Privacy Policy

Effective Date:05-11-2025

Welcome to Farehutz.co.uk. This Privacy Policy explains how Friendztravel UK Limited (trading as Farehutz.co.uk or "we," "us," "our") collects, uses, and protects your personal information. We are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your data in an open and transparent manner, fully compliant with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018).

Note on Data Controller: For the purposes of this policy, Friendztravel UK Limited is the Data Controller of your personal information.

1. About Us

Detail

Information

Trading Name

Farehutz.co.uk

Legal Entity

Friendztravel UK Limited

Contact No.

0203 468 6333

Support Email

support@Farehutz.co.uk

2. Information We Collect and Why

We collect personal information to fulfil our services as a travel agent—specifically, to make and manage your travel bookings.

A. Categories of Personal Data

Category

Examples of Data

Purpose & Legal Basis

Identity & Contact Data

Full name, title, address, telephone number, email address.

Purpose: To complete your booking, communicate with you about your trip, and manage your account. Basis:Contract (to provide the services you requested).

Travel & Booking Data

Passport number, date of birth, nationality, frequent flyer numbers, car rental/hotel preferences.

Purpose: To secure reservations with suppliers (e.g., airlines, hotels) and meet legal requirements. Basis:Contract (essential for booking).

Payment Data

Card number, security number, expiration date, cardholder name.

Purpose: To process payments for your travel. Basis:Contract (essential for transaction).

Special Category Data

Dietary requirements, health issues relevant to travel.

Purpose: To inform suppliers to ensure your safety and comfort. Basis:Consent (explicit consent required for this data) or Legitimate Interest (to ensure travel safety).

Website Usage & Technical Data

IP address, browser type, device information, website activity (via cookies).

Purpose: To maintain website security, analyse site performance, and personalise your experience. Basis:Legitimate Interest (site improvement & security) and Consent (for non-essential cookies).

Marketing Preferences

Where you heard about us, your preferences.

Purpose: To send you relevant offers and updates. Basis:Consent (for direct marketing) or Legitimate Interest (for existing customer marketing).

Call Recordings

Recordings of calls with our team.

Purpose: For quality control, staff training, and dispute resolution. Basis:Legitimate Interest.

B. How We Collect Your Information

  • Directly from you: When you book via phone, email, or our website; subscribe to our newsletter; speak to customer service; or enter competitions.
  • From a third party: When someone else books travel on your behalf (e.g., a family member, group organiser, or employer). If you book for others, you confirm that you have obtained their consent for us to collect, use, and share their data as outlined in this policy.

3. Basis for Processing

We process your personal data only when we have a valid legal basis to do so under UK GDPR.

Legal Basis

When We Use It

Performance of a Contract

When processing is necessary to complete your travel booking and provide the services you have paid for.

Legitimate Interest

When processing is necessary for our business interests (or those of a third party) and your fundamental rights do not override those interests (e.g., fraud prevention, site security, service improvement, non-intrusive marketing).

Consent

When you give us clear, explicit permission to process your data for a specific purpose (e.g., signing up for marketing emails, processing special category data). You can withdraw your consent at any time.

Legal Obligation

When processing is necessary to comply with a legal or regulatory requirement (e.g., providing data to HMRC or border control).

4. How We Share Your Personal Data

We only share your data as necessary to fulfil our contractual obligations or when required by law.

  • Travel Suppliers: We must share necessary data with airlines, hotels, tour operators, transfer providers, cruise lines, and car rental companies to secure and manage your reservation.
  • Third-Party Bookings: If an individual makes a booking on your behalf, we will share updates and details with them.
  • Service Providers: Third parties who provide essential services on our behalf, such as payment processors, IT support, business analytics providers, and fraud prevention services. They are only permitted to use your data to perform those services.
  • Legal & Regulatory Authorities: Where required by applicable law, such as border control, law enforcement, or regulatory bodies.

International Data Transfers

As we operate a global travel business, your personal data will often be transferred to and processed in countries outside the UK and the European Economic Area (EEA), which may not have the same level of data protection laws.

We ensure that any international transfer is lawful by implementing appropriate safeguards required by UK GDPR, such as:

  1. Contractual Necessity: The transfer is necessary to perform the contract of your travel booking (e.g., sending your name to a US airline).
  2. Appropriate Safeguards: Relying on Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) or other approved mechanisms to ensure your data receives a similar level of protection.

5. Data Retention

We keep your personal data for as long as is necessary to fulfil the purposes for which we collected it, including for satisfying any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements.

  • Booking Records: Generally, we retain records related to your contract for 6 years after the booking is completed to protect ourselves against contractual claims, in line with statutory limitation periods.
  • Marketing Data: We retain this until you unsubscribe or withdraw your consent.

6. Your Data Protection Rights

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

  • Right to be Informed: To be informed about how we process your personal data (this policy).
  • Right of Access (SAR): To request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
  • Right to Rectification: To have inaccurate or incomplete data corrected.
  • Right to Erasure ('Right to be Forgotten'): To request that we delete your personal data when there is no compelling reason for its continued processing.
  • Right to Restrict Processing: To ask us to suspend the processing of your data, for example, if you want us to establish its accuracy.
  • Right to Data Portability: To receive your personal data in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format and to transfer it to another controller.
  • Right to Object: To object to the processing of your personal data based on legitimate interests or for direct marketing purposes.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details below.

Making a Complaint

If you are dissatisfied with how we have handled your personal data, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK's supervisory authority for data protection issues.

7. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

We use cookies and similar tracking technologies to enhance your experience, analyse site traffic, and deliver targeted advertising. Cookies are small text files stored on your device.

  • Essential Cookies: Necessary for the website to function (e.g., enabling booking and payment). We rely on Legitimate Interest for these.
  • Non-Essential Cookies: Used for analytics (e.g., Google Analytics) and marketing. We rely on your Consent for these, which you can manage via our Cookie Banner or your browser settings.

8. Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this policy periodically to reflect changes in our practices or legal requirements. We will notify you of any significant changes by posting the updated policy on our website and, where appropriate, notifying you via email.

9. How to Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or our data handling practices, please contact our dedicated support team:

Data Protection Query Email:

support@Farehutz.co.uk 

Telephone: 0203 468 6333

Farehutz.co.uk is operated by Friendztravel UK Limited. All bookings made through our website are financially protected under the ATOL scheme, ensuring your travel security. By using this website, you agree to our Terms & Conditions, Privacy Policy, and Data Protection Policy. All bookings are subject to applicable Service Fees and Post-Ticketing Fees.

For full details on ATOL financial protection, please visit www.caa.co.uk/atol-protection.

Please review our Cookie Policy to learn how we use cookies to enhance your experience.