1. Who we are
Vela Yachts is a yacht charter brokerage operating at velayachts.uk. We act as an independent broker, connecting clients with charter companies across the Mediterranean. For the purposes of UK data protection law, we are the data controller responsible for your personal data.
You can contact us at: hello@velayachts.uk
2. What data we collect
When you submit an enquiry through our website, we collect:
- Your name and contact details (email address, phone number)
- Information about your charter requirements (dates, destination, group size, experience level, budget)
- Any additional information you choose to provide in the enquiry form
We also collect basic website analytics data (pages visited, time on site) via cookies. See section 7 for more detail.
3. How we use your data
We use your personal data to:
- Respond to your charter enquiry and provide you with relevant yacht options and pricing
- Communicate with you throughout the booking process
- Share necessary booking information with charter companies on your behalf (only with your knowledge and consent)
- Improve our website and services
We will only contact you for marketing purposes (such as sending relevant charter offers or destination guides) if you have explicitly consented to this. You can withdraw consent at any time by emailing hello@velayachts.uk.
4. Legal basis for processing
We process your personal data on the following legal bases:
- Legitimate interests — to respond to your enquiry and provide the brokerage service you have requested
- Consent — for any marketing communications
- Contractual necessity — once a booking is confirmed, to fulfil our obligations to you
5. Who we share your data with
We share your personal data only as necessary to fulfil your charter enquiry or booking:
- Charter companies — we share relevant details with the charter operator(s) whose yachts we are proposing or booking on your behalf
- Formspree — our enquiry form processor. Formspree stores submitted form data securely. See their privacy policy at formspree.io
We do not sell your personal data to any third party. We do not share your data with advertisers.
6. How long we keep your data
We retain enquiry data for up to 2 years after your last contact with us. If a booking is made, we retain relevant records for 6 years in line with standard UK accounting and legal requirements. You can request deletion of your data at any time (see section 8).
7. Cookies
Our website uses cookies to understand how visitors use the site (analytics). We do not use advertising or tracking cookies. By continuing to use the site you consent to essential and analytics cookies being set. You can disable cookies in your browser settings at any time.
8. Your rights
Under UK GDPR you have the right to:
- Access the personal data we hold about you
- Correct any inaccurate data
- Erase your data ("right to be forgotten")
- Restrict processing of your data
- Object to processing based on legitimate interests
- Withdraw consent at any time where processing is based on consent
To exercise any of these rights, email us at hello@velayachts.uk. We will respond within 30 days.
If you are unhappy with how we handle your data, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk.
9. Data security
We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data from unauthorised access, loss or disclosure. All data transmitted via our website is encrypted using SSL/TLS.
10. Changes to this policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The date at the top of this page will always reflect the most recent version. Continued use of our website after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.
11. Contact
For any privacy-related queries, contact us at hello@velayachts.uk or write to us at the address provided on our website.