Privacy Policy

Effective Date: February 9, 2026

Introduction

Welcome to The Driving Instructor Directory. We are committed to safeguarding your privacy and ensuring the protection of your personal information. This Privacy Policy outlines how we collect, use, and protect your data when you use our platform.

Information We Collect

1. Information You Provide

We may collect the following information directly from you:

Account Information: Name, email address, phone number, and other details required for account creation or updates.
Profile Information: Details provided when creating or editing an instructor profile, such as qualifications, location, availability, and pricing.
Payment Information: When you subscribe to our Featured Instructor plan, your payment details are collected and processed directly by our payment processor, Stripe. We do not store your full card number or bank details on our servers.
Communications: Messages, feedback, or inquiries sent via email or the platform.
Enquiry Information: When a learner sends an enquiry to an instructor through the platform, we collect the learner's name, email, optional phone number, location, lesson preferences, and any free-text message. This information is used to relay the enquiry to the chosen instructor and to maintain a short record of platform-mediated contacts.

2. Information We Collect Automatically

When you use our platform, we may collect:

Usage Data: IP address, browser type, device type, and pages visited.
Location Data: Approximate location based on your IP address or GPS data, if enabled.
Cookies and Tracking Technologies: Data from cookies, web beacons, and similar technologies for analytics and site functionality.

3. Information from Third Parties

We may receive data about you from third-party services, such as:

Social media platforms, if you log in using a third-party account.
Stripe, our payment processor, for transaction confirmations and subscription status updates.

Payment Processing and Stripe

We use Stripe for payment processing, analytics, and other business services. When you interact with our payment forms or subscribe to our Featured Instructor plan, Stripe may collect personal data including via cookies and similar technologies.

The personal data Stripe collects may include:

Payment card details (card number, expiry date, CVC) entered into our checkout forms.
Your name, email address, and billing address, which we share with Stripe to create and manage your customer account.
Transactional data such as payment amounts, dates, and subscription status.
Device and browser information, including IP address, screen size, and browser type, collected via Stripe's scripts for fraud detection and security purposes.
Behavioural signals and activity indicators used to distinguish legitimate transactions from fraudulent ones.

Stripe uses this information to operate and improve the services it provides to us, including for fraud detection, loss prevention, authentication, and analytics related to the performance of its services. Stripe does not use this data for advertising purposes.

Your payment card details are handled entirely by Stripe and are never stored on our servers. We only receive confirmation of payment status and limited card details (card type and last four digits) for your reference.

You can learn more about Stripe and read its privacy policy at https://stripe.com/privacy.

How We Use Your Information

We use your information to:

Provide Services: Facilitate account creation, profile management, instructor searches, and subscription management.
Process Payments: Manage your Featured Instructor subscription, process payments via Stripe, and maintain billing records.
Enhance the Platform: Analyse user behaviour to improve functionality and user experience.
Communicate: Respond to inquiries, send updates about your account or subscription, and deliver notifications.
Ensure Compliance and Security: Meet legal requirements, prevent fraud, and maintain security.

Lawful Basis for Processing

Under the UK GDPR, we process your personal data on the following lawful bases:

Performance of a Contract: Processing necessary to provide our services, manage your account, and fulfil your subscription.
Legitimate Interests: Processing for fraud prevention, platform security, and improving our services, where these interests are not overridden by your rights.
Consent: Where you have given specific consent, such as for marketing communications. You may withdraw consent at any time.
Legal Obligation: Processing necessary to comply with applicable laws, such as tax and financial regulations.

How We Share Your Information

We do not sell or rent your personal information. However, we may share your data with:

Stripe: Our payment processor, to facilitate subscription payments and manage billing. Stripe processes your data in accordance with its own privacy policy and acts as both a data processor (on our behalf) and an independent data controller (for its own fraud prevention and service improvement purposes).
Service Providers: Third-party vendors assisting in platform operations (e.g., hosting, analytics, email delivery).
Legal Authorities: When required by law or to protect our rights.
Other Users: If you are an instructor, your public profile information will be visible to users searching for instructors. Publicly displayed information includes your name, location, photo (if uploaded and approved), languages, transmission type, experience, lesson pricing, vehicle details, social media handles, and your approved bio (if you have an active Featured subscription). Your direct contact details (phone number, WhatsApp number, and email address) are never displayed inline on the platform; learners can reach you only via the platform's contact channels (call, text, WhatsApp, or in-platform enquiry form), which are gated by rate limits and automated abuse protections.

International Data Transfers

Some of our service providers, including Stripe, are based in the United States. When your personal data is transferred outside the UK, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place, including Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) approved by the UK Information Commissioner's Office and reliance on adequacy decisions or international data transfer frameworks such as the UK Extension to the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework.

Data Security

We implement industry-standard security measures to protect your information. All payment data is processed by Stripe, which is certified as a PCI Level 1 Service Provider (the highest level of certification in the payments industry).

Your payment card details are transmitted directly to Stripe using TLS encryption and are never stored on or passed through our servers. However, no system is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

Data Retention

We retain your personal information for as long as necessary to provide our services or comply with legal obligations:

Account data is retained for as long as your account is active.
Payment and subscription records are retained as required by tax and financial regulations (typically up to 7 years).
If you delete your account, your personal data will be removed from our systems, and any active subscription will be cancelled immediately.

You can request data deletion at any time by contacting us at [email protected].

Your Rights

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

Access: Request access to the personal data we hold about you.
Rectification: Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information.
Erasure: Request deletion of your personal data, subject to legal retention requirements.
Restriction: Request restriction of processing in certain circumstances.
Data Portability: Request a copy of your data in a structured, commonly used format.
Objection: Object to processing based on legitimate interests.
Withdraw Consent: Where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

To exercise these rights, please contact us at [email protected].

Cookies and Tracking

We use cookies to:

Remember your preferences and keep you signed in.
Provide personalised content.
Analyse site usage and performance.

Additionally, Stripe uses cookies and similar technologies on our payment pages for fraud detection, security, and analytics purposes. These cookies are essential for the safe processing of payments.

You can manage cookie settings through your browser or device settings. Please note that disabling certain cookies may affect the functionality of our payment system.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy periodically. We encourage you to review it regularly. Changes will take effect upon posting to this page, and the effective date will be updated accordingly.

Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or how we handle your data, please contact us at:

Email: [email protected]

By using our platform, you agree to the terms of this Privacy Policy.