Privacy Policy

1. Who We Are

Gould D&F Ltd ("we", "us", "our") is a painting and decorating company operating across London and Surrey. We take your privacy seriously and are committed to protecting your personal data in line with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

This policy explains what personal data we collect, why we collect it, how we use it, and your rights regarding that data.

2. What Data We Collect

We only collect data that is necessary for providing our services or responding to your enquiries, plus — only if you accept cookies — information about how our website is used. This includes:

• Contact information — your name, phone number, and email address
• Project details — your location/area, the type of work you're enquiring about, and any message you include in your quote request
• Communication records — copies of emails or messages exchanged between us
• Referral source — how you reached our website (for example, whether you arrived from a Google search result or a Google advert, and which page you first landed on). This is technical information about the visit, not about you personally, and it is attached to your enquiry so we know which of our own advertising is working.
• Website usage — only if you accept cookies: the pages you visit and how you click and scroll on them, recorded by Google Analytics and Microsoft Clarity (see section 9). We use this to find out which parts of the site work and which don't, not to identify you.

We do not collect sensitive personal data (such as financial information, health data, or identification documents) through our website.

3. How We Collect Data

We collect personal data when you:

• Fill in the quote request form on our Contact page
• Email us directly at contact@gouldsltd.co.uk
• Call us on 020 80 50 60 03

Our enquiry forms are powered by Web3Forms. Submitted data is transmitted securely over HTTPS and forwarded to us by email. Web3Forms' privacy policy is available at web3forms.com/privacy.

When you submit an enquiry we also record how you reached the site — the referring search engine or advert, and the page you first landed on. This is held only for the duration of your visit in your browser's session storage, is sent to us only if you choose to submit an enquiry, and is used solely to understand which of our own marketing brings in work. It is not used to build a profile of you and is not shared with anyone.

4. How We Use Your Data

The personal data you provide is used solely to:

• Respond to your quote request or enquiry
• Arrange a site visit and provide a written quotation
• Communicate with you about your project
• Fulfil any contract we enter into with you

We do not use your data for marketing purposes unless you have separately opted in. We do not sell, share, or rent your personal data to third parties.

5. Legal Basis for Processing

We process your personal data under the following lawful bases:

• Consent — when you tick the consent checkbox on our contact form, confirming you agree to us contacting you about your enquiry
• Consent (cookies) — for Google Analytics, Google Ads and Microsoft Clarity, which only set cookies after you click Accept on our cookie banner (see section 9)
• Legitimate interests — to respond to enquiries sent directly to our email or phone
• Contract — to fulfil obligations under any agreement for decorating services

6. How Long We Keep Your Data

We keep enquiry and quote records for up to 3 years after the last contact, in case of any follow-up. Records relating to completed contracts (invoices, correspondence) are retained for 7 years in accordance with HMRC requirements.

If we have not contacted you after your initial enquiry, or if you ask us to delete your data, we will remove your records promptly.

7. Data Security

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data from unauthorised access, loss, or disclosure. Our website uses HTTPS encryption for all data in transit. Access to enquiry data is restricted to authorised staff only.

8. Your Rights Under UK GDPR

You have the following rights regarding your personal data:

• Right of access — you can request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
• Right to rectification — you can ask us to correct inaccurate data
• Right to erasure — you can ask us to delete your data ("right to be forgotten")
• Right to restrict processing — you can ask us to limit how we use your data
• Right to object — you can object to our processing of your data
• Right to data portability — you can request your data in a commonly used, machine-readable format
• Right to withdraw consent — if processing is based on consent, you can withdraw it at any time

To exercise any of these rights, please email us at contact@gouldsltd.co.uk. We will respond within 30 days.

9. Cookies

When you first visit, a banner asks whether you accept non-essential cookies. None of the tools below set cookies until you click Accept. Your choice is saved in your browser so the banner doesn't reappear on every page.

If you click Accept, we use:

• Google Analytics — counts visits and shows which pages are used, so we can improve the site. Cookies: _ga and _ga_VS7MLPL7NL (up to 2 years).
• Google Ads — tells us whether a visit from one of our Google adverts led to an enquiry or a phone call. If you arrive from an advert, the phone number shown may be a Google forwarding number, so that calls from adverts can be counted. Cookies beginning _gcl_ (up to 90 days).
• Microsoft Clarity — records how visitors use our pages (clicks, scrolling and mouse movement) as session recordings and heatmaps, so we can see where the site is confusing or hard to use. Anything typed into a form is masked and never sent to Microsoft. Cookies: _clck (1 year) and _clsk (1 day); Microsoft may also set its own cookies on its clarity.ms domain. Clarity is not loaded at all unless you click Accept.

If you click Reject, or don't choose, Microsoft Clarity is not loaded and no analytics or advertising cookies are set. Google's tags still load but do not set or read cookies; they may send Google limited information without cookies (for example, that a page was viewed and which browser was used), which Google uses to estimate visitor numbers in aggregate.

You can change your choice at any time. This button withdraws any consent you have given, deletes the analytics and advertising cookies set on this site, and shows the cookie banner again:

Change cookie settings

Google Fonts is loaded from Google's servers, which may set a cookie or log your IP address. For details, see Google's Privacy Policy.

10. Third-Party Services

We use the following third-party services that may process data related to your visit:

• Vercel — website hosting (vercel.com)
• Web3Forms — enquiry form submissions (web3forms.com)
• Google Fonts — font delivery (fonts.googleapis.com)
• Google Analytics — website visit statistics; see section 9 (analytics.google.com)
• Google Ads — measuring which of our adverts lead to enquiries and calls; see section 9 (ads.google.com)
• Microsoft Clarity — session recordings and heatmaps, only if you accept cookies; see section 9 (clarity.microsoft.com)

Google's privacy policy is at policies.google.com/privacy and Microsoft's privacy statement at privacy.microsoft.com. We do not use social media tracking pixels (such as the Meta/Facebook Pixel), or any analytics or advertising tools other than those listed here.

11. Links to Other Websites

Our website may contain links to external sites (such as Google Reviews or trade directories). We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those sites and encourage you to read their privacy policies.

12. Children's Privacy

Our website and services are not directed at children under 16. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children.

13. Changes to This Policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time. The "last updated" date at the top of this page will reflect any changes. We encourage you to check this page periodically.

14. Complaints

If you believe we have not handled your personal data correctly, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) — the UK's data protection authority.

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

We would, however, appreciate the chance to resolve any concerns directly — please contact us first at contact@gouldsltd.co.uk.