Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

At Martyn Lawn Estates (“we”, “our”, or “us”), we take your privacy and the protection of your personal information with the utmost seriousness. We are committed to operating transparently, adhering strictly to the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

This policy explains how we collect, store, use, and safeguard personal information when you visit our website, communicate with our Guildford and Surrey offices, use our conversational AI Property Assistant, or engage our sales, lettings, and valuation services.

2. Data Controller Information

Martyn Lawn Estates is the Data Controller responsible for your personal information.

3. Information We Collect

We may collect, retain, and process the following categories of personal data:

• Identity & Contact Details: Full name, title, residential address, email address, and telephone numbers.
• Property Search Criteria: Specific requirements such as preferred Surrey locations, budget, bedroom count, architectural preferences, timeline, and buying/renting position.
• Property Ownership & Valuation Details: Information regarding properties you own, wish to value, sell, or let, including address, property features, EPC records, and historical valuations.
• Verification & Financial Information: Proof of identity (passport, driving licence), proof of address, mortgage Agreement in Principle, proof of deposit, or source of wealth documents necessary to fulfill our statutory obligations under UK Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulations.
• AI Assistant & Chatbot Data: Search queries, conversational context, and preferences you share with our intelligent property assistant to help recommend listings or schedule consultations.
• Technical & Usage Information: IP addresses, browser types, operating systems, referring URLs, and website interactions collected automatically through functional cookies.

4. How We Use Your Data

We process your personal information for specific, lawful purposes:

• To present tailored property recommendations and arrange viewings.
• To conduct professional property appraisals and market valuations.
• To administer client accounts, tenancy agreements, and sales negotiations.
• To power our AI Property Assistant and answer your questions promptly.
• To comply with legal obligations, including HMRC Anti-Money Laundering and Right to Rent verifications.
• To communicate important updates regarding relevant property listings, subject to your communication preferences.

5. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under UK GDPR, we rely on the following legal grounds to process your information:

6. Data Sharing & Third Parties

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal data to third parties. We may disclose personal data to trusted service providers solely when strictly required:

• Conveyancers, solicitors, surveyors, and mortgage brokers with your explicit request or direction.
• Professional photographers, floor-planners, and EPC assessors preparing your marketing material.
• Identity verification and AML screening providers to fulfill statutory compliance.
• Secure technology providers hosting our database, cloud systems, and AI models under rigorous data processing agreements.
• Law enforcement or regulatory authorities when required by applicable law.

7. Data Retention & Security

We retain personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was gathered, including satisfying legal, accounting, or statutory reporting requirements (typically up to 7 years following the conclusion of a property transaction for financial and anti-money laundering records).

All personal data is protected using industry-standard encryption, strict access controls, and secure data hosting facilities located within the United Kingdom and European Economic Area.

8. Your Statutory Rights

Under UK data protection law, you hold rights regarding your personal data:

• Right of Access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Right to Rectification: Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information.
• Right to Erasure: Request deletion of your personal data where retention is no longer justified.
• Right to Restrict or Object: Restrict or object to our processing of your data under certain circumstances.
• Right to Data Portability: Obtain and reuse your personal data in a machine-readable format.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact our Data Protection Officer at privacy@martynlawn.com. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk.