Companions4U is responsible for deciding how and why your personal information is collected and used.
This privacy notice explains how Companions4U collects, uses, shares and retains your personal information, and describes your data protection rights.
- Contact details
- What information we collect, use, and why
- Lawful bases and data protection rights
- Where we get personal information from
- How long we keep information
- Who we share information with
- How to complain
Contact details
Telephone: 01329 722 101
Email: privacy@companions4u.uk
We collect or use the following information to provide services and goods, including delivery:
- Names and contact details
- Addresses
- Date of birth
- Purchase or account history
- Health information (including dietary requirements, allergies and health conditions)
- Account information
- Website user information (including user journeys and cookie tracking)
- Photographs
- Identification documents
- Information relating to compliments or complaints
Health information is special category personal data. We collect and use it only where this is necessary to provide our services, protect an individual’s vital interests or meet safeguarding responsibilities, and where an applicable condition under data protection law permits us to do so.
We collect or use the following information for the operation of customer accounts and guarantees:
- Names and contact details
- Addresses
- Purchase history
We collect or use the following information for service updates or marketing purposes:
- Names and contact details
- Addresses
- Purchase history
You can ask us to stop sending marketing communications at any time by contacting us using the details above. Stopping marketing communications will not prevent us from sending service messages about your bookings or account.
We collect or use the following information to comply with legal requirements:
- Name
- Contact information
- Identification documents
- Any other personal information required to comply with legal obligations
- Safeguarding information
We collect or use the following personal information for dealing with queries, complaints or claims:
- Names and contact details
- Address
- Payment details
- Account information
- Purchase or service history
- Customer or client accounts and records
- Financial transaction information
- Correspondence
Under UK data protection law, we must have a “lawful basis” for collecting and using your personal information. There is a list of possible
in the UK GDPR. You can find out more about lawful bases on the ICO’s website.
Which lawful basis we rely on may affect your data protection rights which are set out in brief below. You can find out more about your data protection rights and the exemptions which may apply on the ICO’s website:
- Your right of access - You have the right to ask us for copies of your personal information. You can request other information such as details about where we get personal information from and who we share personal information with. There are some exemptions which means you may not receive all the information you ask for.
- Your right to rectification - You have the right to ask us to correct or delete personal information you think is inaccurate or incomplete.
- Your right to erasure - You have the right to ask us to delete your personal information.
- Your right to restriction of processing - You have the right to ask us to limit how we can use your personal information.
- Your right to object to processing - You have the right to object to the processing of your personal data.
- Your right to data portability - You have the right to ask that we transfer the personal information you gave us to another organisation, or to you.
- Your right to withdraw consent – When we use consent as our lawful basis you have the right to withdraw your consent at any time.
If you make a request, we must respond to you without undue delay and in any event within one month.
To make a data protection rights request, please contact us using the contact details at the top of this privacy notice.
Our lawful bases for collecting or using personal information to provide services and goods are:
- Consent - we have permission from you after we gave you all the relevant information. All of your data protection rights may apply, except the right to object. To be clear, you do have the right to withdraw your consent at any time.
- Contract – we have to collect or use the information so we can enter into or carry out a contract with you. All of your data protection rights may apply except the right to object.
- Legitimate interests – we’re collecting or using your information because it benefits you, our organisation or someone else, without causing an undue risk of harm to anyone. All of your data protection rights may apply, except the right to portability. Our legitimate interests are:
We provide companionship and friendship services and need information about customers’ hobbies and interests so that we can identify suitable companions. We also use relevant information to assess whether a customer’s health needs fall within our business policies and applicable legal requirements. Because we operate a prepaid booking service, we need contact and payment-related information to manage cancellations, payment issues and complaints, and to issue receipts and confirmations.
For more information on our use of legitimate interests as a lawful basis you can contact us using the contact details set out above.
- Recognised legitimate interests - our pre-approved purpose for collecting or using personal information to provide and improve products and services for clients are:
We need to protect the physical, mental or emotional well-being of people who need extra support, or to protect them from harm or neglect (the ‘safeguarding condition’).
- Vital interests – collecting or using the information is needed when someone’s physical or mental health or wellbeing is at urgent or serious risk. This includes an urgent need for life sustaining food, water, clothing or shelter. All of your data protection rights may apply, except the right to object and the right to portability.
Our lawful bases for collecting or using personal information for the operation of customer accounts and guarantees are:
- Consent - we have permission from you after we gave you all the relevant information. All of your data protection rights may apply, except the right to object. To be clear, you do have the right to withdraw your consent at any time.
- Contract – we have to collect or use the information so we can enter into or carry out a contract with you. All of your data protection rights may apply except the right to object.
- Legitimate interests– we’re collecting or using your information because it benefits you, our organisation or someone else, without causing an undue risk of harm to anyone. All of your data protection rights may apply, except the right to portability. Our legitimate interests are:
- We need to gather this personal information as we operate a prepaid booking service and need to keep our customers up to date regarding any cancellations, payment issues or complaints and to issue receipts and confirmations.
For more information on our use of legitimate interests as a lawful basis you can contact us using the contact details set out above.
- Vital interests – collecting or using the information is needed when someone’s physical or mental health or wellbeing is at urgent or serious risk. This includes an urgent need for life sustaining food, water, clothing or shelter. All of your data protection rights may apply, except the right to object and the right to portability.
Our lawful bases for collecting or using personal information for service updates or marketing purposes are:
- Consent - we have permission from you after we gave you all the relevant information. All of your data protection rights may apply, except the right to object. To be clear, you do have the right to withdraw your consent at any time.
- Contract – we have to collect or use the information so we can enter into or carry out a contract with you. All of your data protection rights may apply except the right to object.
- Legitimate interests – we’re collecting or using your information because it benefits you, our organisation or someone else, without causing an undue risk of harm to anyone. All of your data protection rights may apply, except the right to portability. Our legitimate interests are:
We use relevant contact information to tell customers about offers and, separately, to notify them about booking cancellations.
For more information on our use of legitimate interests as a lawful basis you can contact us using the contact details set out above.
- Vital interests – collecting or using the information is needed when someone’s physical or mental health or wellbeing is at urgent or serious risk. This includes an urgent need for life sustaining food, water, clothing or shelter. All of your data protection rights may apply, except the right to object and the right to portability.
Our lawful bases for collecting or using personal information for legal requirements are:
- Consent - we have permission from you after we gave you all the relevant information. All of your data protection rights may apply, except the right to object. To be clear, you do have the right to withdraw your consent at any time.
- Legitimate interests – we’re collecting or using your information because it benefits you, our organisation or someone else, without causing an undue risk of harm to anyone. All of your data protection rights may apply, except the right to portability. Our legitimate interests are:
We may collect and retain relevant personal information where a health concern or accident occurs while a companion is with a customer, or where a companion who is trained in safeguarding identifies a safeguarding concern involving the customer.
For more information on our use of legitimate interests as a lawful basis you can contact us using the contact details set out above.
- Recognised legitimate interests - our pre-approved purpose for collecting or using personal information to comply with legal requirements are:
We may need to respond to or manage an emergency event or situation under the ‘emergencies condition’. We may also need to protect the physical, mental or emotional well-being of people who need extra support, or protect them from harm or neglect, under the ‘safeguarding condition’.
- Vital interests – collecting or using the information is needed when someone’s physical or mental health or wellbeing is at urgent or serious risk. This includes an urgent need for life sustaining food, water, clothing or shelter. All of your data protection rights may apply, except the right to object and the right to portability.
Our lawful bases for collecting or using personal information for dealing with queries, complaints or claims are:
- Consent - we have permission from you after we gave you all the relevant information. All of your data protection rights may apply, except the right to object. To be clear, you do have the right to withdraw your consent at any time.
- Contract – we have to collect or use the information so we can enter into or carry out a contract with you. All of your data protection rights may apply except the right to object.
- Legitimate interests – we’re collecting or using your information because it benefits you, our organisation or someone else, without causing an undue risk of harm to anyone. All of your data protection rights may apply, except the right to portability. Our legitimate interests are:
We may need to retain and use relevant information when a customer disputes a cancellation, including where a companion has identified that the customer requires more support than was disclosed on the pre-booking contact form, during a telephone call or at a visit.
For more information on our use of legitimate interests as a lawful basis you can contact us using the contact details set out above.
- Recognised legitimate interests - our pre-approved purpose for collecting or using personal information for dealing with queries, complaints or claims are:
We may need to share personal information with a public authority or another organisation where it requires the information for its public tasks or official functions under the ‘public task disclosure response condition’. We may also need to respond to or manage an emergency event or situation under the ‘emergencies condition’, or protect the physical, mental or emotional well-being of people who need extra support, or protect them from harm or neglect, under the ‘safeguarding condition’.
- Vital interests – collecting or using the information is needed when someone’s physical or mental health or wellbeing is at urgent or serious risk. This includes an urgent need for life sustaining food, water, clothing or shelter. All of your data protection rights may apply, except the right to object and the right to portability.
Where we get personal information from
- Directly from you
- Councils and other public sector organisations
- Publicly available sources
- From a member of your family who refers you to us
How long we keep information
We keep your personal data for as long as you remain a customer of Companions4U, we need to do so because we need to ensure we always have your details to pass on to organisations4U that may request this information by law, or if there is a medical emergency whilst you are with a companion! If you no longer stay as a customer of Companions4U we will delete your personal information from our files after 6 months has passed since your last booking.
For more information on how long we store your personal information or the criteria we use to determine this please contact us using the details provided above.
Who we share information with and others we share personal information with
- Organisations we need to share information with for safeguarding reasons
- Financial or fraud investigation authorities
- Organisations we’re legally obliged to share personal information with
- Emergency services
- Noted Next of Kin
We share only the personal information that is necessary for the relevant purpose. Where appropriate, we require recipients to protect the information and use it only for the purpose for which it was shared.
How to make a complaint
If you have any concerns about our use of your personal information, you can make a data protection complaint to us:
Email: privacy@companions4u.uk
If you remain unhappy with how we’ve used your data after raising a complaint with us, you can also complain to the ICO.
The ICO’s address:
Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Helpline number: 0303 123 1113
Website: https://www.ico.org.uk