Privacy Policy

Utility Choices Ltd. (Company Registration No. 07162980) respects an individual’s right to data privacy and data protection in line with data protection legislation. This includes the Data Protection Act 2018, the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), and the EU General Data Protection Regulation (EU GDPR).

This Privacy Policy has been developed to advise you of how Utility Choices Ltd. will collect, store, use, share, and protect (collectively known as ‘process’) the personal information it comes into contact with. If you have a written agreement with us, it may contain further information about our processing of your information.

By giving Utility Choices Ltd. your information or by using our website (www.utilityoptions.uk), you are confirming that you are accepting the practices outlined in this Privacy Policy. If you do not accept the outlined practices, please do not give us any information or use our website.

We collect personal information from visitors to this website through the use of enquiry forms and every time you e-mail us your details. By providing us with this information, you agree to our using the information to contact you for the purposes explained below. If you wish us to stop contacting you, you may email us at info@utilityoptions.uk or write to our postal address.

We are not responsible for the data policies or procedures or the content of any other linked websites. We reserve the right to make changes to this Privacy Statement at any time and we recommend that you regularly review this page to ensure that you are aware of any changes and how your information may be used.

For the purposes of the data protection legislation, Utility Choices Ltd. is the Data Controller (i.e., the company who is responsible for and controls the processing of your personal data) of the information that you supply. On occasion, this information may be shared with a third party who will act as a Data Processor to carry out a specified function on our behalf.

If you have any requests concerning your personal information or any queries with regard to this Privacy Policy, please contact us at: Email: info@utilityoptions.uk

We pledge to handle your personal data fairly and legally at all times. Utility Choices Ltd. is also dedicated to being transparent about what data we collect from you and how we use it.

Lawful & Transparent Data Processing

Utility Choices Ltd. processes personal data strictly in accordance with the lawful bases set out under Article 6 of the GDPR. Our legal bases for processing your personal data include:

  • Consent: The individual has given clear consent for us to process their personal data for a specific purpose.

  • Performance of a Contract: Selling and supplying goods and services to our customers.

  • Legal Obligation: Complying with our legal and regulatory obligations and handling legal claims or regulatory enforcement actions.

  • Legitimate Interests: Processing is necessary for our legitimate interests or the legitimate interests of a third party, provided these are not overridden by the individual’s rights and interests. This includes:

    • Protecting customers and maintaining their safety, health, and welfare.

    • Promoting, marketing, and advertising our products and services (where consent is not required).

    • Understanding our customers’ behaviour, activities, preferences, and needs.

    • Improving existing products and services and developing new products and services.

    • Handling customer contacts, queries, complaints, or disputes.

Individuals are provided with clear and transparent privacy notices explaining what data is collected, how it is used, who it is shared with, how long it is retained, and their rights under GDPR.

How We Use Your Data

Utility Choices Ltd. uses your personal data:

  • To facilitate the comparison, sale, and installation of our utility-related products and services (such as energy, broadband, mobile, solar, heat pumps, or boilers).

  • To obtain your customer feedback on our performance.

  • To verify your identity.

  • To handle customer contacts, queries, complaints, or disputes.

The data is only shared with the persons who have been instructed to facilitate the contract on behalf of the company and trusted third-party suppliers who assist in providing these services.

We do not sell personal information collected through this site.

Marketing Communication

We may use your personal data for electronic and telephone marketing purposes (with your consent) to inform you of the latest promotions and products that are on offer.

You can opt out at any time from the above marketing communication by e-mailing your request to info@utilityoptions.uk confirming your full details and your desire to opt out, and our records will be amended accordingly.

Data Minimisation & Purpose Limitation

The company applies strict data minimisation principles, ensuring that:

  • Only relevant and necessary data is collected.

  • Data is processed solely for specified, explicit, and legitimate purposes.

  • Data is not retained longer than necessary.

Retention schedules are documented and regularly reviewed. Your personal data is retained in our database only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes we collected it for. This includes, but is not limited to, the duration of any guarantee or statutory period to respond to any issues that you may have with our products or services, as well as to satisfy any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements.

Your Rights Under UK GDPR

Under data protection law, you have rights regarding your personal information. Utility Choices Ltd. fully respects and facilitates all statutory data subject rights, including:

  1. The right to be informed: You have the right to be provided with clear, transparent, and easily understandable information about how we use your information.

  2. The right of access: You have the right to access your personal data (commonly known as a “Subject Access Request”). This allows you to receive a copy of the personal data we hold about you and to check that we are lawfully processing it.

  3. The right to rectification: You are entitled to have personal data rectified if it is inaccurate or incomplete.

  4. The right to erasure (The right to be forgotten): This enables you to request the deletion or removal of personal data where there is no compelling reason for its continued processing.

  5. The right to restrict processing: You have a right to ‘block’ or suppress processing of your personal data. When processing is restricted, we are permitted to store the personal data, but not further process it.

  6. The right to data portability: This allows you to obtain and re-use your personal data for your own purposes across different services. It allows you to move, copy, or transfer personal data easily from one IT environment to another in a safe and secure way.

  7. The right to object: You have the right to object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing (including profiling).

  8. Rights relating to automated decision-making: You have rights in relation to automated decision-making and profiling, where applicable.

Requests are handled within statutory timeframes and without undue delay. The application of the above individual rights will be as directed by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) guidance.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, please contact us at info@utilityoptions.uk.

Secure Data Storage & Information Security

We endeavor to take all reasonable steps to protect your personal information. Utility Choices Ltd. implements robust technical and organisational security measures to safeguard personal data, including:

Technical Safeguards

  • Encryption of data in transit (TLS 1.2+).

  • Encryption of data at rest (AES-256 or equivalent).

  • Secure, access-controlled cloud infrastructure hosted within the UK/EU.

  • Multi-factor authentication (MFA).

  • Role-based access controls (RBAC).

  • Firewalls and intrusion detection systems.

  • Regular vulnerability scanning and penetration testing.

  • Secure backup and disaster recovery systems.

Organisational Safeguards

  • Strict access control policies.

  • Employee confidentiality agreements.

  • Regular GDPR and data protection training for all employees and processors.

  • Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs) where required.

  • Documented incident response and breach notification procedures.

All the data collected by us is stored on secure servers. The secure server software encrypts all information you input before it is sent to us.

Third-Party & Processor Management

We will only disclose personal information to suppliers we engage to process data on our behalf (such as energy suppliers, broadband providers, or installation partners to facilitate your switch) and affiliated companies of Utility Choices Ltd. , and as required by law.

Where third-party processors are engaged:

  • Data Processing Agreements (DPAs) are in place.

  • Processors are assessed for GDPR compliance.

  • International transfers (if applicable) rely on appropriate safeguards such as UK Addendum to EU SCCs or adequacy decisions.

Breach Management & Regulatory Oversight

Utility Choices Ltd. maintains a documented incident response plan. Any personal data breach is:

  • Assessed promptly.
  • Reported to the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and/or relevant EU supervisory authority where required.
  • Communicated to affected individuals when legally necessary.

Governance & Accountability

The company demonstrates accountability through:

  • Appointment of a Data Protection Officer (where required).
  • Maintenance of Records of Processing Activities (ROPA).
  • Regular compliance audits and reviews.
  • Ongoing policy updates in line with regulatory developments.

Use of Cookies

Do we use ‘cookies’?

Yes. Cookies are small files that a site or its service provider transfers to your computer’s hard drive through your Web browser (if you allow) that enables the site’s or service provider’s systems to recognize your browser and capture and remember certain information. They are also used to help us understand your preferences based on previous or current site activity, which enables us to provide you with improved services. We also use cookies to help us compile aggregate data about site traffic and site interaction so that we can offer better site experiences and tools in the future.

We use cookies to:

  • Understand and save user’s preferences for future visits.

  • Keep track of advertisements.

  • Compile aggregate data about site traffic and site interactions in order to offer better site experiences and tools in the future. We may also use trusted third-party services that track this information on our behalf.

You can choose to have your computer warn you each time a cookie is being sent, or you can choose to turn off all cookies. You do this through your browser settings. Since browsers are a little different, look at your browser’s Help Menu to learn the correct way to modify your cookies.

If you turn cookies off, some of the features that make your site experience more efficient may not function properly.

Google Advertising

Google’s advertising requirements can be summed up by Google’s Advertising Principles. They are put in place to provide a positive experience for users. https://support.google.com/adwordspolicy/answer/1316548?hl=en

We use Google AdSense Advertising on our website. Google, as a third-party vendor, uses cookies to serve ads on our site. Google’s use of the DART cookie enables it to serve ads to our users based on previous visits to our site and other sites on the Internet. Users may opt-out of the use of the DART cookie by visiting the Google Ad and Content Network privacy policy.

We have implemented the following:

  • Remarketing with Google AdSense

  • Google Display Network Impression Reporting

  • Demographics and Interests Reporting

We, along with third-party vendors such as Google, use first-party cookies (such as the Google Analytics cookies) and third-party cookies (such as the DoubleClick cookie) or other third-party identifiers together to compile data regarding user interactions with ad impressions and other ad service functions as they relate to our website.

Opting out:

Users can set preferences for how Google advertises to you using the Google Ad Settings page. Alternatively, you can opt out by visiting the Network Advertising Initiative Opt Out page or by using the Google Analytics Opt Out Browser add-on.

Disclosure

We will only disclose personal information to suppliers we engage to process data on our behalf (such as energy suppliers or broadband providers to facilitate your switch) and affiliated companies of Utility Choices Ltd. , and as required by law.

Internet Transfers

Using the Internet to collect and process personal data necessarily involves the transmission of data on an international basis. By browsing this website and communicating electronically with us, you acknowledge and agree to our processing of your personal data in this way.

Your Right to Lodge a Complaint

You have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK supervisory authority for data protection issues. Further information, including contact details, is available at https://ico.org.uk. We would, however, appreciate the chance to deal with your concerns before you approach the ICO, so please contact us in the first instance.

Commitment to Privacy

Utility Choices Ltd. recognises that trust is fundamental. By embedding privacy-by-design and privacy-by-default principles into its operations, the company ensures that personal data is handled securely, responsibly, and in full compliance with UK and EU data protection laws.