PRIVACY POLICY

We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 16. If we learn we have done so, we will delete it promptly.

5. Legal Basis for Processing

We process personal data only where we have a lawful basis for doing so. Depending on the circumstances, these may include:

Consent – Article 6(1)(a) GDPR

Where you have given us clear permission for a specific purpose, including where we rely on consent to send you email marketing. You may withdraw your consent at any time.

Performance of a contract – Article 6(1)(b) GDPR

Where processing is necessary to provide a service you have requested or to take steps at your request before entering into a contract. This includes activities such as managing bookings, communicating about appointments and providing training or behaviour services.

Legal obligation – Article 6(1)(c) GDPR

Where we need to process or retain information to comply with a legal obligation.

Legitimate interests – Article 6(1)(f) GDPR

Where processing is necessary for the legitimate operation of Canine Connect, such as appropriate business administration, record keeping, service management, security and the establishment or defence of legal claims, provided those interests are not overridden by your rights and interests.

Where consent is the lawful basis for processing, withdrawing consent does not affect the lawfulness of processing carried out before that consent was withdrawn.

You can withdraw consent at any time by contacting us at info@canineconnect.ie.

6. How We Use Personal Data

We may use personal data to:

• Manage enquiries and bookings
• Deliver dog training and behaviour services
• Communicate with you about appointments and services you have booked
• Process and maintain records of payments and transactions
• Maintain appropriate training and behaviour records
• Confirm vaccination, titre-testing or other participation requirements where applicable
• Manage health and safety requirements associated with our services
• Respond to questions, complaints or requests
• Maintain appropriate business, tax, insurance and legal records
• Protect our legal rights
• Send marketing communications where permitted by law
• Manage our mailing list and newsletter subscriptions
• Improve our communications and services

We will not sell your personal data. We will not use personal data for purposes that are incompatible with the purposes for which it was collected unless permitted or required by law.

7. Service Communications

Emails or messages that are necessary to administer or provide a service are different from marketing communications. For example, we may contact you regarding:

• A booking or appointment
• Changes to a class or training session
• Payment or administrative matters
• Training plans or information relating to a service you have booked
• Health, safety or participation requirements
• Information necessary for the delivery of your service

We do not rely on marketing consent to send communications that are necessary to provide or administer a service you have requested.

8. Email Marketing and Newsletters

Where you subscribe to our mailing list, we may use your name and email address to send you Canine Connect newsletters and information about training classes and courses, workshops and events, gundog training and related activities, training information and educational content, new or updated Canine Connect services, and other relevant Canine Connect news and updates.

The general rule for electronic direct marketing is that we will obtain the appropriate consent before sending marketing communications unless another method of electronic marketing is expressly permitted by applicable law.

Providing your email address to enquire about or book a Canine Connect service does not, by itself, mean that you have consented to receive our general marketing newsletter.

Where applicable law permits us to contact an existing customer about our own similar products or services without separate marketing consent, we will only do so where the legal requirements for that exception are satisfied and an appropriate opportunity to opt out has been provided.

You have the right to object to the use of your personal data for direct marketing at any time. Every marketing email we send will provide an appropriate method for you to unsubscribe. You may also ask us to stop sending marketing communications by contacting info@canineconnect.ie. There is no charge for unsubscribing.

9. MailPoet

Canine Connect uses MailPoet to manage email subscriptions and send newsletters and other email communications.

Where you subscribe to our mailing list, information processed through MailPoet may include your name (where provided), email address, subscription status, mailing-list preferences, information associated with your subscription or signup, information required to demonstrate or manage your consent and subscription preferences, unsubscribe information and email delivery information.

Where email engagement analytics are enabled, MailPoet may also process information about whether emails have been opened and whether links within an email have been clicked. We use this information, where applicable, to understand engagement with our communications and improve the relevance and effectiveness of the emails we send.

Where available and appropriate, subscribers may be provided with controls relating to email engagement tracking. You can unsubscribe from Canine Connect marketing emails at any time using the unsubscribe facility contained in our emails.

Unsubscribing from marketing emails will not prevent us from sending you necessary service-related communications relating to an active booking, service or other contractual relationship. Further information about MailPoet and its privacy practices is available through MailPoet’s privacy information.

10. Who Has Access to Your Personal Data

Access to personal data within Canine Connect is restricted to people who require the information to perform their role or deliver our services.

We may also use trusted third-party service providers to operate our business, including:

• Payment processors
• Website and hosting providers
• Email and communications providers, including MailPoet
• Online form, booking or administrative service providers
• IT and technical service providers
• Accountants and bookkeepers
• Professional advisers where necessary

Where these organisations process personal data on our behalf, we take appropriate steps to ensure that personal data is handled in accordance with applicable data protection requirements.

We may also disclose personal data where reasonably necessary to comply with a legal obligation, in connection with legal proceedings, to establish, exercise or defend legal rights, where disclosure is otherwise required or permitted by law, or in connection with a sale, restructuring or transfer of all or part of the business, subject to appropriate data protection requirements.

11. International Data Transfers

Some technology or service providers used by Canine Connect may process or store personal data outside Ireland or the European Economic Area (EEA).

Where personal data is transferred outside the EEA, we will take appropriate steps to ensure that the transfer complies with applicable data protection law. Depending on the circumstances, this may include reliance on an adequacy decision adopted by the European Commission or appropriate safeguards such as approved Standard Contractual Clauses.

12. Retention of Personal Data

We retain personal data only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purpose for which it was collected and to meet applicable legal, tax, insurance, contractual and legitimate business requirements.

Client, transaction and professional records may generally be retained for up to six years after the end of our professional relationship where this is necessary for legal, tax, insurance, record-keeping or related purposes.

Different retention periods may apply to different categories of information where appropriate. Marketing subscription information is generally retained while you remain subscribed to our mailing list.

If you unsubscribe or object to direct marketing, we may retain limited information necessary to record and respect your preference not to receive further marketing and to demonstrate compliance with our legal obligations. Information that is no longer required will be securely deleted or anonymised where appropriate.

13. Security of Your Personal Data

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures designed to protect personal data against unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration, loss or destruction. These measures may include:

• Password-protected devices and accounts
• Appropriate access controls
• Secure data storage
• Restricted access to client information
• Appropriate physical security for paper records
• Appropriate security measures used by our service providers

While we take reasonable precautions to protect personal data, no method of electronic transmission or storage can be guaranteed to be completely secure.

14. Your Data Protection Rights

Depending on the circumstances, GDPR gives you rights including the right to:

• Be informed about how your personal data is processed
• Request access to personal data we hold about you
• Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete personal data
• Request erasure of personal data where the applicable legal requirements are met
• Request restriction of processing in certain circumstances
• Object to processing based on legitimate interests
• Object at any time to processing of your personal data for direct marketing
• Request data portability where the applicable requirements are met
• Withdraw consent at any time where processing is based on consent
• Lodge a complaint with the Data Protection Commission

These rights are subject to the conditions and exemptions contained in applicable data protection law and do not necessarily require us to delete information that we have a legal basis or obligation to retain.

To exercise your rights, contact info@canineconnect.ie. We may request appropriate proof of identity before responding to a request where necessary to protect personal data. We will respond to valid requests within the timeframe required by applicable data protection law, normally within one month.

15. Your Right to Object to Direct Marketing

You have the right to object at any time to the processing of your personal data for direct marketing purposes. If you object to direct marketing or unsubscribe from our mailing list, we will stop using your personal data for that purpose.

You can use the unsubscribe link contained in our marketing emails or contact us at info@canineconnect.ie.

Withdrawing from marketing communications does not affect communications that are necessary to provide or administer a service you have requested.

16. Complaints

If you have concerns about how Canine Connect handles your personal data, please contact us in the first instance so that we have an opportunity to address your concerns.

Email: info@canineconnect.ie

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Data Protection Commission (DPC) in Ireland. Current contact information and information about making a complaint are available on the Data Protection Commission website.

17. Updates to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, technology, legal requirements or data-processing practices.

When we make changes, we will update the Effective Date at the top of this policy, publish the revised Privacy Policy on our website, and provide additional notification where appropriate if a change is significant. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically.

18. Contact Information

For questions about this Privacy Policy, how Canine Connect processes your personal data, or to exercise your data protection rights, contact:

Olivia O’Gorman

Data Controller – Canine Connect

Email: info@canineconnect.ie

Phone: (087) 388 4021