Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

Welcome to SilverOak Property Services, the website for SilverOak Property Services, a UK-based estate agency. We are committed to protecting the privacy and security of your personal data. This Privacy Policy outlines how we collect, use, and protect your personal information in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018, and other relevant UK legislation.

2. Our Details

SilverOak Property Services is a limited company registered in England & Wales with company number 16512616. Our registered office is at 7 Kitchener Road, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, HP11 2SH.

For the purposes of data protection legislation, we are the ‘data controller’ of the personal information we collect and process. Our registration number with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is ZB952251. You can verify our registration by searching the ICO Register of data controllers.

3. The Information We Collect

We may collect and process the following personal information about you:

  • Identity and Contact Data: Name, address, email address, telephone number, and gender.
  • Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Data: This is a legal requirement. We will collect information to verify your identity, including copies of your passport, driving license, or other photo ID, and proof of address (e.g., a recent utility bill). We may also need to collect information about the source of funds for a property purchase.
  • Property Information: Details of the property you are interested in or looking to sell/rent, including your financial and property-related preferences.
  • Financial Data: Information related to your financial situation, such as mortgage details or proof of funds, as required for legal and regulatory purposes.
  • Technical Data: Your IP address, browser type and version, time zone setting, operating system, and other technology on the devices you use to access our website.
  • Usage Data: Information about how you use our website, including the pages you visit, the links you click, and the time and date of your visits.
  • Special Category Data: In limited circumstances, we may process special category data, such as health information (e.g., for disability access requirements during viewings) or data about criminal convictions. This is only done with your explicit consent or where we have another lawful basis to do so for a specific purpose.

 

 4. How and Why We Use Your Information (Legal Basis)

We will only process your personal information when we have a valid legal basis to do so. These are the main legal bases we rely on:

  • Performance of a Contract: To fulfil our contractual obligations to you, for example, to market your property, arrange viewings, or facilitate a sale or rental agreement.
  • Legal Obligation: To comply with a legal or regulatory requirement, such as conducting compulsory Anti-Money Laundering (AML) checks under the MLR 2017.
  • Legitimate Interests: When the processing is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided your interests and fundamental rights do not override those interests. This includes:
    • Communicating with you to provide updates on properties you are interested in.
    • Responding to your enquiries and requests.
    • Sending you non-intrusive marketing communications about services or properties that may be of genuine interest, but only where you have not opted out.
    • Improving our website and services through data analysis.
  • Consent: Where you have given us your explicit consent to process your personal data for a specific purpose, such as to subscribe to our marketing newsletter. You have the right to withdraw this consent at any time.
  1. Sharing Your Information

We may share your personal information with the following third parties:

  • Third-Party Service Providers: We use trusted third-party service providers, such as IT providers, data storage providers, and marketing platforms, to help us run our business. We only share the information necessary for them to perform their services, and they are required to protect your data.
  • Property Professionals: To facilitate your property transaction, we may share your information with solicitors, mortgage brokers, surveyors, and other estate agents (if required for a joint agency).
  • Property Portals: To list your property for sale or rent, we will share your property details and contact information with online property portals such as Rightmove, Zoopla, and OnTheMarket.
  • Legal and Regulatory Authorities: We will share your personal information with law enforcement agencies, HMRC, the ICO, and other regulatory bodies when required to do so by law (e.g., for AML compliance).

We do not and will never sell or rent your personal information to any third party.

 6. International Transfers

Your personal data may be transferred and stored in countries outside the UK and the European Economic Area (EEA). When this occurs, we ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place to protect your data and to ensure it is treated in a manner consistent with UK data protection laws, for example by using standard contractual clauses approved by the ICO.

7. Data Retention

We will only retain your personal information for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, including for the purposes of satisfying any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements.

  • Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Data: We are legally required under the MLR 2017 to retain records of our AML checks for a minimum of 5 years after the completion of a transaction or the end of a business relationship.
  • General Client Records: For general business and accounting purposes, we may retain your personal data for a period of up to 6 years after the end of the business relationship, in line with the statute of limitations and recommendations from industry bodies like The Property Ombudsman.
  • Marketing Data: We will retain your data for marketing purposes until you exercise your right to object or withdraw your consent.

Once the retention period has passed, we will securely destroy your personal information in accordance with our data destruction policy.

8.Your Rights

Under UK GDPR, you have the following rights in relation to your personal information. To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at the details provided below.

  • Right to Access: You have the right to request a copy of the personal information we hold about you. We will respond to your request within one month.
  • Right to Rectification: You have the right to request that we correct any inaccurate or incomplete personal information we hold about you.
  • Right to Erasure (‘Right to be Forgotten’): You have the right to request that we delete your personal information in certain circumstances.
  • Right to Restrict Processing: You have the right to request that we restrict the processing of your personal information in certain circumstances.
  • Right to Data Portability: You have the right to receive the personal information you have provided to us in a structured, commonly used, and machine-readable format.
  • Right to Object: You have the right to object to the processing of your personal information, particularly for direct marketing purposes or where we are relying on a legitimate interest.
  • Right to Withdraw Consent: Where we are processing your data based on your consent, you have the right to withdraw that consent at any time.
  1. How to Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or wish to exercise any of your rights, please contact us:

  • Email: office@silveroakpropertyservices.co.uk
  • Telephone: 0121 690 6900
  • Address: 7 Kitchener Road High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, HP11 2SH.

10. Complaints

You have the right to make a complaint at any time to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK supervisory authority for data protection issues. We would, however, appreciate the chance to deal with your concerns before you approach the ICO, so please contact us in the first instance.

  1. Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time. The latest version will always be available on our website. We will notify you of any significant changes by email or a prominent notice on our website.

Last updated:01/08/2025