Last updated: 30 September 2026

This policy explains what personal information we collect when you use emchem.co.uk or buy from us, why we collect it, who we share it with and what your rights are. We handle it in line with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

Who we are

emchem.co.uk is run by Emma Wotton, trading as Emchem, Cavalry House, 6 Hyde Park, Kinmel Bay, Conwy, LL18 5FN. Emma Wotton is the data controller for the personal information described here.

For anything to do with your personal information, contact Emma at emma@emchem.co.uk, call 01745 343912, or write to the address above.

What we collect

  • Order details. Your name, company name if you give one, billing and delivery addresses, email address, phone number, the products you buy and your order history.
  • Quote requests. Your name, phone number, email address and the products and quantities you ask about.
  • Account details. If you create an account: your login details and saved addresses.
  • Payment details. Card payments are handled by Stripe or Square, and PayPal payments by PayPal. We never see or store your full card number. We receive confirmation that a payment was made, with limited details such as the card type and the last four digits.
  • Messages. What you send us through our contact form, by email or by phone.
  • Newsletter. Your email address, if you sign up for our emails.
  • Website usage. How you use the site, such as pages viewed, device and browser type, approximate location and how you arrived. This is collected through cookies. See Cookies below.

Why we use it, and our legal basis

  • To process and deliver your order, take payment, handle returns and keep you updated. The legal basis is contract: we need this information to do what you’ve asked.
  • To prepare and send a quote you’ve asked for. The legal basis is contract, as a step you’ve asked us to take before an order.
  • To keep accounting and tax records. The legal basis is legal obligation.
  • To send safety data sheets. The legal basis is legal obligation.
  • To answer your questions. The legal basis is legitimate interests: responding to people who contact us.
  • To prevent fraud and keep the site secure. The legal basis is legitimate interests.
  • To send our newsletter. The legal basis is consent. You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in every email.
  • To understand how the site is used and improve it. The legal basis is consent, given through our cookie settings. You can change your choice at any time using the Manage consent button at the bottom of every page.

To place an order you need to give us your name, address, email address and phone number. Without them we can’t process or deliver it.

Who we share it with

We don’t sell your personal information. We share it only with the service providers we need to run the shop, and only as much as each one needs:

  • Payments: Stripe, Square and PayPal.
  • Delivery: Packlink, which books our shipments, and the courier carrying your order, usually DPD. For pallet deliveries, the haulier we book.
  • Email newsletter: Mailchimp.
  • Website analytics: Google Analytics and Microsoft Clarity, only if you accept analytics cookies.
  • Website hosting and maintenance: our hosting provider, which stores the site and its data.
  • Professional advisers and authorities: our accountant, and HMRC or other authorities where the law requires it.

Some of these providers, including Stripe, PayPal, Google, Microsoft and Mailchimp, may process data outside the UK, mainly in the United States. Where they do, the transfer is protected by an approved safeguard, such as the UK Extension to the EU-US Data Privacy Framework or the UK International Data Transfer Agreement. Others, including Packlink, process data in the European Economic Area, which the UK recognises as providing adequate protection. Contact us if you’d like details of these safeguards.

How long we keep it

  • Orders and invoices: 6 years from the end of the financial year they belong to, as UK tax law requires.
  • Your account: until you ask us to close it. Order records are then kept as above.
  • Quote requests and messages: up to 2 years after we last hear from you, unless they lead to an order.
  • Newsletter: until you unsubscribe.
  • Analytics data: Google Analytics, up to 14 months. Microsoft Clarity, 30 days for recordings and up to 13 months for other data.

Cookies

Cookies are small files a website stores on your device. We use two kinds:

  • Essential cookies make the shop work. They keep items in your basket, keep you logged in, remember your checkout details and help payment providers detect fraud. The site can’t work without them, so they don’t need your consent.
  • Analytics cookies from Google Analytics and Microsoft Clarity show us how visitors use the site, so we can improve it. Microsoft Clarity records how you move, scroll and click on pages, and it masks anything you type into forms. We only set analytics cookies if you accept them in our cookie settings. You can change your choice at any time using the Manage consent button at the bottom of every page.

You can also block or delete cookies in your browser settings. If you block essential cookies, the basket and checkout won’t work.

Your rights

Under UK data protection law you have the right to:

  • ask for a copy of the personal information we hold about you;
  • ask us to correct information that’s wrong or incomplete;
  • ask us to delete your information, where we don’t need to keep it for a legal reason;
  • ask us to restrict or stop using your information, or object to how we use it;
  • ask for your information in a format you can take to another provider;
  • withdraw your consent at any time, where we rely on it.

To use any of these rights, email Emma at emma@emchem.co.uk. It’s free, and we’ll reply within one month.

If you’re unhappy with how we’ve handled your information, please tell us first so we can put it right. You can also complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office at ico.org.uk or on 0303 123 1113.

Children

Our products include hazardous chemicals, and the shop isn’t intended for anyone under 18. We don’t knowingly collect personal information from children.

Changes to this policy

We’ll update this page if the way we handle personal information changes, and change the date at the top when we do.