Privacy Policy

Who we are

Flue Fighter, 29 Foxley Lane, Worthing, BN13 3AD, is the data controller for the personal information described in this notice. That means we decide what information is collected about you and how it is used. If you have any question about this policy, or about your information, email hello@fluefighter.co.uk.

What information we collect

We only collect what we need to arrange, carry out and record your chimney sweep:

• Your name, phone number and email address.
• The address of the property being swept, plus any access notes you give us (for example gate codes or where to park).
• Appliance details — the type, make and model of your stove or open fire, the flue, lining and any faults or observations noted on the visit.
• Photographs of the appliance, hearth or flue taken during a visit, where useful as a record or to share with you.
• Appointment history, sweep certificates, next-sweep due dates, invoices and payment status.
• Messages you send us by the website form, email, phone or WhatsApp.

We do not knowingly collect special category data (such as health information) and we do not collect data about children. We do not store your card or bank details — payments are made in cash, by card or by bank transfer directly to our bank.

Why we use it, and our lawful basis

Under UK GDPR we must have a lawful basis for every use of your data:

• Performance of a contract — arranging your appointment, sweeping your chimney, issuing your HETAS certificate and invoicing you.
• Legal obligation — keeping accounting and tax records, and keeping certificate records for safety and insurance purposes.
• Legitimate interests — sending booking confirmations, appointment reminders and post-visit follow-ups, keeping service records so we can answer queries, and protecting our business against disputes.
• Consent — where you have asked to receive annual sweep-due reminders or other optional messages. You can withdraw consent at any time.

Emails we send you

We send service emails linked to your booking: a booking confirmation, an appointment reminder the day before, a thank-you and aftercare note after the visit, your invoice, and a reminder when your next sweep is due. These keep your appointment running smoothly and your appliance safe. You can opt out of reminder and marketing-style emails at any time by replying or emailing hello@fluefighter.co.uk; we will still need to send transactional messages such as invoices and certificates while you are a customer.

Who we share it with

We never sell your data and we never share it for third-party marketing. We share it only with the service providers that make our business work, and only as far as needed:

• Our secure cloud database and file storage provider, which hosts our customer records and appliance photographs.
• Our email delivery provider, which sends the confirmations, reminders, invoices and certificates listed above.
• Our accountant and, where required, HMRC, for tax and accounting purposes.
• HETAS or your insurer, only where you ask us to, or where a safety obligation requires it.
• The police or other authorities where we are legally required to disclose information.

Our providers process data on our instructions under written terms. Where any provider processes data outside the UK, appropriate safeguards such as the UK International Data Transfer Addendum apply.

How long we keep it

We keep your customer record, appliance details, photographs and sweep history for as long as you remain a customer, so that we can issue replacement certificates, track when your next sweep is due, and see the history of your appliance. If you ask us to delete your record, or once you tell us you no longer wish to use us, we delete your details — except for invoices and accounting records, which we are legally required to keep for six years from the end of the relevant tax year.

How we keep it safe

Customer records are held in an access-controlled cloud database. Only signed-in Flue Fighter staff accounts can read or change customer data — row-level security rules block all public and anonymous access, and an automated check runs every night to confirm those rules are still in force. Photographs are held in a private storage area and are only viewable through time-limited private links. Data is encrypted in transit and at rest by our hosting provider.

Your rights

Under UK GDPR you have the right to:

• Be told what we hold about you and get a copy of it (a subject access request).
• Have inaccurate information corrected.
• Have your information deleted, where we no longer need it and no legal obligation requires us to keep it.
• Restrict or object to how we use your information, including objecting to reminder emails.
• Receive your information in a portable, machine-readable format.
• Withdraw consent at any time, where consent is our lawful basis.

To exercise any of these rights, email hello@fluefighter.co.uk or write to Flue Fighter, 29 Foxley Lane, Worthing, BN13 3AD. We respond within one month and there is no charge in normal circumstances.

Cookies and the website

This website does not use advertising or tracking cookies and does not profile visitors. Any information you type into the booking or contact form is sent to us so we can respond to your enquiry — nothing is shared with advertisers.

Complaints

If you are unhappy with how we have handled your information, please tell us first at hello@fluefighter.co.uk so we can put it right. You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK's data protection regulator, at ico.org.uk or on 0303 123 1113.

Changes to this policy

We may update this notice as our services change. The date at the top of the page shows when it was last revised, and the current version always lives at fluefighter.co.uk/privacy.