Privacy Policy

1. Who we are

The Gentle Crossing Vet provides home veterinary euthanasia and cremation services in the United Kingdom. This privacy policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your personal data when you use our website (thegentlecrossingvet.com), contact us, or use our services.
For the purposes of UK data protection law (the UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018, as amended by the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025), the data controller is:
Disamed Ltd. trading as The Gentle Crossing Vet
Address: 29A Moorgate Avenue, Liverpool, L23 0UE
Email: enquiries@thegentlecrossingvet.com
Telephone: 07469 493 300

2. The personal data we collect

We collect and process the following personal data:
Information you give us
Contact details — your name, address, email address, and telephone number when you enquire, book an appointment, or contact us.
Booking and service information — details you provide about your pet (name, species, breed, age, health condition, and your usual veterinary practice) and the circumstances of your booking. Information about your pet is not personal data in itself, but it is held within your client record.
Payment information — details needed to process payment. Card payments are handled by our payment provider; we do not store full card numbers.
Correspondence — records of emails, telephone calls, messages, and any feedback or testimonials you choose to give us.
Information collected automatically
Website usage data — technical data such as your IP address, browser type, device information, and how you use our website, collected through cookies and similar technologies (see section 8).
Given the nature of our service, correspondence may occasionally include information about your personal circumstances (for example, health or family circumstances you choose to share when arranging an appointment). We treat all such information with particular care, use it only to provide our service compassionately, and do not use it for any other purpose.

3. How we use your personal data and our lawful bases

We only use your personal data where the law allows. Our purposes and lawful bases are: To provide our services — responding to enquiries, arranging and carrying out home visits, arranging cremation, and returning ashes. Lawful basis: performance of a contract (UK GDPR Article 6(1)(b)). To keep clinical and business records — maintaining case records as required by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) Code of Professional Conduct, and financial records for tax purposes. Lawful basis: legal obligation (Article 6(1)(c)) and legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f)). To communicate with your usual veterinary practice — for example, confirming clinical history or notifying them of your pet’s passing so their records are updated. Lawful basis: legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f)). To take payment and prevent fraud — lawful basis: performance of a contract and legitimate interests. To improve our website and services — using analytics data where you have consented to analytics cookies. Lawful basis: consent (Article 6(1)(a)). To send occasional updates — only where you have asked to receive them. Lawful basis: consent. You can withdraw consent at any time. We will never send marketing that is insensitive to your circumstances, and we do not send marketing to clients following a bereavement appointment unless you have expressly asked us to keep in touch.

4. Who we share your data with

We do not sell your personal data. We share it only where necessary with:
Cremation providers ( Aughton Meadows Pet Crematorium or Leyland Pet Crematorium), to arrange your pet’s cremation and the return of ashes. We share your name and contact details, and details of your pet and the service you have chosen.
Your veterinary practice — where relevant to your pet’s care and records, as described above.
Service providers — our website host, email provider, appointment/practice management software, accountancy services, and payment processor, each acting under contract and only on our instructions.
Professional and legal bodies — where required by law or by our professional obligations, for example the RCVS, HMRC, our insurers, or legal advisers.
Where any provider processes data outside the UK, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place, such as a UK adequacy decision or the International Data Transfer Agreement / Addendum approved by the ICO.

5. How long we keep your data

Clinical and case records — kept for at least [6] years after our last contact with you, in line with RCVS guidance and limitation periods for legal claims.
Financial records — kept for 6 years after the end of the relevant financial year, as required by HMRC.
Enquiries that do not lead to a booking — deleted within [12] months.
Marketing consents — retained until you withdraw consent or [2] years of inactivity.
When personal data is no longer needed, we delete it securely.

6. How we protect your data

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data, including encrypted connections (HTTPS) on our website, access controls and passwords on our systems, and care in handling records during home visits. While no system can be guaranteed completely secure, we review our security measures regularly.

7. 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 — ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data.
Erasure — ask us to delete your data in certain circumstances.
Restriction — ask us to limit how we use your data in certain circumstances.
Portability — receive certain data in a portable format.
Objection — object to processing based on legitimate interests, and to any direct marketing at any time.
Withdraw consent — where we rely on consent, you can withdraw it at any time.
To exercise any of these rights, contact us at enquiries@thegentlecrossingvet.com. We will respond within one month. There is normally no fee.
If you have a concern about how we handle your data, please raise it with us first and we will investigate and respond promptly. You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk or on 0303 123 1113.

8. Cookies

Our website uses cookies and similar technologies. Strictly necessary cookies are used to make the site work and to remember your consent choices; these do not require consent. Analytics and marketing cookies are only set if you accept them through our consent banner, and you can change your preferences at any time using the “Manage consent” option on our website. For full details of the cookies we use and how long they last, see our [Cookie Policy].

9. Third-party links

Our website may link to other websites, such as pet bereavement support services. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of other websites, and we encourage you to read their privacy policies.

10. Children

Our services are arranged with adults. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 18. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, please contact us and we will delete it.

11. Changes to this policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time. The latest version will always be published on our website with the date it was last updated. If we make significant changes to how we use your data, we will take reasonable steps to bring them to your attention.

The Gentle Crossing Vet — Home Euthanasia and Cremation Service
enquiries@thegentlecrossingvet.com
07469 493 300