Privacy Policy

1. Who We Are

Smart Investor UK (smartinvestoruk.co.uk) is an independent personal finance and investing website owned and operated by James Hartley, based in the United Kingdom. For the purposes of UK GDPR, James Hartley is the data controller for personal data collected through this website.

If you have any questions about this policy or how we handle your data, please contact us at hello@smartinvestoruk.co.uk.

2. What Data We Collect

We may collect the following types of personal data:

• Contact form data: Your name, email address, and any message content you submit via our contact form
• Usage data: Information about how you use the website, including pages visited, time spent, referring URLs, and browser/device type — collected via analytics tools
• Cookies data: Data collected via cookies and similar tracking technologies (see Section 6)
• Email subscription data: Your email address if you voluntarily subscribe to any newsletter or updates

We do not collect sensitive personal data such as financial account details, national insurance numbers, or payment information.

3. How We Use Your Data

We use the personal data we collect for the following purposes:

• To respond to enquiries and messages you send us via the contact form
• To analyse website usage and improve the performance, content, and user experience of our site
• To send you email updates or newsletters if you have opted in (you can unsubscribe at any time)
• To comply with our legal obligations under applicable law
• To detect and prevent fraud, abuse, or security issues

We will never sell, rent, or trade your personal data to third parties for their own marketing purposes.

4. Legal Basis for Processing (UK GDPR)

Under UK GDPR, we rely on the following legal bases for processing your personal data:

• Legitimate interests: Website analytics and improving the site experience
• Consent: Email newsletter subscriptions and non-essential cookies
• Contract: Responding to contact form enquiries
• Legal obligation: Where processing is required to comply with applicable law

5. Sharing Your Data

We do not sell or rent your personal data. We may share data with trusted third-party service providers who assist us in operating this website, including:

• Google Analytics: Website usage analytics (anonymised where possible)
• WordPress / Hosting provider: Website hosting and form processing
• Email marketing tools: If you subscribe to our newsletter
• Affiliate networks: May use cookies to track referrals (see Section 6)

All third-party providers are required to handle your data securely and in accordance with applicable data protection law. We only share the minimum data necessary for each purpose.

6. Cookies

Smart Investor UK uses cookies — small text files stored on your device — to improve your experience and help us understand how our site is used. The types of cookies we use include:

• Essential cookies: Required for the website to function correctly. These cannot be disabled.
• Analytics cookies: Used to collect anonymised data about how visitors use the site (e.g. Google Analytics)
• Affiliate cookies: Placed by affiliate networks to track referrals when you click links to third-party platforms
• Preference cookies: Remember your settings and preferences on return visits

When you first visit our site, you will be asked to consent to non-essential cookies. You can withdraw your consent or manage cookie preferences at any time via your browser settings. Note that disabling cookies may affect the functionality of the website.

7. Data Retention

We retain your personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes outlined in this policy, or as required by law. Specifically:

• Contact form enquiries are retained for up to 12 months
• Email newsletter subscriber data is retained until you unsubscribe
• Analytics data is retained in accordance with Google Analytics' default retention settings

When data is no longer required, it is securely deleted or anonymised.

8. Your Rights Under UK GDPR

Under UK GDPR, you have the following rights regarding your personal data:

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at hello@smartinvestoruk.co.uk. We will respond within 30 days. You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk.

9. External Links

Our website contains links to third-party websites and platforms. This Privacy Policy applies only to smartinvestoruk.co.uk. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of any third-party sites. We encourage you to read the privacy policy of any external site you visit.

10. Children's Privacy

Smart Investor UK is not directed at children under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal data from anyone under 18. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, please contact us and we will delete it promptly.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or applicable law. When we make significant changes, we will update the "last updated" date at the top of this page. We encourage you to review this policy periodically. Your continued use of the website after any changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.

12. Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or your personal data, please contact us:

Email: hello@smartinvestoruk.co.uk
Website: smartinvestoruk.co.uk/contact