonymised where possible and only shared where necessary | Depending on the circumstances: —to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations; —in other cases, for our legitimate interests, ie to protect, realise or grow the value in our business and assets |
