Privacy Policy

Effective Date: June 2026

Welcome to Lakes Pet Travel. We are committed to protecting and respecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your personal data when you use our veterinary export and Animal Health Certificate (AHC) services, visit our website (hosted via Google Sites/Squarespace), or communicate with us.

For the purposes of applicable data protection legislation (including the UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018), Lakes Pet Travel is the Data Controller.

1. The Personal Data We Collect

To provide veterinary export certification, we must collect and process specific personal and pet data. This includes:

• Identity & Contact Data: Your name, home address, phone number, and email address (info@lakespettravel.com).

• Pet & Travel Documentation: Pet names, species, breeds, microchip numbers, rabies vaccination histories, blood test results, and intended travel dates/destinations.

• Technical & Usage Data: Information automatically collected when you visit our website, including your IP address, browser type, cookies, and usage metrics captured by our hosting platforms (Google Sites and Squarespace analytics).

2. How and Why We Use Your Data

We process your personal data under the following lawful bases:

• Performance of a Contract: To issue Animal Health Certificates (AHCs), fulfill small animal export certification, process your click and collect orders, or handle individual home visits.

• Legal & Regulatory Obligations: As an Official Veterinarian (OV), we are legally bound to retain records of official certifications, veterinary medicines administered, and compliance paperwork required by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) and DEFRA.

• Legitimate Interests: To reply to emails sent to info@lakespettravel.com, improve website performance, and run our business efficiently.

3. How We Share Your Data

We do not sell your personal data. We only share data with third parties in the following strictly limited scenarios:

• Government and Regulatory Bodies: When legally required to submit copies or summaries of official export certification paperwork to the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) or DEFRA.

• Service Providers: Standard technology platforms that facilitate our business operations, specifically Google Sites (content rendering), Squarespace (domain routing/hosting infrastructure), and our secure email provider.

4. Data Retention

We hold your personal details and certificate histories only as long as required to satisfy veterinary legal obligations. Official export certification records are typically retained for a minimum statutory period mandated by DEFRA/APHA guidelines (generally up to several years following certification), after which they are securely deleted.

5. Cookies and Online Tracking

Our website utilizes built-in cookies from Google Sites and Squarespace to maintain technical security, optimize site loading times, and track basic anonymous user traffic. You can choose to reject cookies through your personal web browser settings, though doing so might cause specific technical components of the web page to load improperly.

6. Your Rights

Under data protection laws, you possess legal rights regarding your personal information, including:

• The right to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.

• The right to request correction of inaccurate or incomplete details.

• The right to request deletion of your information (subject to statutory veterinary retention laws that override deletion requests).

• The right to object to or restrict processing under certain conditions.

7. Contact Information

If you have any questions regarding this privacy notice, your legal rights, or how your personal information is handled, please reach out to us directly:

• Business Name: Lakes Pet Travel

• Principal Service Area: South Lakes, Cumbria, and North Lancashire

• Contact Email: info@lakespettravel.com