Privacy notice

This notice explains what personal data Otherwise Works Ltd (“Otherwise Works”, “we”, “us”) collects, why, who we share it with and what rights you have. We have tried to write it plainly. If anything is unclear, ask us.

Who we are

Otherwise Works Ltd is the data controller for personal data collected through this website and in the course of our work with clients. Until we publish a dedicated privacy contact address, you can reach us about anything in this notice through the enquiry form — mark your message “Privacy”.

What we collect

When you send an enquiry

Your name, email address, company (if you give one), the service you’re interested in, your budget range and whatever you tell us in your message. We also keep basic technical information needed to protect the form from spam and abuse.

When you request an invoice

Billing contact details, company name and address, any purchase order or tax reference you provide, and the service or quote concerned.

When you have a client account

Your name and email address for signing in, plus the records of our work together: proposals, invoices, payment status and messages relating to the engagement.

When you pay

Card payments are processed by Stripe. We never see or store your full card number. Stripe tells us whether a payment succeeded, along with limited details such as the card brand and last four digits.

Why we use it, and our lawful basis

• Replying to enquiries and preparing proposals — steps taken at your request before entering into a contract, or our legitimate interest in responding to business enquiries.
• Delivering and invoicing work — performance of our contract with you or your organisation.
• Keeping financial records — compliance with our legal obligations.
• Keeping the website secure and working — our legitimate interest in protecting our systems and users.

We do not sell personal data, and we do not use it for automated decision-making that has legal or similarly significant effects on you.

Who we share it with

We use a small number of service providers who process data on our behalf, under contract:

• Stripe — payment processing, invoicing and subscriptions.
• Our email provider — sending replies, notifications and invoices.
• Our hosting provider — running this website and its database.
• Plausible Analytics (if enabled) — privacy-friendly, cookieless website statistics. It does not track individuals across sites or store personal data.

Some providers may process data outside the UK. Where they do, we rely on appropriate safeguards recognised under UK data protection law, such as adequacy regulations or the International Data Transfer Agreement.

How long we keep it

• Enquiries that don’t become work — up to 24 months after our last contact, then deleted.
• Billing and accounting records — for as long as the law requires, typically six years in the UK.
• Client account data — for the life of the engagement and then in line with the two periods above.

Your rights

Under UK GDPR you have the right to:

• access the personal data we hold about you;
• have inaccurate data corrected;
• have data erased, where we have no lawful reason to keep it;
• restrict or object to certain processing, including processing based on legitimate interests;
• receive your data in a portable format, where applicable;
• withdraw consent at any time, where we rely on consent.

To exercise any of these rights, contact us through the enquiry form. We will respond within one month. If you’re unhappy with how we have handled your data, you can complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk (opens in a new tab).

Cookies

We keep cookies to a minimum. See our cookie notice for details.

Changes to this notice

If we change how we use personal data, we will update this page and the date at the top.