Privacy Policy
Hillier Studios ("we", "us", or "our") operates the website hillierstudios.co.uk (the "Site"). This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you visit our website or use our photography and creative services.
We are committed to protecting your personal data in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. Please read this privacy policy carefully. If you do not agree with the terms of this privacy policy, please do not access the site.
1. Information We Collect
We may collect personal information about you in a variety of ways, including:
Personal Data You Provide: Information you voluntarily give us when booking a session, filling out a contact form, subscribing to a newsletter, or communicating with us. This may include your full name, email address, phone number, postal address, and project or photography preferences.
Derivative Data: Information automatically collected by our servers when you access the Site, such as your IP address, browser type, operating system, access times, and the pages you viewed directly before and after accessing the Site.
Financial Data: Financial information (such as credit or debit card details) processed securely through our third-party payment processors when you make a booking or purchase. We do not store full payment card details on our servers.
2. Lawful Basis for Processing Your Data
Under the UK GDPR, we must have a valid lawful basis to collect and use your personal data. We rely on the following legal bases:
Consent: Where you have explicitly given us permission to process your personal data for a specific purpose (e.g., subscribing to a newsletter or opting-in to marketing communications).
Contractual Obligation: Where processing is necessary for the performance of a contract with you (e.g., fulfilling a photography booking, delivering digital galleries, or processing an order).
Legitimate Interests: Where processing is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided those interests are not overridden by your fundamental rights and freedoms (e.g., improving our website, analyzing site traffic, and managing basic client communications).
Legal Obligation: Where we need to comply with a legal or regulatory obligation (e.g., maintaining financial and tax records for HMRC).
3. How We Use Your Information
Having accurate information permits us to provide you with a smooth, efficient, and customized experience. Specifically, we may use information collected about you via the Site to:
Manage bookings, schedule photo shoots, and deliver your final galleries or products.
Respond to customer service requests, inquiries, and support needs.
Send administrative information to you, such as changes to our terms, conditions, and policies.
Send you marketing and promotional communications (where you have consented to receive them).
Administer prize draws, competitions, or promotional events.
Monitor and analyze usage and trends to improve your experience with the Site.
4. Disclosure of Your Information
We do not sell, trade, or otherwise transfer your personally identifiable information to outside parties, except in the following circumstances:
Service Providers: We may share your data with third-party vendors and service providers who perform services for us or on our behalf, including payment processing, data analysis, email delivery, hosting services, and customer service (such as Pixieset, our website and client gallery host).
Legal Requirements: We may disclose your information where required to do so by law, or in response to valid requests by public authorities (e.g., a court order or government agency).
Business Transfers: If Hillier Studios is involved in a merger, acquisition, or asset sale, your personal data may be transferred as part of that transaction.
5. Security of Your Data
We use administrative, technical, and physical security measures to help protect your personal information. While we have taken reasonable steps to secure the personal information you provide to us, please be aware that no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
6. Data Retention
We will only retain your personal data for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes we collected it for, including for the purposes of satisfying any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements. For tax and accounting purposes, client records and financial transactions are typically retained for a minimum of 6 years in accordance with UK legal requirements.
7. Your Data Protection Rights Under UK GDPR
Under the UK GDPR, you have several rights regarding your personal data:
The right to access: You have the right to request copies of your personal data.
The right to rectification: You have the right to request that we correct any information you believe is inaccurate or complete information you believe is incomplete.
The right to erasure: You have the right to request that we erase your personal data, under certain conditions.
The right to restrict processing: You have the right to request that we restrict the processing of your personal data, under certain conditions.
The right to object to processing: You have the right to object to our processing of your personal data, under certain conditions.
The right to data portability: You have the right to request that we transfer the data that we have collected to another organization, or directly to you, under certain conditions.
If you make a request, we have one month to respond to you. To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details below.
8. Third-Party Websites
The Site may contain links to third-party websites and applications of interest, including social media platforms. Once you have used these links to leave the Site, any information you provide to these third parties is not covered by this Privacy Policy, and we cannot guarantee the safety and privacy of your information.
9. Changes to This Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or for other operational, legal, or regulatory reasons. We will notify you of any changes by updating the "Last updated" date at the top of this Privacy Policy.
10. Contact Us
If you have questions, comments, or concerns about this Privacy Policy, or if you wish to exercise any of your data protection rights, please contact us at:
Business Name: Hillier Studios
Email: george@hillierstudios.co.uk
Website: hillierstudios.co.uk
If you feel that your data has not been handled correctly, you also have the right to lodge a complaint with the UK's data protection regulator, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), at www.ico.org.uk/concerns.