1. Introduction

Cromwell Antiques (“we”, “us”, or “our”) is a trading name of the Stone Mountain Trading partnership based in the UK. We are committed to protecting your personal data. This policy explains how we handle your information when you buy from us (online or in person), use our website, or contact us.

2. The Data We Collect

We collect information to provide you with antiques and a smooth shopping experience:

• Identity & Contact Data: Your name, billing address, delivery address, email, and phone number.
• Transaction Data: Details about payments and the antiques you have purchased.
• Technical Data: Your IP address and browser type (collected automatically by our host, IONOS).
• Correspondence: Records of any contact you make with us via email or our contact form.

3. How We Use Your Data

We only use your data when the law allows us to:

• Contractual Necessity: To process your order, take payment, and deliver your items.
• Legal Obligation: To keep records for HMRC tax purposes.
• Legitimate Interests: To respond to your customer support inquiries or manage our business efficiently.

4. Third-Party Service Providers

We share your data with trusted partners to run our shop. These partners are also required to protect your data:

• Hosting & Email: Our website and emails are hosted by IONOS. They provide the secure infrastructure and basic functional cookies required for the site to work.
• Payments: We use Stripe to process payments. We do not store your credit card details on our servers; Stripe handles this securely.
• Deliveries: We share your name and address with Royal Mail to deliver your purchases.

5. Cookies

Our website (hosted by IONOS) uses essential "functional" cookies. These are necessary for the shop to operate (e.g., remembering what is in your shopping basket). We do not currently use invasive tracking or advertising cookies. You can set your browser to refuse cookies, but some parts of the site may not function correctly.

6. Data Retention

We do not keep your data forever.

• Orders: We retain transaction and contact data for 6 years following the end of the tax year in which the sale occurred. This is to comply with HMRC requirements and to handle any future "breach of contract" claims.
• General Inquiries: If you email us but do not make a purchase, we typically delete your correspondence after 2 years.

7. Your Rights

Under UK GDPR, you have the right to ask for a copy of your data, to ask us to correct it, or to ask us to delete it (where we are not legally required to keep it for tax purposes).

• 8. Contact & Redress

For any privacy-related questions, please contact us at:

Email: customerservices@cromwellantiques.co.uk

Address: [Your Virtual/Business Address]

We are registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). You have the right to lodge a complaint with them at any time (www.ico.org.uk).