Privacy Policy

2. Who We Are

For the purpose of UK data protection law, the data controller is Plot Share UK, located in Fobbing, England. If you have any questions about this policy or how we handle your data, please contact us at plotshareuk@gmail.com.

3. The Information We Collect

We collect and process the following types of information about you:

a) Information You Provide Directly to Us:

• Account & Profile Information: When you register for an account, we collect your name, email address, and password. You may also choose to provide additional information for your public profile, such as a username, a short biography, and a profile picture (avatar).
• Plot Listing Information: If you are an Owner, we collect all the details you provide about your plot, including its address, description, size, amenities, rules, and photographs.
• Viridis Exchange Listing Information: When you list an item on the Viridis Exchange, we collect the item's title, description, category, and any photos you upload.
• Communications: We collect information you provide when you communicate with other users through our messaging system, or when you contact us for support. This includes the content of your messages and any attachments.

b) Information We Collect Automatically:

• Usage Data: When you access the Platform, we automatically collect certain information, such as your IP address, browser type, device information, the pages you visit, the time and date of your visit, and how you interact with our services.
• Cookies and Similar Technologies: We use cookies to operate and administer our site, gather usage data, and improve your experience. A cookie is a piece of information sent to your browser that allows our site to remember information about your visit. You can control the use of cookies at the individual browser level.

c) Information from Third Parties:

• Payment Information: We do not collect or store your financial details (like credit card numbers). All payments are processed by a secure third-party payment processor (e.g., Stripe, PayPal). The processor provides us with transaction confirmations, but not your sensitive financial data.

4. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect for the following purposes, based on a lawful basis under UK GDPR:

To Provide and Maintain Our Service (Contractual Necessity):

• To create and manage your account.
• To display your profile, Plot listings, and Exchange listings to other users.
• To facilitate communication and agreements between Owners and Growers.
• To operate the Fair-Share Contribution Ledger and the Viridis Exchange.
• To process your payments and transactions.

To Improve Our Platform (Legitimate Interests):

• To understand how users interact with our Platform to improve its functionality and user experience.
• To diagnose technical issues and bugs.

To Communicate With You (Legitimate Interests):

• To respond to your support requests and inquiries.
• To send you important service-related announcements (e.g., changes to our Terms or security alerts).
• To send you marketing communications or newsletters, but only where we have your explicit consent to do so.

To Ensure Safety and Security (Legal Obligation & Legitimate Interests):

• To prevent fraud and abuse of our Platform.
• To enforce our Terms of Service.
• To comply with our legal obligations.

5. How We Share Your Information

We do not sell your personal data. We only share your information in the following circumstances:

With Other Users:

The core function of our Platform is to connect people. Therefore, certain information is shared publicly or directly with other users.

• Your public profile (username, avatar, bio) is visible to other registered users.
• Your Plot and Viridis Exchange listings are visible to other users.
• When you enter into a Share or Rental Agreement, we will facilitate the sharing of necessary contact information (such as the precise plot location) between you and the other user to enable the arrangement.

With Third-Party Service Providers:

We share information with trusted third parties who perform services on our behalf, such as web hosting, payment processing, data analytics, and email delivery. These providers are contractually obligated to protect your data and are not permitted to use it for their own purposes.

For Legal Reasons:

We may disclose your information if required to do so by law or in the good faith belief that such action is necessary to comply with a legal obligation, protect and defend our rights or property, prevent fraud, or protect the personal safety of our users or the public.

6. Data Security

We take the security of your data very seriously. We use a combination of technical, administrative, and physical controls to maintain the security of your data. This includes using SSL encryption for data in transit and controlling access to our systems. However, no method of transmission over the Internet is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee its absolute security.

7. Data Retention

We will retain your personal data only for as long as is necessary for the purposes set out in this Privacy Policy. We will retain and use your data to the extent necessary to comply with our legal obligations (for example, if we are required to retain your data to comply with applicable laws), resolve disputes, and enforce our legal agreements and policies. When your account is deleted, we will take steps to anonymise or delete your personal information.

8. Your Data Protection Rights

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

• The right to access: You can request copies of your personal data.
• The right to rectification: You can request that we correct any information you believe is inaccurate or complete information you believe is incomplete.
• The right to erasure: You can request that we erase your personal data, under certain conditions.
• The right to restrict processing: You can request that we restrict the processing of your personal data, under certain conditions.
• The right to object to processing: You can object to our processing of your personal data, under certain conditions.
• The right to data portability: You can request that we transfer the data that we have collected to another organisation, or directly to you, under certain conditions.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at plotshareuk@gmail.com. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK supervisory authority for data protection issues.

9. Children's Privacy

Our Platform is not intended for use by individuals under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 18. If we become aware that we have collected such data, we will take steps to delete it.

10. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any changes by posting the new policy on this page and updating the "Last Updated" date. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically for any changes.

11. Contact Us

If you have any questions, comments, or concerns about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please do not hesitate to contact us:

Plot Share UK - plotshareuk@gmail.com