1. Introduction

At Cook4U, we take your privacy seriously. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your personal information when you use our platform.

Our Promise: We don't sell or share your personal data with anyone. We don't think it's right, and we won't do it.

This policy complies with UK data protection laws, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR).

2. Who We Are

Cook4U Limited
40 Edinburgh Road
ML12 6AX Biggar
Scotland, UK

Email: contact@cook4u.co.uk

3. Information We Collect

Personal Information:

Name - To identify you on the platform
Email address - For account verification and communication
Address - For delivery/collection purposes
Age - To verify you're 18+ (required to use our platform)

Usage Information:

Order history and preferences
Platform usage patterns
Device information (for technical support)

Analytics Data:

We may collect anonymous, aggregated data about popular dishes and cuisines in different areas. This data cannot be traced back to individuals and helps us improve our platform.

4. How We Use Your Information

We use your personal information to:

Verify your identity and age (18+ requirement)
Process orders and payments
Share necessary information with cooks for delivery/collection
Provide customer support
Improve our platform and services
Comply with legal obligations

We only use your information for the purposes stated above and don't use it for any other purposes without your consent.

5. Information Sharing

We do NOT sell or share your personal data with third parties.

We only share information in these limited circumstances:

With cooks/kitchens: Name and address for delivery/collection purposes only
With Stripe: Payment information for processing transactions (they have their own privacy policy)
Legal requirements: If required by law or to protect our rights

We use Google Firebase to store data securely, but they don't have access to your personal information for their own purposes.

6. Data Security

We take data security seriously and implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your information:

Secure data storage using Google Firebase
Encrypted data transmission
Regular security updates
Limited access to personal data

However, no system is 100% secure. If there's a data breach, we'll comply with UK legislation, investigate, secure the issue, and notify affected users as required by law.

7. How Long We Keep Your Information

We keep your personal information for as long as necessary to provide our services and comply with legal obligations:

Account information: Until you delete your account
Order history: 12 months (as mentioned in our FAQs)
Legal requirements: As required by law (e.g., tax records)

You can delete your account at any time, which will remove your personal data from our systems.

8. Your Rights

Under UK data protection law, you have the right to:

Access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
Rectification: Correct inaccurate or incomplete data
Erasure: Request deletion of your personal data
Portability: Receive your data in a structured format
Object: Object to processing of your data
Restrict: Restrict how we process your data

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at contact@cook4u.co.uk

9. Cookies and Tracking

We don't use cookies or tracking technologies on our platform. We believe in keeping things simple and respecting your privacy.

However, third-party services we use (like Stripe for payments) may use their own cookies, which are governed by their own privacy policies.

10. Children's Privacy

Our platform is not intended for children under 18. We don't knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 18.

If we discover we've collected information from someone under 18, we'll delete it immediately.

11. International Data Transfers

We primarily store data within the UK. However, some of our service providers (like Google Firebase and Stripe) may process data outside the UK.

We ensure any international transfers comply with UK data protection laws and provide adequate protection for your data.

12. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We'll notify you of any significant changes by email or through our platform.

The "Last updated" date at the top shows when this policy was last revised.

13. Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how we handle your data, please contact us:

Email: contact@cook4u.co.uk

You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) if you're not satisfied with how we handle your data.