Privacy Policy

1. Company Information

This Privacy Policy explains how Wicked Gardens LTD (“we”, “us”, “our”), a company registered in England and Wales, collects, uses, stores and protects your personal information when you use our website, contact us or engage our services.

We are committed to protecting your privacy and complying with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

Data Controller: Wicked Gardens LTD
Contact: [email protected] | 020 8244 7700
Address: South East London, SE8 4LA

2. Information We Collect

We collect personal information in several ways, depending on how you interact with us:

2.1 Information You Provide Directly

When you contact us, request a quote, book a consultation or engage our services, we may collect:

• Your name and title
• Email address
• Telephone number (landline and/or mobile)
• Postal address and postcode
• Details about your garden and property
• Photographs of your garden (if you share them with us)
• Your preferences, requirements and project brief
• Payment information (processed securely via bank transfer)

2.2 Information Collected Automatically

When you visit our website, we automatically collect certain technical information:

• IP address and approximate geographic location
• Browser type and version
• Operating system and device type
• Pages visited, time spent on pages and navigation patterns
• Referring website or search engine
• Date and time of your visit

This information is collected through cookies and similar technologies. Please see our Cookie Policy for more details.

2.3 Information from Third Parties

We may receive personal information about you from third parties, including:

• Referrals from existing clients or partners
• Review platforms (Google, Houzz) where you leave public reviews
• Social media platforms where you interact with our content
• Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager (anonymised usage data)

3. How We Use Your Information

We use your personal information for the following purposes:

3.1 To Provide Our Services

• Responding to your enquiries and providing quotes
• Arranging and conducting site visits and consultations
• Creating garden designs and project proposals
• Managing and delivering landscaping, design and maintenance projects
• Processing payments and managing invoices
• Providing aftercare guidance and warranty support

3.2 To Communicate With You

• Sending project updates, schedules and progress reports
• Responding to questions, feedback and complaints
• Sending seasonal garden advice and tips (if you have subscribed)
• Notifying you of changes to our services or terms

3.3 To Improve Our Website and Services

• Analysing website usage to improve content and user experience
• Understanding which services are most popular
• Monitoring website performance and security
• Testing and improving our website functionality

3.4 For Legal and Business Purposes

• Complying with legal obligations and regulatory requirements
• Protecting our rights, property and safety
• Preventing fraud and managing risk
• Maintaining business records for accounting and tax purposes

4. Legal Basis for Processing

Under UK GDPR, we process your personal data on the following legal bases:

• Contract: Processing is necessary for the performance of a contract with you (e.g., providing garden design and landscaping services you have requested).
• Legitimate Interest: Processing is necessary for our legitimate business interests (e.g., marketing, improving our services, website analytics), provided these do not override your rights.
• Consent: Where you have given clear consent for us to process your data for a specific purpose (e.g., subscribing to our newsletter). You can withdraw consent at any time.
• Legal Obligation: Processing is necessary to comply with a legal obligation (e.g., tax records, health and safety requirements).

5. Data Sharing and Third Parties

We do not sell, rent or trade your personal information to third parties for marketing purposes. We may share your information with:

5.1 Service Providers

• Website hosting and maintenance providers
• Email service providers (for newsletters and communications)
• Analytics providers (Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager)
• Payment processing services
• Cloud storage providers

5.2 Subcontractors and Partners

Where we engage specialist subcontractors (e.g., tree surgeons, electricians, carpenters) to work on your project, we may share your name, address and relevant project details with them to facilitate the work. This is done only with your knowledge and only to the extent necessary to deliver the agreed services.

5.3 Legal Requirements

We may disclose your personal information if required to do so by law, court order, regulatory authority or in good faith where disclosure is necessary to protect our rights, your safety or the safety of others.

5.4 Business Transfers

In the event of a merger, acquisition or sale of all or part of our business, your personal information may be transferred to the new owner. You will be notified of any such change and your rights under this policy will continue to be protected.

6. International Data Transfers

Your personal data is primarily stored and processed within the United Kingdom. Some of our service providers (e.g., Google Analytics, cloud hosting) may process data outside the UK. Where this occurs, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place, including:

• Transfers to countries with an adequacy decision from the UK government
• Standard contractual clauses approved by the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO)
• Other legally recognised transfer mechanisms

7. Data Retention

We retain your personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected:

• Client project data: Retained for 7 years after project completion (for warranty, legal and accounting purposes).
• Enquiry data (non-clients): Retained for 2 years from the date of your last contact with us, then securely deleted.
• Newsletter subscribers: Retained until you unsubscribe. You can unsubscribe at any time.
• Website analytics data: Retained for 26 months (Google Analytics default), then automatically deleted.
• Financial records: Retained for 7 years as required by HMRC.

8. Data Security

We take the security of your personal information seriously and implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect it, including:

• SSL/TLS encryption on our website (HTTPS)
• Secure password-protected systems for storing client data
• Limited access to personal data on a need-to-know basis
• Regular review of security practices and procedures
• Secure disposal of physical documents containing personal data

While we take all reasonable steps to protect your data, no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security but will notify you and the ICO of any data breach that poses a risk to your rights and freedoms.

9. Your Rights Under UK GDPR

Under UK data protection law, you have the following rights regarding your personal information:

• Right of Access: You can request a copy of the personal data we hold about you (a 'Subject Access Request').
• Right to Rectification: You can ask us to correct any inaccurate or incomplete personal data.
• Right to Erasure: You can ask us to delete your personal data where there is no compelling reason for us to continue processing it.
• Right to Restrict Processing: You can ask us to temporarily stop processing your data in certain circumstances.
• Right to Data Portability: You can request your personal data in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format.
• Right to Object: You can object to processing based on legitimate interests or for direct marketing purposes.
• Right to Withdraw Consent: Where processing is based on consent, you can withdraw that consent at any time without affecting the lawfulness of prior processing.
• Rights Related to Automated Decision-Making: We do not use automated decision-making or profiling that produces legal effects concerning you.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at [email protected]. We will respond to your request within one calendar month. In complex cases, we may extend this by a further two months, but we will inform you if this is necessary.

10. Marketing Communications

We will only send you marketing communications (such as our garden inspiration newsletter) if you have explicitly opted in. You can unsubscribe at any time by:

• Clicking the 'unsubscribe' link in any marketing email
• Emailing us at [email protected] with 'Unsubscribe' in the subject line
• Contacting us by phone on 020 8244 7700

Unsubscribing from marketing will not affect service-related communications (e.g., project updates, invoices, warranty information).

11. Children's Privacy

Our website and services are not directed at children under 16. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe we have inadvertently collected data from a child, please contact us immediately and we will take steps to delete it.

12. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

Our website uses cookies and similar tracking technologies. For full details on which cookies we use, why we use them and how to manage your preferences, please see our Cookie Policy.

13. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal requirements or business operations. Any changes will be posted on this page with an updated revision date. We encourage you to review this page periodically. Material changes will be communicated via email where possible.

14. Complaints

If you are unhappy with how we have handled your personal data, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO):

• Website: ico.org.uk
• Helpline: 0303 123 1113

We would appreciate the opportunity to address your concerns before you contact the ICO. Please reach out to us first at [email protected].

15. Contact Us

For any questions, concerns or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or your personal data, please contact us:

• Email: [email protected]
• Phone: 020 8244 7700
• WhatsApp: 07474 666636
• Address: Wicked Gardens LTD, South East London, SE8 4LA