How we handle your data

Who we are

Universal Energy ("we", "us", "our") is a clean-energy marketplace and lead-generation platform. We connect customers with vetted, independent local installers for home and business EV chargers, solar panels and battery storage, EICR inspections, and electrical testing (PAT and fixed wire). We are not ourselves an installation company. The installation work itself is carried out by the independent installer we match you with, not by Universal Energy. Universal Energy is a company registered in England and Wales, company number 16479406, with its registered office at 128 City Road, London, United Kingdom, EC1V 2NX. If you have any questions about this policy, contact us at info@universal-energy.co.uk.

What we collect

When you request a quote, book a survey or test, contact us, or apply to join our installer network, we collect what you give us through that form. Depending on which form, that may include:

• Name, email address and phone number
• Property or business address, including postcode
• Details about your property, energy setup or job (e.g. property type, parking, electrical installation age)
• For installers applying via our Trade Portal: company name, company number, insurance and accreditation details, and the areas you cover
• Payment details, where a service requires payment, handled directly by our payment provider, Stripe (see "Payments" below); we do not see or store your card details ourselves

We also collect some technical data automatically via cookies. See our Cookie Policy for details.

Why we use it

We process your data to:

• Prepare and send you a quote, and get in touch about your enquiry
• Match you with a suitable vetted installer from our network and share the details they need to carry out the work or contact you
• Arrange and manage bookings, surveys and installation dates
• Take payment where a service requires it, and handle any related invoicing
• Vet and manage installers applying to, or already part of, our installer network
• Understand how visitors use our site, so we can improve it
• Meet our legal and regulatory obligations

Our legal basis for this is either that processing is necessary to take steps towards a contract with you (e.g. providing the quote or service you asked for), our legitimate interest in running and improving the business, or your consent (e.g. for non-essential cookies).

Who we share it with

We don't sell your data. We share it only where it's needed to provide the service you've asked for, or to run the business:

• The vetted installer matched to your enquiry, so they can carry out or quote for the work
• HubSpot, our customer relationship management (CRM) platform, where enquiry and job details are stored
• Stripe, our payment processor, for any payment you make through us
• Postmark, our transactional email provider, to send booking confirmations, updates and installer communications
• Google (Google Tag Manager, Google Ads, Google Analytics), for site analytics and advertising measurement, only where you've consented to non-essential cookies
• PostHog (EU-hosted), for site usage analytics, only where you've consented to non-essential cookies

Each of these providers only processes your data on our instructions, for the purposes described here.

How long we keep it

We keep enquiry and job data for as long as needed to provide the service, resolve any queries or disputes, and meet our legal and accounting obligations, typically no longer than 6 years after your last interaction with us, unless we're required to keep it for longer (or you ask us to delete it sooner, subject to the exceptions below).

Your rights

Under UK GDPR, you have the right to:

• Ask what personal data we hold about you, and get a copy of it
• Ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data
• Ask us to delete your data, where we don't have a legal reason to keep it
• Ask us to restrict or object to how we use your data
• Ask for your data in a portable format, where technically feasible
• Withdraw consent at any time, where we rely on consent (e.g. cookies)

To exercise any of these, email info@universal-energy.co.uk. If you're unhappy with how we've handled your data, you can also complain to the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time, for example as our services or the providers we use change. This is a standard policy reflecting our current practices; we'll review and refine it as the business grows. We'll update the date at the top of this page when we do, and encourage you to check back occasionally.