Privacy Policy

1. Who We Are

Teesdale Mercury Photos is a photographic service operated from 24 Market Pl, Barnard Castle, DL12 8NB. For the purposes of data protection legislation, we are the data controller responsible for your personal data.

If you have questions about this policy or how we handle your personal information, you can contact us at:

• Telephone: 01833 637140
• Address: 24 Market Pl, Barnard Castle, DL12 8NB

2. What Data We Collect

We may collect and process the following personal data:

Information you provide to us

• Name, email address, phone number and postal address when you make an enquiry, place an order, or contact us
• Payment details when you purchase prints or services (processed securely and not stored by us)
• Correspondence you send to us by email, post, phone or through our website contact form

Information collected automatically

• Technical data such as your IP address, browser type, operating system and general location data when you visit our website
• Pages visited, time spent on pages and other browsing behaviour on our website

Photographs

• As a photographic service connected to a local newspaper, we take photographs at public events and in other settings. These images may contain identifiable individuals. Where photographs are taken in public places for journalistic purposes, this is covered by the journalism exemption under UK GDPR. For commissioned photography (portraits, commercial work), we will agree the terms of use with you at the time of booking.

3. How We Use Your Data

We use your personal data for the following purposes:

• To process and fulfil orders for photographic prints and services
• To respond to enquiries and provide customer support
• To manage bookings for photography sessions
• To send you information about your order or booking
• To maintain and improve our website
• To comply with legal obligations

4. Legal Basis for Processing

Under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), we rely on the following lawful bases for processing your personal data:

• Contract: Processing necessary for the performance of a contract with you (e.g. fulfilling a print order or photography booking)
• Legitimate interests: Processing necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided those interests are not overridden by your rights (e.g. responding to enquiries, improving our services)
• Consent: Where you have given clear consent for us to process your personal data for a specific purpose
• Legal obligation: Processing necessary for compliance with a legal obligation (e.g. tax records)

5. Data Sharing

We do not sell, rent or trade your personal data to third parties. We may share your data with:

• Payment processors for the purpose of completing transactions
• Postal and delivery services for the purpose of delivering prints
• Professional advisers (accountants, lawyers) where necessary
• Law enforcement agencies if required by law

6. Data Retention

We will retain your personal data only for as long as is necessary for the purposes for which it was collected. Order records are retained for a period of six years for accounting and tax purposes. Enquiry data is retained for up to two years unless there is an ongoing business relationship. Our photographic archive is retained indefinitely as a historical record.

7. Your Rights

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

• Right of access: You have the right to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
• Right to rectification: You have the right to ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data
• Right to erasure: You have the right to ask us to delete your personal data in certain circumstances
• Right to restrict processing: You have the right to ask us to limit the way we use your data
• Right to data portability: You have the right to request a transfer of your data to another organisation
• Right to object: You have the right to object to certain types of processing, including processing for direct marketing

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details provided above. We will respond to your request within one month.

8. Cookies

Our website may use cookies and similar technologies to distinguish you from other users. This helps us to provide you with a good experience when browsing and also allows us to improve our site. Cookies are small text files placed on your device. You can set your browser to refuse all or some cookies, or to alert you when websites set or access cookies. If you disable or refuse cookies, some parts of this website may become inaccessible or not function properly.

9. Third-Party Links

This website may contain links to other websites. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of those sites. We encourage you to read the privacy policy of every website you visit.

10. Security

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data against unauthorised or unlawful processing and against accidental loss, destruction or damage. However, no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

11. Complaints

If you are unhappy with how we have handled your personal data, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK supervisory authority for data protection issues.

Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF
Website: ico.org.uk
Telephone: 0303 123 1113

12. Changes to This Policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time. Any changes will be posted on this page with an updated revision date. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.