Security and Privacy Policy

Your security is important to us

Secure Server

When making purchases from Topsoil.co.uk, your payments are processed using a Secure Server. This means that any information you send is encrypted using 128-bit SSL certificates and cannot be examined, used or modified by third parties. You can tell whether a page is secure as ‘https’ will replace the ‘http’ at the front of the www.topsoil.co.uk in your browser address window. A small locked padlock will also appear in the top or bottom bar of your browser window.

3D Secure

For added security, we have introduced Verified by Visa and Mastercard® SecureCode™, an online version of chip and PIN. Depending on the card you are using you may be asked by your card issuer for further authentication.

Further information:

  • Verified by Visa – visit the Verified by Visa website
  • We are a SecureCode enabled merchant
  • Visit the Mastercard® SecureCode™ website

Privacy Policy

At Topsoil.co.uk we appreciate that your privacy is important. Our promise to you is that any personal data given in respect to your order, correspondence or registration on our website will not be passed to a third party unless it is required to fulfil an order, answer your enquiry, for promotional purposes (only with prior consent) or assist in customer care.

Topsoil Direct Ltd is committed to protecting your privacy and the personal information collected on this website will be treated confidentially. We are fully registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office to ensure we meet the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) as set out in this Privacy Policy.

You do not have to provide any personal information to use this website. However, you may provide personal information if you contact us with an enquiry or order any goods from Topsoil.co.uk.

Please note, telephone calls may be recorded for training purposes and to verify order details.

How we use your data

Topsoil.co.uk (and its service providers, e.g. our courier) use your personal data:

  • to supply/deliver goods and services to you;
  • to enable us to manage customer service interactions with you;
  • to manage any registered account(s) that you hold with us;
  • to verify your identity;
  • with your agreement, to contact you electronically about promotional offers, news and products which we think may interest you;
  • for crime and fraud prevention, detection and related purposes;
  • for market research purposes – to better understand your needs; and
  • where we have a legal right or duty to use or disclose your information (for example in relation to an investigation by a public authority or in a legal dispute).

Promotional Communications

With your consent, Topsoil.co.uk uses your personal data for electronic marketing purposes. We do not send random marketing emails to personal email addresses (spam).  

Topsoil.co.uk aims to update you about products & services, news and advice which is of interest and relevant to you as an individual. 

You have the right to opt out of receiving promotional communications at any time, by:

  • making use of the “unsubscribe” link in emails; and/or
  • contacting co.uk via the Contact Us form on our website; and/or
  • sending an email to info@topsoil.co.uk

What personal data is collected by Topsoil.co.uk?

Topsoil.co.uk may collect the following information about you:

  • your name and gender;
  • your contact details: postal address including billing and delivery addresses, telephone numbers (including mobile numbers) and e-mail address;
  • purchases and orders made by you;
  • your online browsing activities on Topsoil.co.uk’s website;
  • your password;
  • your communication and marketing preferences;
  • your interests, preferences, feedback and survey responses;
  • your location;
  • your IP address;
  • your correspondence and communications with Topsoil.co.uk; and
  • other publicly available personal data, including any which you have shared via a public platform (such as a Twitter feed or public Facebook page).

Our website is not intended for children and we do not knowingly collect data relating to children.

This list is not exhaustive and, in specific instances, we may need to collect additional data for the purposes set out in this Policy. Some of the above personal data is collected directly, for example when you set up an online account on our website, or send an email to our Customer Services Team.  Other personal data is collected indirectly, for example your browsing activity. We may also receive personal data from third parties who have your consent to pass your details to us, or from publicly available sources.

Web Banner Advertising

If you visit our website, you may receive personalised banner advertisements whilst browsing other websites. These advertisements are provided by utilising ‘cookies’ placed on your computer or other devices such as tablets or smartphones (you can see further information on the use of cookies in our Cookie Policy below). Cookies are used by the majority of websites and you can remove or disable cookies at any time – see our Cookie Policy for further details.

Our service providers and suppliers

In order to make certain services available to you or improve our service, we may need to share your personal data with some of our service partners. These may include independent feedback services, payment processors, delivery and marketing service providers.

Topsoil.co.uk only employs service providers to handle your personal data when we have confirmed that they apply appropriate data protection and security controls. They can only use your data to provide services to Topsoil.co.uk and to you, and for no other purposes.

Other third parties

Aside from our service providers, Topsoil.co.uk will not disclose your personal data to any third party, except as set out below. We will never pass, sell or rent our customer data to other organisations for marketing purposes.

We may share your data with governmental bodies, regulators, law enforcement agencies, courts/tribunals and insurers where we are required to do so:

  • to comply with our legal obligations;
  • to exercise our legal rights (for example in court cases);
  • for the prevention, detection, investigation of crime or prosecution of offenders; and
  • for the protection of our employees and customers.

International service providers

To provide our products and services to you, it is sometimes necessary for Topsoil.co.uk to share your data outside of the European Economic Area. This will typically occur when service providers are located outside the EEA or if you are based outside the EEA. These transfers are subject to special rules under data protection laws such as the EU-US Privacy Shield Framework.

If this happens, we will ensure that the transfer will be compliant with UK data protection law and all personal data will be secure. 

How long do we keep your data?

We will not retain your data longer than necessary for the purpose for which it was collected. Different retention periods apply for different types of data, however the longest we will normally hold any personal data is 6 years.

Your rights

You have the following rights:

  • the right to ask what personal data we hold about you at any time;
  • the right to ask us to update and correct any out-of-date or incorrect personal data that we hold about you free of charge;
  • the right to have personal data erased (also known as the right to be forgotten) and
  • (as set out above) the right to opt out of any marketing communications that we may send you.

If you wish to exercise any of the above rights, please contact us using the contact form at www.Topsoil.co.uk/contact-us or email info@Topsoil.co.uk. Requests will be processed without undue delay, however for updates and deletions please allow 5 working days for them to be fully actioned. If you are making a data subject access request, please allow up to one month of the date of receipt in order for us to fully address your request. We reserve the right to charge a reasonable fee and to extend this period of time in line with regulations depending on the amount of data involved.

The legal basis for Topsoil.co.uk to process customers’ personal data

Topsoil.co.uk collects and uses customers’ personal data because it is necessary for:

  • the pursuit of our legitimate interests (as set out below);
  • the purposes of complying with our duties and exercising our rights under a contract for the sale of goods to a customer; or
  • complying with our legal obligations.

In general, we only rely on consent as a legal basis for processing in relation to sending direct marketing communications to customers via email or text message. Customers have the right to withdraw consent at any time. Where consent is the only legal basis for processing, we will cease to process data after consent is withdrawn.

Our legitimate interests

The normal legal basis for processing customer data, is that it is necessary for the legitimate interests of Topsoil.co.uk, including:

  • selling and supplying goods and services to our customers;
  • protecting customers, employees and other individuals and maintaining their safety and welfare;
  • promoting, marketing and advertising our products and services;
  • sending promotional communications which are relevant to customers;
  • understanding our customers’ behaviour, activities, preferences and needs;
  • improving existing products and services and developing new products and services;
  • complying with our legal and regulatory obligations;
  • preventing, investigating and detecting crime, fraud or anti-social behaviour and prosecuting offenders, including working with law enforcement agencies;
  • handling customer contacts, queries, complaints or disputes;
  • protecting Topsoil.co.uk, its employees and customers, by taking appropriate legal action against third parties who have committed criminal acts or are in breach of legal obligations to Topsoil.co.uk;
  • effectively handling any legal claims or regulatory enforcement actions taken against Topsoil.co.uk; and
  • fulfilling our duties to our customers, colleagues, shareholders and other stakeholders.

Cookie Policy

Our websites use “cookies” serving to make our Internet presence more user-friendly, effective and secure, e.g. to accelerate navigation on our platform. Furthermore, cookies allow us to measure the frequency of website visits as well as general navigation.

Cookies are small text files stored on your computer system. Please note that some of these cookies are transferred from our server to your computer system, these are Session Cookies. They are characterised by being automatically deleted from your hard drive upon the end of the browser session.

Other cookies remain on your computer system and allow us to recognise your computer system during your next visit, Permanent Cookies. You may certainly decline these cookies at any time provided your browser permits this. Please note that once your browser is set to decline cookies from our website certain features of this website may not be available or restricted.

To gather the relevant information we use both Google Analytics and Google Adwords. Details of security for both of these can be found can be found at https://policies.google.com/privacy.

A cookie in no way gives us access to your computer or to any information about you other than data you choose to share with us.

Last updated: April 2021