Privacy Policy.

1. Introduction

At Lightning Locksmith ("we", "our", or "us"), we are committed to protecting and respecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, process, and protect your personal data when you use our website or engage our emergency locksmith services across Dorset.

We strictly adhere to the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. By using our services, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy.

2. The Data We Collect

To provide our emergency dispatch services effectively, we must collect specific personal information. This includes:

• Identity & Contact Data: Your name, telephone number, and email address.
• Location Data: The physical address or GPS location where the locksmith service is required (residential, commercial, or roadside).
• Technical & Usage Data: IP addresses, browser types, and standard analytics data collected via cookies when you interact with our website.
• Service Records: Details of the locks replaced, entry methods used, and documentation proving authorization to access the property or vehicle.

3. How We Use Your Data

We will only use your personal data when the law allows us to. The primary purposes for processing your data are:

• Service Execution: To dispatch an engineer to your location and fulfill our contractual obligations to you.
• Security & Verification: As a professional security provider, we are obligated to verify that you have the legal right to access the property or vehicle. We may record that this verification took place.
• Administrative Purposes: For accounting, processing invoices, and maintaining internal records.
• Website Improvement: To monitor website traffic, ensure our site functions correctly, and improve user experience.

4. Data Sharing and Disclosure

We do not sell, trade, or rent your personal data to third parties. We may only share your information under the following strict circumstances:

• Trusted Service Providers: With third-party platforms that facilitate our business operations (e.g., secure payment processors or accounting software).
• Law Enforcement: If requested by Dorset Police or other regulatory authorities, we will share service records and location data to assist in the prevention or detection of crime.

5. Data Retention

We will only retain your personal data for as long as reasonably necessary to fulfill the purposes we collected it for, including satisfying any legal, regulatory, tax, accounting, or reporting requirements. By law, we are required to keep basic information about our customers (including Contact and Identity data for invoicing) for a minimum of six years for tax purposes.

6. Your Legal Rights

Under UK data protection laws, you have rights regarding your personal data, including the right to:

• Request access to your personal data (a "data subject access request").
• Request correction of incomplete or inaccurate data we hold about you.
• Request erasure of your personal data (where there is no good reason for us continuing to process it).
• Object to the processing of your personal data.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the information provided below. We may need to request specific information from you to confirm your identity before processing your request.