Privacy policy

Who we are: Haws Watering Cans ("Haws", "we", "us", "our"), 120 Beakes Road, Smethwick, Birmingham, B67 5AB, United Kingdom.
How to contact us: general@haws.co.uk | +44 (0)121 420 2494

1. Scope

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your personal data when you visit haws.co.uk, purchase our products, or interact with us (including through chat or by submitting images for support). It applies to customers, website visitors, newsletter subscribers, suppliers, and other business contacts.

2. Data controller

For the purposes of the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018, Haws Watering Cans is the data controller for personal data we collect and process.

3. Personal data we collect

We may collect and process the following categories of information:

  • Identity & contact data – name, title, billing and delivery address, email, telephone number, account/login details.

  • Order & transaction data – products purchased, payment method (tokenised; we do not store full card numbers), order value, delivery status, returns.

  • Device & usage data – IP address, browser type and version, device identifiers, pages visited, time on page, referring/exit pages, and similar diagnostic data.

  • Marketing preferences – your choices about receiving marketing from us.

  • Customer support data – messages, enquiries, and related correspondence, including photos, videos or other media you voluntarily provide when reporting an issue or seeking product advice.

  • User‑generated content – reviews, comments, or images you submit.

4. How we collect personal data

  • Directly from you when you place an order, contact us, create an account, upload an image, subscribe to our emails, or participate in promotions.

  • Automatically via cookies and similar technologies when you browse our site (see Cookies).

  • From third parties such as payment processors, analytics providers, advertising partners and delivery couriers.

5. Purposes and lawful bases

We use your personal data for the purposes and legal bases below:

  • To provide our products and services (processing and delivering orders, managing payments, returns, warranties, and customer support). Legal bases: performance of a contract; legitimate interests; compliance with legal obligations.

  • Account and site functionality (remembering preferences, securing the site). Legal bases: performance of a contract; legitimate interests.

  • Marketing communications (email newsletters, product updates, offers) where you have opted in or where permitted. Legal bases: consent; legitimate interests.

  • Analytics and improvements (understanding site usage, improving our products and services). Legal bases: consent where required; legitimate interests.

  • Fraud prevention, security, and legal compliance. Legal bases: legitimate interests; legal obligations.

  • AI‑assisted services (chatbot) and model improvement. We use AI to assist you in live chat and to improve our services and knowledge base. Legal bases: performance of a contract; legitimate interests.

  • Customer support media and training. Images or videos you send may be used to train our internal staff and improve our care and quality processes. Before using them in any public‑facing content (such as care guides or educational materials), we will either de‑identify them (remove any personal data or identifiable backgrounds) or request explicit consent. Legal bases: legitimate interests (internal training); consent (public use).

6. How we use AI

We use AI technologies in two ways:

  1. Customer assistance (chatbot/co‑pilot). When you use our on‑site chat, your messages, order context and device details may be processed by us and by our AI providers to generate responses. We apply filtering and human oversight. Please avoid sharing sensitive personal data (e.g., health, financial account numbers).

  2. Training and improving our models/knowledge. We may use chat transcripts, enquiries and support tickets to improve our customer service models and internal knowledge base. Where feasible, we de‑identify data (removing direct identifiers) or use aggregated information. We do not sell personal data.

Your choices: You may opt out of your identifiable data being used for training/improvement by emailing general@haws.co.uk. Opting out will not affect your ability to receive support; we’ll still process your data to handle your request.

Third‑party AI providers: We may use reputable providers that act as our processors under contract. Some may process data outside the UK/EEA (see International transfers). We require confidentiality, security, and no use of your data for the provider’s own purposes.

Automated decisions: We do not make decisions with legal or similarly significant effects solely by automated means. Human review is available on request.

7. Sharing your data

We share personal data with trusted service providers who help us operate our business, such as Shopify (store hosting), payment processors, logistics, and email platforms. We may also share anonymised media or data in public resources (e.g., care guides) only after obtaining consent or removing identifiers.

8. International transfers

Some providers may process data outside the UK/EEA. Where this happens, we ensure adequate protection via UK/EEA adequacy regulations or standard contractual clauses.

9. Retention

We keep personal data only as long as necessary:

  • Orders and tax records: 6 years.

  • Customer support media: up to 3 years for internal training unless longer consented for external use.

  • Marketing preferences: until you withdraw consent or we identify inactivity.

10. Your rights (UK/EEA)

You can request access, correction, deletion, or restriction; object to certain processing; and withdraw consent. Contact general@haws.co.uk.

11. Cookies and similar technologies

We use cookies to operate the site, measure performance, and deliver relevant ads. Functional cookies may support the chat widget and media upload features. Manage your choices in Cookie settings.

12. Security

We use encryption and other safeguards to protect your data. However, no system is 100% secure.

13. Children

We do not knowingly collect data from children under 16.

14. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time; the latest version will always appear on this page.

15. Contact

Questions: general@haws.co.uk

Privacy Officer
Haws Watering Cans
120 Beakes Road,
Smethwick,
Birmingham,
B67 5AB, UK.